how can i get more flex out of coils

[94rodeo]

I did a sas on my rodeo using coils. We made custom control arms etc. Here are some pics http://community.webshots.com/user/94rodeo

I am not getting as much travel as i want out of the coils and am wondering how to improve this. Do i need softer coils, some sort of rotating joint on the control arms where they hook to the truck, any suggestions as to how you guys do it, since coils are new to me.

Troy

 

[manouso]

Do you have any shots of the control arm geometry?

 

[Greg]

What Coils did you use?

What Type of Link System?

How long are your Link Arms?

 

[I Lean]

Your problem is your radius arms. They naturally bind during articulation, and since you have what appear to be heim joints at both axle mounts, you have nothing to absorb the bind. If nothing else, replace those heims with bushings, and see how that works for you.

 

[spencurai]

BINGO!!! common misconceptions about radius arms is that people want to put those silly heims at the axle mounting point....they do absolutely nothing!!! pull those things and add in some rubber or poly bushings and you will see some change in both flex and vibration absorption.

 

[Herzog]

Yep! I second (or third??) the rubber bushings at the axle end. Maybe even a J-Joint at the frame end will help out too.

 

[94rodeo]

I am using 2" lift coils for a 79 bronco. So should I get rid of both heims or just the bottom or top? Jonie joints sound like a good idea. Originally I was going to put the bushings down at the axle and the joints up at the frame mount, a friend talked me into the way it is now.

Thanks,

Troy

 

[Herzog]

Originally posted by 94rodeo
I am using 2" lift coils for a 79 bronco. So should I get rid of both heims or just the bottom or top? Jonie joints sound like a good idea. Originally I was going to put the bushings down at the axle and the joints up at the frame mount, a friend talked me into the way it is now.

Thanks,

Troy

I would use all rubber bushings at the Axle side, and a Johnny-Joint at the Frame end. Use those Hiems for something else.

 

[Milner]

Yep, use rubber!

Radius arms can work well!!!!
I run them on my wifes' XJ and my Bronco.
The XJ uses stock rubber at the axle and ford bushings at the frame. The EB uses rubber at the axle and 1 1/4" heim at the frame. Both work well.
I like the bind, works as a sort-of anti-rock sway bar.

 

[I Lean]

Those '79 Bronco coils may be partially to blame too....I'm thinking they're pretty stiff for the weight of your rig.

 

[Herzog]

Originally posted by I Lean
Those '79 Bronco coils may be partially to blame too....I'm thinking they're pretty stiff for the weight of your rig.

I was thinking the same thing at first, but then I remembered that we did a SAS on a friends Pathfinder and used 'Wild Horse' 4" lift coils for early Broncos. They are freakin soft!

 

[rustybronco]

I've got 79' coils, rancho early bronco coils, and wildhorse early bronco coils all sitting next to each other in the shop. The 79's are 10 times stiffer than even the rancho's. I don't think they're helping flex much since they're designed to be able to hold a 400M with C6 and 205 transfer case. It doesn't get much heavier than that!

 

[cruiseroutfit]

Originally posted by Herzog
I was thinking the same thing at first, but then I remembered that we did a SAS on a friends Pathfinder and used 'Wild Horse' 4" lift coils for early Broncos. They are freakin soft!

But there is a pretty big weight difference between a 1st (66-77)and 2nd(78-?) generation Bronco... I would try different coils.

 

[94rodeo]

i really appreciate the feed back. Looks like i need to look at the jonny joints and rubber bushings. We had some softer coils on at first, but they were like mush, way too soft. I don't remember what they came off. A friend just had them around so we used them. Originally the whole sas was going to be leaf sprung, then my buddy talked me into the coils and now i need to learn about them.

Troy

 

[spencurai]

go here for a great selection of good quality coils.

http://www.jegs.com/cgi-bin/ncommerce3/ProductDisplay?prrfnbr=844&prmenbr=361

you can find your rates and lengths to suit your application. I would go with a 175 or 200 pound version.

 

[94rodeo]

thanks for the web page. How do they rate springs? What is the 100 lbs all about, is that how much weight it takes to compress it?

 

[spencurai]

I believe it is the amount of weight it takes to compress the spring 1 inch. I think cherokee fronts are in the 150lb range. Wrangler TJ coils are in the 175-200 range stock. Aerostar coils, a popular alternative, are light at about 100-125. go for the 150-175. I bet those bronco springs are 200+ easily

 

[94rodeo]

that makes more sense. I guess i need to try a few things before i give up on the coils then.

 

[OCNORB]

Are those skyjacker coils up front?- I tried those on my wifs Jeep at first and they were not flexy at all. The Wild Horse coils that Herzog was talkin about work great- They flex good , but are stiff enough to hold the front end up. The wifs Jeep has the 4.0, which is probably(????) a little heavier than your Rodeo motor.

I think you should also consider changing the rear radius arm mount to the Ford style- It's not as glamorous as a Johhny joint, but it allows the arms to twist as they go up and down.

 

[94rodeo]

Well this is an old one. While I had JR doing the arb's I also had him put the rubber bushings at the axle and a big heim at the frame. He re designed the arms so that i now have full turning radias again and put new shock and coil mounts in. The rig drives down the road like a dream, but the flex is about the same.

The track bar is my next area to look at. It has bushings on both ends. Should they be heims?

Is that what could be holding it up? How can I safely take the track bar off and see if it flexes better?

Troy