lowering an e van

have been searching but wondered what was the latest on lowering an E van, read about flipping the axles on top but looks like doesnt leave much suspension travel, also saw something about air bags and single springs

are there other options? is there a simple way to get a little drop?

thanks

de-arch the springs a little

thanks
how do you "de-arch"

You de-arch the springs with heat, this does make them wreaker. Someone did this to my 64 and the spring were broken from being heated up. I personally would do it this way

I lowered my 63 Station Bus by removing one of the leafs out of the spings. It dropped the van down 3 inches.

nice
which leaf did you remove a long or short one?
thanks

Trying to find an easy and inexpensive way to lower my Econo truck...found this post and it looks like the remove a leaf would work for me so back to the question.... which leaf should I remove??? Thanks for the info guys....

I've only recently finished re-building the suspension after a previous attempt by the PO at lowering the van - made the car dangerous.

They took leafs out (multiples of)...to make the van the coolest looking coffin.

Maybe this is about everything in moderation......but I appreciate the suspension now working like it aught to.

Regards,

Rhys

For best results and a safer handling ride,leave all springs in and have them de-arched. Thats how Ken Hopcraft did his 8 door which I ve driven and it drives like a dream.

The simple way to get a little drop is smaller wheels/tires!


Heating springs should be avoided.
I have read that removing a leaf or 2 (5 leaf packs on As) will work. It does decrease the load rating though. This causes the van to have softer springs, which means it doesn't handle as well.
De-arching by a competent spring shop should work, but most 40 year-old springs sag anyway.
The axles are below the springs, flipping them (axle on top) can lower, but most report that it's a lot of work and that that much drop causes clearance issues.
An old rodder's trick is to 'drop' the axle. This involves heating and stretching the axle ends. You have to find someone who can do this the right way, and it is not cheap. There are issues with tie rod clearance that have to be addressed too.
There are more drastic ways (channelling, different suspension) that are a lot more work and money.

You have to figure out how much lower you want and how much money you can apply. The other thing you have to consider is ride and handling. Almost all lowering tends to deteriorate these. Cheap and handling almost never go together and if you add in lowering, it increases the difficulty.

HAMB post
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=219999&showall=1

which I pointed back here!
https://vintage-vans.forumotion.com/e-van-general-discussion-f5/new-guy-here-t7298.htm

You also asked about a single spring and air bags. What is happening is you are using the single spring to locate the axle and allow more travel. This will move the spring through a much larger range, and almost positively beyond it's ability to flex without damage. Expect to replace them fairly often. Most guys with full bag system installs go with links, not leafs.
Then you have to mount the air bags on the body and axle. High level engineering and welding are required. I have also heard that you must size the bags very carefully to get a decent ride. Too small and the air pressure to maintain ride height is too high, causing a rough ride. Too big and the air pressure is low, causing a too soft spring rate (wallows). Shocks must be tuned for this and have enough travel to handle the great changes. If you plan on this, find a shop that sells and installs them and ask to ride in some completed projects and take a look at the installs.

I should also add that theres a right and a wrong way to have springs dearched. Theres a lot of info on the net about it so do your homework. Smaller wheels/tires will work but it doesnt look so good not filling out the wheel well. My old 66 chop which was just on ebay again(its tan now) had the springs/axles flipped and it drove horribe. I dont think theres a simpler way to do it than by having the springs dearched porperly or replacing them with new less arched springs. Smaller wheels will give a minor drop as stated so the choice is yours. Remember its not just how it looks but also how it drives.

I just received my axle from Sid @ droppedaxles.com. He was able to get about 2.5" drop and narrowed about 1.5". This gives the needed clearance between the tire and the hump inside the wheel well. I bought an adjustable tie rod spacer from Speedway that should keep the steering geometry the same, with no bumpsteer. I'll post photos when I finish painting it.

dropped spindle in front
lowering blocks in back

Hangtime wrote:I just received my axle from Sid @ droppedaxles.com. He was able to get about 2.5" drop and narrowed about 1.5". This gives the needed clearance between the tire and the hump inside the wheel well. I bought an adjustable tie rod spacer from Speedway that should keep the steering geometry the same, with no bumpsteer. I'll post photos when I finish painting it.

This is also what I want to do to my van. How much was the axle drop? You sent them yours to do?

Mine was around $325 and shipping wasn't too bad. Sorry for the slow reply.

Cool, I was thinking of using him also, not bad. have you installed it yet? Got any pics?

Bringing this back from the daed. (yes, daed)

In all my searching, this is the first I have read about the drop axle service..

Can we get an update?

This always happens with posts I follow! I hope some one can update this too!

Have you seen this thread FCC?

https://vintage-vans.forumotion.com/t32981-source-for-dropped-econoline-axles?highlight=dropped+axxles

I considered doing this at one point. To bad a drop spindle isn't available.

Not to add more questions...but, Years ago I had an old HotRod magazine and in there was a how to artical on putting disc brakes on a 40 Ford. They retained the 40 Ford I beam axle and used "BOLT ON" AMC spindles. Gave the car a 3 inch drop. Is this a possabilty with our front axles? As I recall they kept the oringinal spindal on the car, but cut the horn off the spindal and bolted the AMC spindals to that and used a Thick backing plate for the top to holes. Now given the weight of our vans VS the weight of a 40 ford with a SBC engine...I wonder if it would be strong enough. Just something else to think about...lol. If I can find that magazine (I never throw those away) I will post the pics if I can.

I hadn't seen that! Better. But still no finished product! Nor a final review. Hmph.

Double post.

Tim , aka Econoparts USA has a secure block setup that lets you relocate the axle above the springs. Gains 3" or more and bumps the bolt size up. I saw it at Bakers and looks to be a safe way to go.

Yeah. Tim lives near me and I went to visit him when I first got the van. I like his blocks, but don't want that much drop due to what work it would take out back to level the ride. C notching, etc.

As I see it so far, there are several progressive and increasingly labor intensive choices. None, that I can find, address the need of shortened and stiffened shocks, until it becomes about air. Which I still can't understand why no one talks about improved dampening and shorter shocks.

Some honest reviews of the final product from guys who have performed the various methods of lowering and lived with them, would be wonderful.  But this is the internet, we only talk about the good, and I get that.

From what I have researched, the list below is what I have gathered. None of it comes from direct experience.

$= cost, and 1-10 = difficulty (1 being a brake job level, 10 being custom fab)

1. Drop axle (front). $$/5
-Bolt in solution. +/- 2" drop
-Keeps original suspension geometry and travel.
-Light mods to perfect fitment.
-need additional tie rod bits.
-3/4" narrower per side. May effect wide wheel fitment.
-would benefit from an HD shock.
-works with stock rear set up.

2.  Remove leaves. (Front) $/3
- 2-4" drop
-softens spring rates, particularly on non-HD springs.
-could produce hard bottoming of body on bump stops. And shock piston bottoming.
-would need shocks with a shorter piston and a firmer compression/rebound stroke.

3.  Flip axles. (Front/rear) $$/7
-3-4" drop
-some welding required.
-clearance issue in rear requiring frame notching.
-shorter firmer shocks mandatory.(IMHO)
-?
-?

4. IFS Mustang II install. (front) $$$$/10
-major surgery, full custom installation
-major improvement/modern drivability
-disc brakes
-rack and pinion
-shocks, coil overs or bags. Your call.
-works with stock rear suspension, or any config you want out back.
-probably worth every penny.


To date, I have only spoken on the phone to one person who has a dropped van (flipped axles) that has given an honest review of the end product.  While from a 'stance' perspective, it looks kick ass, he said it's almost undrivable. He regrets having it done because it's taken the fun out if driving it. He paid a shop to do the work and has no real knowledge of the details of the work, but that was his review.  I'm guessing they just slammed it and didn't address the characters with supporting rolls..  bump stops, the dampeners (shocks), etc.

It would really be a good thing if we could round up all the info and put together a formula for what makes for a good driving, affordable lowered ride.  If we could get folks to ring in on what works and what sucks, we would be able to do just that.

Of course, the end all is IFS, but not everyone wants to cut their car, or not everyone has that kind of loot.

If you have knowledge of any of the above categories, feel free to copy and paste what I have written into a reply, and add to it.

Hangtime wrote:I just received my axle from Sid @ droppedaxles.com. He was able to get about 2.5" drop and narrowed about 1.5". This gives the needed clearance between the tire and the hump inside the wheel well. I bought an adjustable tie rod spacer from Speedway that should keep the steering geometry the same, with no bumpsteer. I'll post photos when I finish painting it.

Hangtime, can you post pictures of your van/finished product?

Did you only add blocks & flip the rear?