Rockhound's Offroad Adventures
                                 

                                                                           Working on the little gray truck, Tuffy II

 Frankensprings


 

The truck came with a Downey 3" lift.

Downeys are good for lift, but too stiff for articulation.

On the trail, rockcrawling, it's all about flex.

The front axle is built. The crossover steering is in. The old Doetsch Techs and Downeys are still in. No flex.

Downeys were pretty flat.

I picked up a pair of stock 2wd Toyota rear springs from Mike at Mni Truck Recycling in San Diego. 2wd springs don't have much lift, but they are soft. I chose them for axle movement. Stuff and Droop.

The front spring hanger bolt won't fit thru the stock rear spring bushing. I pushed 'em out and used some Performance Suspension bushings.

Stock 2wd rears on the top, built combo pack bottom with bushing pushed out.

The new combo pack consists of 2wd Toyota rear springs and 3 cut leafs from a set of '86 4wd springs I had.

Old Downey fronts.

Short, flat and stiff.

I took my combos apart, and sprayed 'em with a rattle can.

A fresh coat of Krylon dresses up the pieces to my new front spring pack. I ordered Marlin's U-bolt flip kit to enhance ground clearance and give a cleaner look to the front axle assembly.

Time to try something different. The new pack is ready to go in. I just need to pull the old ones out first.

Pulled one side at a time.

New combos bolted in with u-bolt flip kit.

They are kinda flat, but man do they droop!

The longer rears up front, push the All Pro shackles to the back of the body mount bracket.

I swapped out  All Pro's shackles for a set from Sky's. This allowed the longer springs to move back and flex.

The stock Toyota rear springs used up front, move the axle foward about 1 1/2 ".

Now for the rear.

Getting ready to pull the old Downeys out.

Jackstands under the axle and supporting the frame.

The Chevy's are about 6" longer than the stock Yota's.  To retain wheelbase dimensions, a new spring hanger needs to be located 6" foward of the stock location. I didn't have a welder or know how to use one so I enlisted the help of my  neighbor, Marine Jim, to tackle the job. These baby's aren't going anywhere!

$100 for a pair of used S-10/ Sonoma rear springs. I pushed the old bushings out, pulled off the overload and bolted 'em up.

The Chevy S-10/GMC Sonoma's in the rear, moved the axle back 2".

This is all the flex the old Downeys had. Anybody recognize the trail? The John Bull gatekeeper is behind me.

Checking out the new suspension at Los Coyotes. Amazing

                                                           

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