[whytry]

Hey all -

I have a 68 Camaro with airbags up front and it is built to a switch to lift the front when I floor it @ the track. What I am in need of is opinions of what to do for the rear of the car. I do drive it around town, but I want to take it to the track and run it 1/4 mile.

I currently have Eaton leaf springs (5 leaf) with Koni adjustables and Clatrax bars. I am also in the process of mini tubing the car and will be running a 315/35/18 around town, but get a 26x 10.50 slick in rear for the track. Should I get new leafs (Landrums) or should I convert to a 4 link?

Thanks,
whytry

[gt2betubbed]

With my 69 Camaro, I was told to go with a mono leaf spring to help the rear squat better.
The air bags going up upon launch is a good idea and will help with weight transfer, but I would try and think of a way to get them to go back down after the launch. You wouldn't want the front higher than the rear going down the track. How much lift is on the front bags? And is the rear bagged as well?

As for doing the 4 link, it's totally up to you. It's not really necessary if you are only going to be going to the strip once in a while. A caltrac set up would be good enough (and I think I read in another post that you already have a set on it).

[whytry]

You are correct. I already have Caltrax and I love them. I noticed it right away hooking up better but still not good enough. I was looking into mono leafs, but is there a particular brand to use? I have seen a lot of cars with the Landrum springs.

It gets about 6" of lift up from from the bags and then pauses for 3 seconds then slowly lowers back down to ride height.

The rear is not bagged but I want to bag it for the shows and cruising around town...

You're help is greatly appreciated

[whytry]

Any other help?

[gt2betubbed]

Have you tried slicks? The Caltrac set up should be enough for your application. BFG's drag radials are real good (saw an article in Super Chevy a while back and they were the best in thier studies). They didn't try Mickey Tompson's ET Streets though, but those wouldn't handle any kind of wet weather. I'm assuming you already have some sort of posi unit.
Also, I would look into getting your bags to go up faster. I would think you have 3/8's lines running to them, switch them over to 1/2 and better valves. This will make you system work faster since on the line you need to pretty much jump like a drag spring would work. Also, a set of adjustable drag shocks in the front will help out in that.

[whytry]

I have used the BFG Drag Radials when it was a SB but with BB I currently spin my 275/35/18's until about 4500 in 3rd... It sucks. I mean its awesome for burnouts, but not for traction. I am getting some 15" Draglites for the races and will be using some type of drag radial or Slick. I also heard BFG is making a new 18" Drag Radial. I hope I can use that...

As for the front air - I am currently using 1/2 line and 15mm valves from SMC. They are some of the fastest flowing valves out there. I have a reducer on the downside so when I come down to rideheight is is slower and more controlable. With my friends Slicks I can launch good and lift the front and the tires come off the ground. But they spin spin a little.

As for rearend I have Eaton Posi with 3.73 gears..

Thanks for the help...

[gt2betubbed]

The 18" wheels are your problem. I wouldn't waste my money on spinning the crap out of those expensive low pro's. Get a set of track rims (anything really, but lighter is better) that are 15's, and a set of wrinkle wall slicks (ET Street's if you want to drive it to the track and not have to switch rims once you get there), and you should see a huge improvement. Since you're still getting tire spin off the line with your friend's slicks, try launching at a lower rpm. Depending how your car reacts, you may need a little spin off the line. You want the car to take off as fast as possible with no bog, some times a little tire spin is neccessary. Try out some different launch rpms and techniques (flooring it faster or slower), and pay attention to your 60 ft times to see what makes an improvement.

BTW, nice set up on your bags in the front. With that, you should be able to hop the front alone right? Also, where's the compressor and take mounted at? If they already aren't you may want to put them as far back in the trunk as possible, along with the battery. Any weight that can be moved to the rear is good.

[whytry]

Thanks Tubbed. The car runs strong to 7400, but it does not do any good if all I am doing is staying at the starting line....

For the rear I was planning on getting some 15's for racing. I have been in a bind in terms of what to do for rear suspension. I have a pretty good idea now and I am eager to get started.. Where are you from in Cali? I am in Norcal.

The slicks will be awesome, once I get the suspension all dialed in. I can pull the fronts off the ground all by itself.. I relocated my battery to the trunk as well as put the compressor in the driverside wheel well and the tank as well. In terms of leaf springs are Landrums the best out there....

[gt2betubbed]

I'm in Sactown (close to the raceway ). I hope you get it all working right.
As for the Landrums, I have no idea, but I would think even a stock mono would be better than a multi.

[Tony@AirRideTech]

In any real racing application I would recommend to install a link system over a leaf spring. leaf springs are inherandt to getting spring wrap and causing pinion preload. The only way around that is to install and run a pinion snubber but that can pose to be a problem with ride quality and street drive-ability.

Tony...

[whytry]

GT, I plan on taking the car up there in Oct. before it closed for the year. I hope it all works out too. I want this car to launch hard, but still be driveable on the street... I can deal with it with a bad idle, etc. That's what a high HP motor is supposed to do... hehhee The Landrums are what a lot of people who own Caltrax bars recommend. I have been checking around to see what is best for me. It looks like that is the way to go. I am planning on mini-tubing it and moving the rear susp in to get a wider tire. That is why I am trying to figure this out now...

Tony, I know the best all around is a 4-link but I was having real trouble with tearing the back seat out completely. I want the interior to look somewhat stock.... All of the true 4 link setups I saw I have to ditch the back seat, I can use a 4-bar setup and retain the back seat, but I would be changing it to get the best performance and from what I can tell a 4-bar is different than a 4 link.....

[gt2betubbed]

I would never call a nasty sounding idle a "bad" idle, unless I meant bad as in good...lol.
I was looking at the Caltrac's site, and they have some fast cars using their set up, along with a Nova pulling some incredible wheelies that's not even tubbed. I've never used or known anyone with them, but from what it looks like, it's a good system. I think you should launch really hard. What's the power plant/drive train in the Camaro.

[billy smith]

WELL , I GUESS IN YOUR CAR I WOULD KEEP IT SIMPLE......MONO LEAF, FLOATERS AND A GOOD ADJUSTABLE SET OF LADDER BARS ......AND GET RID OF THOSE 18" RIMS AND GO LIGHT WEIGHT RACING AND SLICKS IF IN THE STREET GO WITH THE NITTO'S........I WONDER WHAT TYE OF TRANS TH350 OR GLIDE AND LAUNCH RPM (STALL) UR USING ALL AFFECT YOUR 60 FT . IF USING nos I WOULD SUGGEST LEAVING ON MUSCLE AND WHEN YOU SHIFT TO 2nd OR DRIVE SRAY IT

[Tony@AirRideTech]

If you run ladder bars inconjunction with leaf springs you will end up with suspension bind in the rear. A leaf spring ( for the most part ) wants to travel in a vertical plane as to where the ladder bar is wanting to travel in an arc so you would end up with two converging angles. On bracket cars with limited travel you can get away with stuff like that but on a street driven car that needs atleast 5" of suspension travel for a good ride quality and also needs to be able to articulate...... you are really hindering yourself with that set up.

Tony....

[willys36@aol.com]

Tony is right. Ladders and leaves don't normally go together well. However, I came up with two ways to run ladders w/ leaf springs. Both work great, allowing the leaves full travel with zero bind, yet maintaining full ladder bar traction control. PM me your e- mail address and I will send you a tech article I wrote a few years ago on how to make them.