[jon5662]

I love this forum, I'm a new guy here...it's been difficult for me to find legit hot rodders/fabricators who still want to do their own stuff. hot rodding in california(and other places, I just notice it more here) has turned into $100k classics with bolt on everythings with a crate engine. enough ranting.

What are you up to with building your suspension system? I have a '62 Nova that I picked up last year and I want to upgrade the brakes/handling and chassis strength because I got the crazy idea to build a turbo'd SBC for it! I really like the hot rods to hell kit but I don't like the price tag.
I won't be doing suspension anytime in the next 3 months as there's some minor body work to be done(full length floor pans!) and other odds and ends but I'm trying to get as much research and planning done before I start.

Anyway just wondering how it's turning out for you.

[BillyShope]

Originally posted by dingus
Right!! It is a single traction bar mounted solid to the rear end on the pass side and extending forward and ending with a shackle to accommodate the difference in arc lengths between the front half of the springs and the bar. The springs, shocks,etc all remain stock. This design was first used on Jaguar D Type race cars in the 50's before they went to the irs. Chevy also used a variation of it for the 59-64 cars. I have used it under the Nova, 65Mustang, 55 chevy,and three 32 Fords. Two friends also have it under their 32 Fords. I would make a couple of dog bone plates out of 3/8. Weld one to the bar and one under the housing. Make a shackle for the bar end and a plate and you are set.

I believe you're thinking of the Jaguar C-Type, not the D-Type. The early C-Types had a beam axle; all D-Types, I believe, had IRS. The Jaguar suspension did not involve leaf springs or shackles. It was simply an asymmetric trailing 3link with Panhard and coils. The single upper link was offset to the right. Pictures and a detailed description, including setup equations derived by the Jaguar engineer involved, can be found in the student workbook which accompanies "Race Car Vehicle Dynamics" by Bill and Doug Milliken.

[BillyShope]

Here's a picture of the C-Type suspension:

[Poopy 62]

While this thread is being dug up from the grave...here is some relevant info from my truck arm build on my 62 nova. Its still not quite done, my rear axle is being shipped to me, but once that arrives I can finish it off:

My floors were rusty, so I cut them out to get this project underway:



Here is my rear suspension donor, i got this whole piece and a 12bolt truck rear end for $100 CDN.



Here is the truck arm crossmember getting cut in half so it fit:





The crossmember with cut down mounts now welded on instead of riveted:



Mock up of the crossmember and subframe connectors, I've decided to go with 2x3 tube(its 2x2 in the pic) for the crossmember tube so I can drop it an inch lower and still have the 2x2 subframe connectors line up. Still to do is build a tub bridge over the driveshaft to tie the two sides together:

[1ownerT]

Nice project !
Looks like you have things well under control. The following is a link to a company that does Truck Arm suspensions. The even have a kit for 62-67 Novas. Not that you need one. More as a reference to someone who doesn't know what a truck arm susp. is.
http://www.hotrodstohell.net/trucka...ckarm_index.htm

[jon5662]

hey Poopy thanks for digging that up from the grave, that's exactly what I've been looking for. My floor pans are also shot, I only have to cut out half the pan cause the other half is already rusted out! The cheapest I've found full length pans, including toe-boards, is $450, is that good or not?
What are you doing for the front suspension?
Thanks a lot for posting all that stuff, VERY helpfull!!!

Yeah I've seen hot rod to hell's truck arm kit, that's where I got the idea to go truckarm on my car. I was just looking at it and figured it looked easy enough to build on my own. There's a lot more braggin' rights when you fab somethin up instead of buy a bolt on system.

jon5662

[farna]

"Twisting" of the rear axle is handled by the angled arms themselves. The arms travel in two different arcs. Because of the length the arms can actually twist a little to without permanent shape change. The longer the arms the better. I'd make them pivot on the trans crossmember just to each side of the driveshaft. 1"x3" 11 gauge tubing (or if 1.5"x2.5" or 3" is made) should be about right for the arms. I'd find a rubber or poly bushing for the front pivots -- front lower arm bushings from a MII suspension should be about perfect. The actual Chevy truck arms are bit bulky and heavy.

[Poopy 62]

Originally Posted by jon5662

hey Poopy thanks for digging that up from the grave, that's exactly what I've been looking for. My floor pans are also shot, I only have to cut out half the pan cause the other half is already rusted out! The cheapest I've found full length pans, including toe-boards, is $450, is that good or not?
What are you doing for the front suspension?
Thanks a lot for posting all that stuff, VERY helpfull!!!



jon5662

No Problem, pics are always helpful! Front suspension is going to be a custom crossmember/clip using MII style parts. Not sure about the pan prices, my car came with new pans welded OVER the rusty crappy stock pans....

[Triaged]

Originally Posted by farna

"Twisting" of the rear axle is handled by the angled arms themselves. The arms travel in two different arcs. Because of the length the arms can actually twist a little to without permanent shape change. The longer the arms the better....

Exactly! This is why the factory arms were made with an "I" type cross section. An I-beam is very stiff in bending (up down) but is very weak in torsion. Making the cross-section stiffer in torsion will have the same effect as using a stiffer anti-roll bar. The NASCAR guys use different stiffness bars at each track because they don't use a rear anti-roll bar in the rear (I guess that would be too easy). Be careful when you use box section truck arms because the back end will get very stiff in roll.

[Poopy 62]

Originally Posted by Triaged

Exactly! This is why the factory arms were made with an "I" type cross section. An I-beam is very stiff in bending (up down) but is very weak in torsion. Making the cross-section stiffer in torsion will have the same effect as using a stiffer anti-roll bar. The NASCAR guys use different stiffness bars at each track because they don't use a rear anti-roll bar in the rear (I guess that would be too easy). Be careful when you use box section truck arms because the back end will get very stiff in roll.

By any chance are you the same guy who made the 4 link calc on Pirate?

[Triaged]

Originally Posted by Poopy 62

By any chance are you the same guy who made the 4 link calc on Pirate?

Yep That's me. I'm Triaged on just about every board I'm on...it is almost never taken

[Poopy 62]

Awesome, I used your calc for my 4 link in my truck that still isnt built!

[rodnok1]

I would buy an old frame from 63-70 chevy pickup(coil spring rear end). I have seen several for almost nothing to 200 for a rolling frame. All over the country on several classic truck boards.

[S10Fan]

New truck arms can be bought at www.stockcarproducts.com

[farna]

I know, I' dragging an old one up, but had to reply about truck arms on another board and found this powst searching for info. Hot Rods to Hell will sell their arms and other components for those who need a custom installation. http://www.hotrodstohell.net/catalog/catalog.htm

Their arms are I beam as well. Rectangular tubing will work, but the ride will be stiffer as noted. I was thinking of making some with 1"x3" rectangular tubing, 16 gauge (roughly 1/16" sidewalls). Should be plenty strong and still allow some flex. Not as much as an I beam, but a lot more than ladder bars. 6" differential from one wheel to the other (jack up one wheel 6" before the other side starts to come up) should be more than adequate for great handling and a decent ride. Ladder bars only have about 2-3" -- depending on the length of the bars. Chevy trucks with the long arms have more like 8-10".