Hot Rod Forum banner

To weld on springs or not

3K views 35 replies 6 participants last post by  yragat 
#1 ·
The right front of my car has always set about 1/2" to 3/4"lower on the right side. I have corvair ifs and have it all apart for new bushings&balljoints. I noticed that the spring on the right side is about 1/2" shorter than the other one. These springs are not flat on top like a mustang spring so I don't think there is a spacer available to put on top of the spring,they just come to an and and the end fits in sort of a slot. I have some old springs here and was wondering if I could (or should) cut off about 6" and weld it to the top of my spring which would make them the same highth If this can be done is there a certain way to go about it,such as welding a little bit at a time so there wouldn't be too much heat at one time or should it be cooled in some special manner?
 
#27 ·
Just want to give a big thumbs-up to amx180mph for his advice on the springs! checked with the "spring guru" expert at Eaton and he agreed totally that the ones that amx180mph recommended was the best match out of 800+ springs that they make !--but they want $159.00 at napa only $43.99. not trying to cheap out,but can't believe Eaton's are 3 times better??? :D
 
#30 ·
OK
I got the springs in--I cut 1 1/2 coils off and the darn thing is sitting like a gasser!!! got 3 1/2" maybe 4" of fender gap. Now what I want to know before I take them back out to cut more is this. Say that I want it 2" lower than it is should I measure how much 2" is on the springs while they are in the car in their compressed state and cut that much off?? :confused:
 
#32 ·
I would REALLY advise you DON'T cut them again or you may end up buying another pair in 4-6 months. the ones you have now need some time with the weigth of the car on them and some bouncing up and down on the road to "settle in" to their final installed height. This is why a lot of people hate messing with springs.

After they have settled you can then determine if they need to be cut more, but it is still a trial and error(or is that trial BY error LOL)process, there is no formula that is going to give you the "miracle cut amount" to be perfect, you just have to sneak up on it 1/4 of a coil at a time.

Reassembled suspensions always sit high when freshly put back together, even with the original spring as the spring "relaxes" in the time it is out and free, still needs some road time to settle it back in. Also, any rubber bushed areas can't have the bolts tighten while the car is up in the air off the suspension or they will "pre-load" the suspension to set high. Don't fully tighten any suspension bushing hardware until the entire vehicle is reassembled and setting on the ground.
 
#33 ·
The spring guru at Eaton said they will only settle about 1/2" over a short period and that's all

As for getting different springs--it took me 2 months just to find something that would fit and be a little stiffer than the stock corvair springs I knew they would be too tall The old ones were corvair HD and they are a
11 1/2" when new these were 14" I cut them to 12" I'm thinking maybe I should cut these to 11" they are heavier than my old ones and I liked the way it set before,just had one weak one--so had to change and didn't want to go with corvair springs because of frontend weight
 
#35 ·
At this point I agree with Rick, at worst you end up buying another set and starting again. You are kind of on your own here and will have to experiment to get the result you want.

If they are heavier it makes sense that they are going to have to be shorter in free height than the original Corvair spring to get you back into the ride height you are looking for.

Good luck, hopefully you get it on the first try :mwink:
 
#36 ·
Well,I cut a little more off (little more than 1/2 coil) and its sitting pretty good now. Have room if they settle some and even if they don't it looks ok where it is. Been bouncing up & down on front and they seem like they are just right as far as stiffness
Thanks for all the input and advice!
Gary :D :D
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top