[72novaproject]

I am building a 1972 Nova with a 383 stroker and THM 350 Trans. I have narrowed a ford 9" with a locker and 3.70:1 gears. I have installed offset rear spring hangers and multi (5) leaf springs with poly urethane bushings through out. I have fabricated the axel spring perches and lower clamping plates from scratch. I do not want to weld these in place untill I am sure about how to set the pinion angle with traction bars. I will fabricate the traction bars myself and weld them to the clamping plates. Questions: Pinion angle at rear should match trans. If set up this way with no load (cruise), it will be to steep under hard acceleration when the stress on the u-joints is the greatest. Will traction bars controle the limit of pinion climb at the desired angle? Should the pinion angle be set low for normal driving so it is proper during hard acceleration? Will traction bars make noise during normal driving? Any experiance you have had setting up a car this way would be appreciated.

[willys36@aol.com]

Be careful on how you use traction bars w/leaf springs. If installed wrong they will cause spring bind and poor handlidng or worse, parts breakage. They make commercial devices that relieve this stress (Summit carries them) but they are pricy and ugly. I have a couple of ways to do it yourself and they look great. Basically, you need to allow the springs and T-bars to describe different arcs in their travel while preventing rear end rotation. I'll send you a scan when I gewt home tonight of a tech article on how to do it.

Set your pinion with the chassis fully loaded and it should be OK for all driving conditions.

[ December 17, 2002: Message edited by: willys36@aol.com ]</p>

[2x4]

Hey willys36@aol.com , I hate to ask, but could I get a copy of that artical too?

afastride@aol.com