Shackle reversal, reversal

Done a considerable amount of searching and have not quite found what I am looking for (product or information).

Recently picked up a ‘72 with a 3 1/2 suspension and 2 inch body. The rear leaves are an 11 leaf duff pack, but the previous owner did a shackle reversal for the rear hangar. With that said, I’m not sure what height lift springs are back there, as from my measurements the flip itself will equate to a couple inches of lift.

The problems I’m having are:

1. Axle wrap. I haven’t driver her hard at all yet, but can detect a fair amount of wrap already. My guess is a strong contributor is the soft springs, which are being run in a way they were not designed for. I've had a few broncos previously with 3 1/2 - 5 1/2 lifts, and flexy rear leaves with no where near the wrap im getting here.

2. Rear has a boat load of body roll. Like previously mentioned, the springs were not designed to be run in this fashion and I’m sure is a contributing factor

On to my questions; does anyone make the stock-style, rear spring hangar? Will bolting and welding it to the frame weaken the area (think steering box)? Most frame attachments seem to be riveted with a small amount of welding, would rather not create more problems down the line for myself.

Excuse the long winded post. Appreciate any onsite which could be shed.

EDIT - trying to get a photo attached.


Thanks

If you could provide pictures of the current setup, that would likely help us see what is going on.

Bolting or welding to the frame is unlikely to cause an issue. Each end of the leaf spring is carrying less than 500 lbs.


If another owner flipped the rear shackles around, they could have altered the suspension geometry from stock, leading to more or less body roll. Pictures would help determine that. BUT keep in mind, most of these trucks lack anti-sway bars and have more body roll than modern vehicles.

Not sure why they put the shackle flip on there, but here's what you need, made by Brian or " migs" send him a pm. You won't find a better made shackle.

jmangi62 said:

Not sure why they put the shackle flip on there, but here's what you need, made by Brian or " migs" send him a pm. You won't find a better made shackle.

Click to expand...

Those look real nice - I will have to look into them if I can figure out how to go back to the standard rear spring hangar.

Hey adv, definitely like to see pics when you get a chance. Not many shackle flips going on in our world.

Jeff's has a new fabbed hanger that should work (I believe) here: https://shop.broncograveyard.com/19...Spring-Hanger-Rear-of-Leaf/productinfo/13267/
You could rob one off of an existing frame of course, but if you don't happen to have one laying around, or know someone that does, this could be a good option.

By the way, whereabouts are you? Maybe someone in your area has some already.

Paul

jmangi62 said:

Not sure why they put the shackle flip on there, but here's what you need, made by Brian or " migs" send him a pm. You won't find a better made shackle.

Click to expand...

Those are some handsome shackles

DirtDonk said:

Hey adv, definitely like to see pics when you get a chance. Not many shackle flips going on in our world.

Jeff's has a new fabbed hanger that should work (I believe) here: https://shop.broncograveyard.com/19...Spring-Hanger-Rear-of-Leaf/productinfo/13267/
You could rob one off of an existing frame of course, but if you don't happen to have one laying around, or know someone that does, this could be a good option.

By the way, whereabouts are you? Maybe someone in your area has some already.

Paul

Click to expand...

Thanks Paul, had not seen that hangar from Jeffs previously. Have you seen any issues with welding vs the stock rivets in terms of frame attachments and weakening of the rails?

No, not at all. At least not under normal circumstances. What are you going to be doing with the Bronco?

Remember the stresses on a spring hanger are completely different from the forces at work on the frame behind a steering gearbox. Other than when rusted out to start with, I've never seen a spring hanger, or any other part of a Bronco frame suffer from cracks or other issues.
Only behind the gearbox, likely because all the forces of the torque of the steering system fighting all the forces of the weight of the front of the Bronco are being forced sideways right through that one spot.
Where most of the twisting forces coming from springs are spread out at least partially through the four, well separated spring hangers.
And under normal driving where it's mostly just short up-n-down jouncing, the forces are not going to cause any trouble unless the metal was already compromised in some way.

But nothing says you can't bolt and weld the new ones in place I would not think. Haven't done one myself though, so don't know what kind of road-blocks to bolting you might run into.

Paul

Also, if that is still a concern and you'd rather stick with a stock style that can be attached like the factory did, we might have some stock ones laying around at any given time. Tom's is also good at keeping little bits and pieces of used Broncos around that might come in handy.
But if neither of those works out, Randy down at Driven Auto Parts in Phoenix is extremely likely (thought not guaranteed) to have just what you need.

Paul

Here's adv's existing shackle flip...



Interesting stuff.

Paul

That looks like a home made shackle flip which isn't a big deal as they are just brackets. I think you could get the truck to handle better with a standard shackle as you probably have a manual based on your axle wrap comment. The issue you are seeing is when you remove the weight from one side... it unloads more than normal. All the sudden the inside tire in a turn on the rear is really lifting up higher than a suspension without a shackle flip. A really good sway bar would fix this but if you arn't looking for cheaper ways of getting flex out of your suspension, you'd be better off just going back to a stock style shackle bracket and a standard lifting leaf spring.

BTW factory rear leaf hangers were welded on so welding is a non-issue.
http://classicbroncos.com/forums/showthread.php?t=257176