traction devices

[fordnut71]

whos using what or ideas on what to do to make the ranger hook up. iv always notice the ranger in any form will spin an have a hard time hooking. the guys with the f150 seem to be hooking up with out much problem with a lower bar design.
i personally thinking on a set of caltracks bars or something of the same design.aslo iv noticed that the rear pulls sideways when i hit a bump from the set up of the shocks.
so whats everyones thoughts on how to work the rear?

[salating]

i am working on a triangulated 4 link with coil overs in the rear of my truck

[nagelandy55]

Posi rear end spring clamps, works fine for me.

[wes761]

I've been running 1/2 ton booster coils... kinda red neck, but it lets me clear 27/12.50 slicks and hooks up amazinly good (plus posi). Caltracks are def the way to go if you are on a budget. If you're mr. moneybags :idea: (j/k), 4 link it!

[salating]

If you're mr. moneybags :idea: (j/k), 4 link it!

haha

my brother can fabricate all kinds of stuff, if anyone wants a 4 link ill see what he would charge to make one for our trucks

this is what he did to the back of his truck along with a new frame from motor crossmember back

[bruiser]

nice work looks sick

[wes761]

I was thinking of a 4 link, and started to put a parts list together and relized theres lots to consider.... 4 link kits from competition engineering aren't too pricey, but you then have to run a fuel cell and you might as well narrow the rear end while your at it. I like to call in the domino effect. Which seems to happen with any modifications you make to a turbo ranger.

[roadkill]

i bought a wheelie bar set up from Jegs that im going to try out... if it still breaks goin to add traction bars as well have to wait and c?

[Soul]

salating that is awesome lol

[D94R]

I'm gonna go with a true 4-link. The universal fit one from Summit. And then coil overs too.

For now I was just using spring clamps to kill wheel hop. Didn't keep me from spinning, but killed all hop.

[qwik_huh]

sorry a possibly dumb ? but what are spring clamps i to have been wondering how im going to try and hook this truck its not as easy as mustang and just pick up and mag and find what u need also what are caltracks?

[fordnut71]

spring clamps are just 2 flat bars bolted together at where the 2 leaf springs meet on the front of the spring. you only bolt the front half of the spring an leave the back half to fan out. what it does is make the spring a solid bar.


caltracks is made by calvert racing,its a 1/2 4 link in a way. it uses a lower bar bolted to a povit plate on the front spring eye. as torque is applyed it will push the lower bar forward to the povit plate applying pressure to the front 1/2 of the leaf spring keeping it from wraping up into a s shape.

[qwik_huh]

ahh cool are the spring clamps something u have to fab up or does someone make them

[fordnut71]

well you can make them up or let some 1 else do it for you. its just like 1/2" 3/16 steel with a bolt on each side of the spring.

im not even sure if thats the size of the steel or not tho just to give u an idea.

[qwik_huh]

k thats cool man app. it those caltracks look pretty sweet

[fordnut71]

ya they are if you lower using the explorer rear you just buy them for a s-10

[qwik_huh]

ahh ok i was wondering because i checked out there website and didn't see anything for a ranger app.it man :)

[Shane]

i got my 8.8 out of the Eddie bower exploer and on the rear it has two traction bars to kill the wheel hoop the go right out side of the frame

[Touring23]

I haven't done anything to mine. Well, LSD, if that counts.
(But I'm not hitting it very hard, either).

[fordnut71]

i got my 8.8 out of the Eddie bower exploer and on the rear it has two traction bars to kill the wheel hoop the go right out side of the frame

your rear axle came from a 5.0 v-8 eddie then.

[D94R]

Home made spring clamps:

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/1504/3781/3759390205_large.jpg

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/1504/3781/3759390206_large.jpg

[more_boost]

i have a small machine shop and could make these spring clamps in like 20 minutes but do they really help much ???

[D94R]

Killed wheel hop completely. And a machine shop isn't necessary. Angle grinder and drill with appropriate sized bits is how I made mine.

[nagelandy55]

I'll second that, i have zero wheel hope with mine.

[Touring23]

That's very interesting.... :thumbsup:

[more_boost]

lol but my machine shop makes it so much easier ha ha ... so why dont yall run 2 clamps on each side ??? you clamped the 3 leafs together but like 8in in front of that the second leaf just has a little plastic bushing in between it and the top leaf ... i made 4 clamps and clamped this area as well i figured it would make it more solid all the way up to where the leafs mount ... was this a good idea or overkill ??? the other thing is in the picture the truck looks lowered will it make a difference if the axel is over or under the leafs cause mine is still under??

[nagelandy55]

My axle is under the leafs, so it must not make a difference.

[Riddle_Rob]

Are you guys clamping front AND back?

[D94R]

I didn't do 4 clamps because I didn't think there would be a need. The axle would have to wrap the springs, and then the springs would have to wrap around the clamps. Being clamped at the the furthest and thickest part I thought would eliminate any wrapping of the leaf. Any deflection of that last bit of 8" I would imagine is negligible.

Now, I could see it making the leaf pack stronger (IE more resistant to wrapping). But I don't have sticky enough street tires and off the line power to twist up the springs enough to worry about breaking them.

[Riddle_Rob]

Ahh ok. Just from your pics it looked like front and rear on the drivers side.

Are the bolts pressed up against the leaf as well to prevent the leafs from shifting sideways?

[splatranger95]

Seriously how hard is a four link to do? I have always wanted to, but thought it would be crazy hard. My truck being has horrible wheel hop. I gotta put those clamps on.

[Riddle_Rob]

I heard there's people in the US doing 4 links extremely cheap atm due to needing cash. Like, I was ready to drive down to have one done haha.

[D94R]

Bolts are spaced about 1/2" away from the spring on each side. The metal stock itself actually started to bend down around the leafs from being tightened so much. They aren't going anywhere.

4-links and difficulty depend entirely on who is building it and what its intentions are for.


I'm gonna do a parallel 4-link if I don't go Cobra IRS. I'll be making it entirely myself. There is A LOT of research in setting them up though.

[splatranger95]

Ya im guessing Cobra IRS is the way to go.

[Touring23]

OK, I'll try the leaf clamps.
Props to D94R for the inspiration. :cheers2:

$2.36 4xBolts, Grade8, 3/8x20
$0.68 4xNylock nuts
$8.99 3/4" mill angle
$12.03

http://users.pngusa.net/~pritch82/RangerLeafSpringClamp2.JPG

[nagelandy55]

And??? did it help at all?

[Touring23]

Sorry. Too early to say. I think so.
I only had one opportunity today to launch, and bogged terribly. :conf45:
I need some more time with it.

[Kurt]

My traction device is an .84 a/r exhaust housing.... LOL!

[mastersmith]

A four link all depends on your fabication skills and access to the proper tools. I built a four link with 27 inches of clean wheel travel for my baja truck in a weekend with about $500 worth of parts(not including $2000 worth of shocks and springs) I have also seen kits sold for $5000+ dollars. But trust me once you have a nice fourlink and coil overs, you will never want to drive a truck with leaf springs again.

[rangergt]

I'll never give up my leaf springs! Yes 4 link and coilovers is the ultimate setup but it can cause a lot of setup problems for rookie suspension tuners. Of course leaf springs as simple as they appear can cause problems with suspension tuning as well. There is more than one way to skin a cat. I have solid bushing in the front spring eye and polyurethane bushing in the rear hangers. I have southside machine lift bars (out of business now), they hit very hard and that is one of the reasons I run a 30" tall mickey thompson et street tire. It helps absorb the violent hit off the line. One of the most important things is learning to drive your own setup. A good driver will adapt to the limitation of their vehical.

There are guys running 7's in the 1/4 with leaf springs and 10" tires. Nothing like a simple old truck suspension:D .

[TURBO Ranger]

Hey, it's kinda a lot of work, but I'm using mopar 3800lb Super Stock leaf springs. My dad recomended them, and they're awsum! The front part is 20" long and the back is 36" to make the front really stiff. They have 6 leaves on the left side and 6 leaves plus 2 half leaves on the right. They're clamped on the front and back too. They have traction like traction bars with no bind at all and it hooks up both tires evenly(counteracts torque twist on axle). Downside is you have to move the front hangers down and back and the rears back. upside is they're built for an axle over too and when you lower the front hangar it fixes your ride height with an explorer axle.

[AirBender]

home made cal-tracs

http://www.hotrodsandhemis.com/Traction.html

[Riddle_Rob]

Here's a question.
I've aquired a pair of the composite fibreglass leaf springs. These should technically work better then the leaf pack as well, it's a mono leaf. Correct?

[TURBO Ranger]

Well, if they're the same length on both sides of the axle, then no for drag racing. The only thing they help with is reduced weight(which isn't necessarily a good thing for our trucks), and reduce spring friction for a better ability to conform to undulations in the road surface. Good for circle track, ok for drag, but no better than regular springs.

[Riddle_Rob]

Well I plan on doing a lot more autox and road courses then drag...

[PvtRanger]

i got the composite springs and they spring wrap real bad like something fierce. they are real light duty too, 3 dudes sitting on the tailgate and i am on the bump stops, i am not happy with them and it wheel hops terrable.