SCW_200_12.jpg' alt='How To Install Leaf Spring Clamps' title='How To Install Leaf Spring Clamps' />These bolton slapper bars from Competition Engineering are typical and affordable. They are easy to install and can be used to adjust suspension preload while. Firestone air bag helper springs for your truck or SUV. We carry every Firestone air bags kit in production including the RideRite, SportRite, and CoilRite. Ive searched around a bit but didnt have much luck on this. I have the 3 leaf add a leaf pack by ICON but their install instructions say to remove. BDS Suspension 8 Lift Kit for the 20032007 Dodge Ram 2500 34 Ton and 1 Ton 4WD Pickup Gas Diesel. Long arm upgrade available. Heavy duty upper and lower. Load Leveling Leaf Spring Suspension Kits We carry a massive inventory of Load Leveling Kits, Air Springs and Components for your Truck, Motor Home, Slammed. Drag Racing Traction Rear Suspension. Rear wheel drive cars with leaf springs have the same issues as their coil sprung competitors. They must have a means to set pinion angle, preload, and get the car to launch as fast as possible. I have a quick question for all you. When I did my AAL install I stripped out one of the center pins, and had to go find another one at a hardware. In addition, a leaf sprung car has to deal with the issue of spring wrap up. First I discuss some of the more popular old school methods. Many racers successfully still use these same methods today in bracket racing with cars probably having around 3. Later in the chapter I discuss some of the more technologically up to date methods for launching rear wheel drive cars with leaf springs. This Tech Tip is From the Full Book, HOW TO HOOK LAUNCH TRACTION MODS FOR STREET STRIP. For a comprehensive guide on this entire subject you can visit this link SHARE THIS ARTICLE Please feel free to share this article on Facebook, in Forums, or with any Clubs you participate in. You can copy and paste this link to share https musclecardiy. Pinion Angle. Pinion angle is measured in reference to the angle of the pinion gear compared to the driveshaft. As I said, to the driveshaftnot to the ground, transmission, engine, or any of the many other methods I have heard of. Those measurements are important for other reasons, but they have nothing to do with pinion angle. Before you go out and add to the pinion angle under your car, know that pinion angle robs horsepower as the engine overcomes the pinion angle. By overcome, I mean the rotation of the driveshaft and pinion gear attempt to straighten out the pinion angle and force however much pinion angle there is to zero degrees or flat. This happens no matter how much pinion angle is installed into the car. The more pinion angle there is, the more horsepower is needed or robbed from the engine, which could be otherwise used to accelerate the car faster. This straightening process flattening the V and removing the pinion angle to zero creates a leverage affect at the front of the driveshaft and at the rear end. This leverage effect uses the weight of the car to drive the tires harder into the pavement. Pinion angle represents the difference between the driveshaft and the pinion gear, nothing else. How much you choose to run can aid in tuning how your car launches. The proper technique for checking driveshaft angle is to have the vehicle at rest on a level surface with the weight on the tires. A drive on lift is optimal. Place the angle finder on the driveshaft as shown and read the gauge. Its all quite simple, but many people make it more complex than it really is. Accuracy is key. Just be sure to double check your measurements and use good quality tools. You need to unbolt the driveshaft and use the pinion yoke to get an accurate measurement. Again, the car has to be at rest on a level surface with the weight on the tires. This is the digital angle finder manufactured by Allstar. Its a top notch tool and makes finding pinion angle easy and repeatable. Always run the least amount of pinion angle necessary to get your car to hook, but not so much as to waste horsepower. I suggest a starting point of 2 degrees negative pinion angle for cars in the 4. Ive seen up to 7 degrees for cars running a large shot of nitrousmaybe in the range of 1,0. When you measure your driveshaft angle e. Make all settings with the driver or something of equal weight in the drivers seat and the car race ready. A reasonable amount of fuel should be in the tank typically half full. The car must be setting on all four tires inflated to race pressure. In most factory production cars, to get longevity of parts, I have seen a positive number to near zero degrees pinion angle depending upon the age of the chassis components being used, especially the springs. It is very important to get yourself an angle measuring tool then check and correct your cars pinion angle. To change the pinion angle, wedges can be installed between the spring mounts and the leaf springs, thus tipping the pinion either upward or downward depending upon the shim being used and its direction. Preload and Spring Wrap. Preload and spring wrap up can be controlled using traction bars or slapper bars, which are the most common methods used in lower horsepower cars. A slapper bar gets its name because it bolts to the existing spring U bolts, replacing the plate under the spring and extending forward. There are many different versions of these types of traction bars for leaf springs. A gap is left between  the snubber on the front end of the traction bar and the spring. The gap can be different on either side before slapping the frame or the front of the spring depending upon the style in use, thus creating preload. Moving the driver side traction bar snubber closer to the frame creates preload, helping to keep the car from turning right. If you need more preload, adjust either the passenger side snubber first choice closer to the frame or back the driver side snubber second choice away from the frame. If your car turns right upon launch, you need more preload and should adjust the passenger side snubber closer to the frame. If your car turns left upon launch, then you need less preload and should adjust the passenger side snubber farther away from the frame. Remember, the more distance the snubber is from the frame or spring the longer it takes before the car reacts to your settings. For those of you running rear wheel drive GM cars with leaf springs, Landrum Spring Company makes what they refer to as a Parabolic leaf spring. The Parabolic spring is a mono leaf design that is thicker in the middle and tapers as it moves closer to the ends of the spring. This thinner leaf at the end allows the car to plant the rear tires quicker and harder. The thicker middle part of the spring helps prevent spring wrap up. You still need some sort of slapper bar or a set of Cal. Tracs traction bars to stiffen up the front half of the spring. These leaf spring wedges are used to adjust pinion angle on vehicles equipped with rear leaf springs. The wedge is mounted between the spring mount pad and the leaf spring itself. Doing so changes the angle the axle housing sits at. These bolt on slapper bars from Competition Engineering are typical and affordable. They are easy to install and can be used to adjust suspension preload while stiffening the front half of the spring. Most leaf spring equipped street based cars can benefit from having them, and if they can be used to help tune the suspension, thats even better. This is my former Olds Omega drag car. I used Chryslers proven super stock leaf springs under the rear of it with great success. The car didnt know they were Chrysler parts. This is Dan Zrust in a 1. Plymouth Barracuda. The car competes in the notoriously tough Super Stock ranks and is powered by the venerable 4. Chrysler Hemi engine. This shot was taken at the 2. Free Download Need For Speed With Crackers. NHRA U. S. Nationals in Indianapolis, Indiana. Here is a classic shot of legendary Mopar racer Ray Mancini from 1. Hes shown piloting a 1. Dodge, powered by a 4. Hemi engine at the NHRA World Finals in Dallas, Texas. Chrysler muscle cars have the option of Mopar super stock springs. They have a heavier spring rate on the passenger side than on the driver side, thus creating preload. Additionally, they are much stiffer in the front half of the spring due to the axle not being centered on the spring than the rear half, creating a rear suspension that works like a ladder bar setup.