New rims on my 720. Need advice on getting it lower.

[Lowandslow]

I FINALLY got tires for my Datsun!! 

 

 

 

I have it lowered 4" in the back and only 2 leaf springs.

In the front I have the torsions almost all the down, not re indexed.

 

I rolled my fenders and bed a little to fit the rims. I am running 195/55/r15 stretched out. The problem I am having is that it hits the inside of the fenders. I am planning on notching the frame in the back this week since the axle is hitting the frame. 

 

Does anyone have any advice for going this low?? 

[datzenmike]

Going to two leafs is not the best idea. Right now you are riding on the air in the tires because you are on the frame. Once you notch the frame... look out. Lower vehicles should go to stiffer suspension.

 

Lowered front will throw the camber and toe out. How's it steer?

[Lowandslow]

I have about 2" clearance in the back between the axle and frame. I plan on getting a lot stiffer suspension for the front and back. The camber is pretty good, the toe went a little bit out on the passenger side. I also plan on changing the ball joints and tie rod ends soon.

[wayno]

4 inches is a bit much, will the rear lower shock mounts hit the ground if you get a flat?

Use 720 4X4 leafs and don't remove any of the leafs, go to 3 inch blocks in the rear at the most, and get drop spindles for the front, as you running 15 inch rims, so it should not be an issue, but I don't know that for sure, I guess it would depend on the offset.

You also need to start looking at your frame clearances, and how far you will drop if you get a flat.

[Lowandslow]

What is a flat?

 

I had heard about 4x4 leaf springs and I was waiting to get the notches in before I did it just for clearance issues between the frame and axle.

 

The offset is pretty deep. Ill post a picture of them in a bit.

 

As for the drop spindles would I use hardbody ones?

 

Since we flared out the fenders the tires no longer hit the fender but it hits the inside of the fender. I removed the liner.

[Lowandslow]

 

Here is the offset of the rim compared to an iPhone3 haha.

 

 

 

Any advice on some stiffer shocks?

[wayno]

What is a flat?

 

I had heard about 4x4 leaf springs and I was waiting to get the notches in before I did it just for clearance issues between the frame and axle.

 

The offset is pretty deep. Ill post a picture of them in a bit.

 

As for the drop spindles would I use hardbody ones?

 

Since we flared out the fenders the tires no longer hit the fender but it hits the inside of the fender. I removed the liner.

 

Yes, here is a link to what you needI(belltech-2005), but you can find them cheaper if you wait for a deal to come along.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Belltech-2005-Spindles-Ductile-Iron-2-Drop-Nissan-Pickup-Pair-/370881674284?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&fits=Model%3A720&hash=item565a453c2c&vxp=mtr

 

Search "720 drop spindles" on ebay

[jrock4224]

wanna see that bagged chevy ....... oh and leafs removal is ok at a minimum.... meaning don't strip to one leaf then wonder why it rides shitty and has axle wrap..... the front is easy too .... torsion de crank and prolly clocking

[Lowandslow]

I looked at the drop spindles and being that mine is an 80 I dont think the 83+ will work on my truck.

 

I dont plan on going on any less than 2 leaf springs. I will see what it looks like with the 4x4 springs. I was talking with my friend, the owner of the bagged Chevy and we are planning on tubbing the front to get the rims to fit when the truck bottoms out.

 

Ill get more pics of the chevy up too haha

[jrock4224]

go read my thread ......... i rub the fuck out of my inners on my 521.....its legit,  totally safe!!

[wayno]

I looked at the drop spindles and being that mine is an 80 I dont think the 83+ will work on my truck.

 

I dont plan on going on any less than 2 leaf springs. I will see what it looks like with the 4x4 springs. I was talking with my friend, the owner of the bagged Chevy and we are planning on tubbing the front to get the rims to fit when the truck bottoms out.

 

Ill get more pics of the chevy up too haha

 

It will work just fine on your 1980, you just have to use 85/86 rotors and brake calipers, and you will likely need the spacers, or you can just use hardbody rotors/calipers, I don't believe they need the spacers.

 

And what I said above about 3 inch blocks with 720 4X4 leafs will likely get you about a half inch lower than you are right now in the rear.

With 4 inch blocks the rear lower shock mounts will likely hit the ground if you get a flat which is not good, to be safe you should be able to put 4 rims on your truck without tires and have nothing rest on the ground sitting on the rims.

You are also going to have issues with the front leaf mounts in the rear, and the carrier bearing cross member.

[Lowandslow]

I just dont want my tires to unexpectedly blow up haha

 

When you say flat do you mean a de arched leaf spring?

The carrier bearing crossmember is whats hitting right now. That and my exhaust piping. What are some ways to re route the piping because i dont see mich room to work with.

[Lowandslow]

 

Here is my truck stuck on a driveway with a big raised sidewalk. My exhaust piping and crossmember are scraping and stopping the truck.

[wayno]

You have to read my thread in the link below below to see what I have all done to my 520 truck sitting on a 1986 720 frame, the modifying starts on page 6, look at every part in all photos, some parts will be upside down on purpose like the upper control arms, that was done to stop the ball joints from binding.

I notched the rear frame over the axle among a bunch of other things back there.

I cut out the carrier bearing mount cross member, and put one in that was flat that don't hang down.

I cut the floor board to make a tunnel above the cross members for the exhaust.

the front end has had the shit modified out of it.

http://community.ratsun.net/topic/27671-1966-datsun-520-kingcab-project-act-2/page__view__findpost__p__545211__hl__wayno__fromsearch__1

It is a lot of work to go low and still have a decent ride without hitting on a lot of shit, speed bumps are still an issue, and I still need to get the back a little lower.

I am not done yet.

[jrock4224]

read my thread.... differnet truck same concept ... I has no carrier bearing member anymore.... I has leaf mods ...I has extensive mods to make low ....and exhaust rerouting that doesn't hang below the frame anywhere.... and its 2 1/4

[datzenmike]

...... oh and leafs removal is ok at a minimum.... meaning don't strip to one leaf then wonder why it rides shitty and has axle wrap.....

.

 

To each his own but I have to disagree. Lower needs stiffer (or at least no softer) suspension to resist bottoming. Removing even one leaf will reduce the spring rate and increase the suspension travel. Suspension travel is what makes the ride comfortable.You have to decide if bottoming out all the time and ripping the shit out of exhaust and undersides or if you could handle a slightly firmer ride. Tire flex is also part of the suspension equation too.

 

The rear axle is positioned  and prevented from shifting side to side by the lateral support of the leaf spring pack. Removing leaves reduces this support and the axle will displace to the side on hard corners possibly shoving the sidewall into the fender edge. Just something to think about. 

[jrock4224]

Mike I was beig sarcastic ......... I thought u knew that about me.....lol

[Lowandslow]

I finally found a set of 4x4 leaf springs. Its off of an 85 720, are these still compatible??

 

Jrock4224 how do I find your thread?

[wayno]

I finally found a set of 4x4 leaf springs. Its off of an 85 720, are these still compatible??

 

Jrock4224 how do I find your thread?

 

They have the same dimensions/mounting points, they do go on only one way though, there is a front and back.

Here is a link to his thread.

http://community.ratsun.net/topic/50770-1971-datsun-521-snack-shack/

[ggzilla]

A 'flat' is a deflated tire. With 14" rims and 4" blocks, the bottom of the shocks may hit the ground if you get a flat, I would guess not.

[wayno]

A 'flat' is a deflated tire. With 14" rims and 4" blocks, the bottom of the shocks may hit the ground if you get a flat, I would guess not.

 

ggzilla just brought this up which is good, as I did not notice the answer you gave to my inquiry, when I said if you get a flat, I meant a flat tire, you do not want any of your frame or suspension hitting the ground if you get a flat tire, exactly what do you think will happen if you get a flat going 60mph and your rear lower shock mount starts dragging on the ground because you have 4 inch drop blocks in the rear?

You could likely loose control of the vehicle, and be along for the ride where ever it goes, if that is a ditch, then I hope your ready for the sudden stop at the end of the ride, this is likely a worst case scenario, but when people start lowering the back that low, well the front end is dropped the same amount or even lower, and if the front frame or suspension hits the ground going 60mph because you got a flat tire in the front, well my best guess would be that your fucked, and the best end for that scenario would be that you stayed on the road, and that would be the best ending your going to get, it can only get worse from there.

[Lowandslow]

Wayno: thanks i appreciate it! Also thanks for that info. I will be putting them on and seeing how low i can go. Like i had said i am going to notch it and re do the front suspension very soon.

 

And the shock seems to have a little bit of clearance from the ground even woth a flat. Im running 15's right now.

[Lowandslow]

I dont know why i didnt understand the term flat haha i thought you guys meant a flat leaf spring such as a de arched one. I understand what you mean now tho i had never thought about anything hitting when i get a flat tire.

[wayno]

I just want everyone to be safe, I don't like hearing about collections for family members because you decided to be lowandfast and had an issue.

15 inch wheels quite likely could fix the dragging issue, that's another half inch higher, I removed the 4 inch blocks from my build, the lower shock mount just didn't clear, it was less than 2 inches off the ground.

I also had to remove this cross member, it was to close to the ground.

[wayno]

Sad end for this truck, happy no one was in it.

http://community.ratsun.net/topic/59009-the-bitter-end/