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Thursday Jon and I were at the shop by 7:30 and Pete and Charlie were there by 8:00 a.m. Charlie had made a small 1" high block to fit under the front spring hangers. This block adds 1/2" of height and allows the use of a slightly flatter spring for a given ride height. The block and some 1/4" sheet metal was tacked in place on the front of the frame. Then the front hangers were tacked together with a 1/2" round tube. This tube allowed the front hangers to be installed as a set and keep their alignment to each other. This assembly was tacked on and checked for alignment. Later the tube was removed after the final welding was completed .
Rear Spring Hangers
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An All Pro U Bolt Flip kit was used in the front to make the bottom as smooth as possible and to prevent damage to the treaded U bolt ends. With this kit the threads point up and out of harms way instead of the original design that pointed them down. Toyota stock rear shackles were used although All Pro also sells 1" longer shackles. Testing revealed that more travel can be attained with the longer shackles but the truck was getting very high at it was. I was beginning to wonder if I could lift the rear enough to level the truck. |
| The custom made shock hoops were tacked into place at first, then checked and tested for strength and shock travel. Once sure about their placement, the mounts were welded into place and additional supports were added for strength. These supports were mounted behind and to one side of the main hoop for maximum support of the shock. The Rancho 9012 adjustable shocks were mounted upside down for clearance reasons but it also made it very easy to make adjustments to the shock. |
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The stock drain plug that is normally used on the axle has edges on it that can catch on rocks. When you hit a normal drain plug just right it causes it to loosen. Much later down the trail the plug continues to work itself loose and eventually falls out along with all your diff oil. This neat idea greatly reduces the chance of that happening. Its top is much lower in profile and it is round instead of hex-shaped. This makes it very hard for the rocks to get at it and cause it to turn. To install and remove it, you use a 10 mm allan wrench. Avaible from Marlin or All Pro |
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On the last day on the project the shock hoops were finished and the Rancho 9012 shocks were installed. The steering damper I had been using on the IFS suspension was just the right size for use with the crossover steering. Mounts were fabricated up on the axle and draglink and the shocks were reinstalled. The front end was aligned to 1/8"
toe in at the leading edge of the tires.
Rubber bump stops were welded onto the top of the U-bolt flip kit. Ramp testing showed the need to install small 1" long pads on the frame to limit up-travel. This will prevent the draglink from hitting the frame and prevent damage to the springs from excess upward travel. I drove the truck to lunch today :-) After lunch we spent the rest of the day adjusting and testing. The truck now ramps about 1,000 with tires fully inflated. It was clear to all that with longer shackles and springs it would be possible to score much higher numbers, but I wanted to keep the overall lift to a minimum (for now). I drove home on the third day. I can't believe that we did the whole swap in only 3 days, one day less than we had planned! The only thing missing is the front drive shaft. The shaft could not be ordered until the axle was in place. I expect the new front shaft to be here in a few days. I was able to reuse my Rancho IFS steering stabilizer with some added mounts to the draglink and axle. More details here.
It's almost time
to eat rocks!
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The basic solid axle swap starts at $3,400. This includes a resealed solid axle from an 84 or 85 Toyota truck, Hy-steer crossover steering system, Alcan springs with your choice of lift, Rancho 9012 shocks, weld on shock hoops, assorted brackets and mounting hardware, and labor. This is a complete drive in - drive away swap. Some options to consider: Differential gears, lockers, wheel spacer kit, Marfields, U bolt flip kit. |
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Why I Chose Leaf Spring and not Coil Springs
I have had at least 10 different people ask me why I chose to go with a leaf spring and not a coil front suspension. The main advantage I can see to a coil font suspension is comfort. A coil suspension will give a smoother ride than a leaf spring ever will (with the possible exception of fiberglass leaves). The problem with a coil setup is that is is very difficult to get the mounting points correctly placed. I have experimented with using different connecting links in the back of my 4Runner and I found that the angle of the links to each other is very important. I have heard of two other second generation 4Runners like mine with front coil suspensions. Both turned out poorly and one is still undriveable to this day due to instability above 35 MPH. I do not know anyone qualified to design a good coil suspension. It would take weeks or months of experimenting to get the positioning of the links correct. As for travel, I believe that I can get as much travel as I would ever want from a leaf spring suspension. First tests showed over 20" of travel with the leaf spring swap. I have seen other trucks with 24" of front travel using similar Alcan springs. I know and trust the front leaf spring design. The highway ride you get from Alcan springs is better than any other leaf spring I have ever used. I am very happy with the swap and look forward to testing it on the trail. |
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