lockers and flex

[zukimudman]

hi everyone, im taking the spoa lift out and put it back to standed i do have front and rear lockers do i need to put put lifted springs in it or will it be good with the standed ones in it?

[mrRocky]

Springs do not affect locker operation standard will be fine.

[31zook]

Depends on how big your lockers are

[zukimudman]

yeh i know that but do u need heaps of flex when twin locked or is standed lift ok?

[Gwagensteve]

Flex and lift aren't related.

You don't need lots of flex with lockers, but you do need predictable behaviour, which is related to flex, but also weight distribution, roll stiffness, spring rate... quite a few things.

Cars with no flex can be scary - so can cars with lots of flex.

Steve.

PS do you actually think lifted springs add flex? Most don't add any and some actually reduce flex. In any case, even the flex of standard springs on sierras is limited by shock absorber length is that's not connected to springs at all.

[zukimudman]

oh ok i do have procomps shocks in it atm , just getting info cos the spoa had mad flex but it was a lil to high and did get scary sometimes

[mrRocky]

Make sure your shocks dont bottom out when they compress otherwise you will be up for a new pair. When you have the car how you want it minus the shocks drive up on ramp of sorts and measure the distance between the mounting points compressed and open and that is how long you will need for your shocks. If the shock compresses and the bumpstop doesnt stop it from bottoming out there stuffed.

[zukimudman]

ok then i hope they work ok, how capable will it be with standed springs with load leaf taken out with procomp shocks with being twin locked and maybe 150mm long shacks

[lay80n]

Telling us you have pro comps is useless unless you tell us the size of the shocks. You may be down on flex because your shocks are the right length. I am SPOA, and if i tried to run the same shocks i have now SPUA i would be in a world of drama due to the lengths being setup for the way my suspension is configured now.
Maybe some pics or more details will help get a decent answer, because so far we can only give very broad answers with all the guesswork.


Layto....

[Gwagensteve]

ok then i hope they work ok, how capable will it be with standed springs with load leaf taken out with procomp shocks with being twin locked and maybe 150mm long shacks

I'm guessing you mean 150mm long shackles?

If so, that's way, way too long - double the length of the standard shackle.

This shackle length is going to make the car handle very poorly. You'll have so little caster in the front end (possibly even positive caster) the car will be all over the road. On the rear, you'll be rolling the diff into the rear shocks.

I agree with layto, without knowing anything about the shocks, or the way your suspension was set up when SPOA, it's impossible to know if they are appropriate.

Steve.

[nick.gooding]

extended shackles don't give better flex any way.
Taking the load leafs out on standard springs is a bad idea too can cause axle rap.
i say get a 2inch suspension lift 2inch body lift, 31's and being twin locked already, that should make it really capable.

[zukimudman]

oh ok
wat is axle wrap but wont the load leaf out give it more flex

[lay80n]

oh ok
wat is axle wrap but wont the load leaf out give it more flex

Axle wrap is, loosly put, the diff assembly twisting. Think back to physics - every action has an reaction (yes the law is more than that, but it gets the point across ). So for every newton of force you try to use to make the tyre turn, there is an force trying to stop the tyre moving and rotate the diff instead. This is axle wrap. It bends springs, breaks stuff and makes cars vibrate and be a pain in the arse. More prevelant in SPOA due to the larger leverage between the axle and spring, but it can happen with low rate leaves on SPUA cars.

Layto....

[zukimudman]

oh OK cool thanks for the info. another quick Q it is better to have a 4 pin center in the front with a lock rite then a 1 pin?