dart_68
Well-Known Member
Starting with a 73 Duster and stock rear suspension, what would you run for bracket racing? This is not an all out tube frame car but a weekend warrior with a fairly warmed up 360 and auto trans.
What rear suspension for bracket racing.
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33IMP
Well-Known Member
I voted for ladder bars before i read your post.
For 500hp or less, i would likely just start with ss springs, and some good shocks, double adjustable if they fit the budget. A definite step up, especially if moving springs and mini-tubbing would be caltracs and mono leafs. Probably could still use the good d/a shocks from the ss spring setup.
Back-halfed with the frame moved, ladders are a no brainer.
In my humble opinion, a pinion snubber is five pounds of utterly useless weight, much better in a round file than my car. The only way it might work was if it is against the floor. The rearend of the car is supposed to lift, and push the rearend down. If that is what happens, what does the snubber push against, the car floor is now two to four inches away? (And im sure the ride is real comfy with that snubber against the floor, driving around on the street.)
For 500hp or less, i would likely just start with ss springs, and some good shocks, double adjustable if they fit the budget. A definite step up, especially if moving springs and mini-tubbing would be caltracs and mono leafs. Probably could still use the good d/a shocks from the ss spring setup.
Back-halfed with the frame moved, ladders are a no brainer.
In my humble opinion, a pinion snubber is five pounds of utterly useless weight, much better in a round file than my car. The only way it might work was if it is against the floor. The rearend of the car is supposed to lift, and push the rearend down. If that is what happens, what does the snubber push against, the car floor is now two to four inches away? (And im sure the ride is real comfy with that snubber against the floor, driving around on the street.)
yellow rose
Overnight Sensation
I would use the Chassis Engineering Slide-A-links for a street car long before I used Cal-Tracks. They ride a bunch smoother.
If ride doesn’t matter I’d buy the Assassin bars from Smith Racecraft. I think that’s who makes them. Way more adjustable and I like that. But not over ride comfort.
If I was going to back half a car I’d skip the ladder bars and use a 4 link. More adjustable and easier to control than a ladder bar.
SS springs and pinion snubbers are meant for the museum.
Your best money will be spent on double adjustable shocks for the front and rear.
If ride doesn’t matter I’d buy the Assassin bars from Smith Racecraft. I think that’s who makes them. Way more adjustable and I like that. But not over ride comfort.
If I was going to back half a car I’d skip the ladder bars and use a 4 link. More adjustable and easier to control than a ladder bar.
SS springs and pinion snubbers are meant for the museum.
Your best money will be spent on double adjustable shocks for the front and rear.
B3422w5
Well-Known Member
If you are 1/2 way serious, ladder bars.
Street deal,occasional racing, Super stock springs.
To me, i would skip right over the Calverts, for a bracket car.
I have read more threads on the internet..
“ how do i adjust these..how do i get it to go straight...it doesnt hook...which hole.... yada, yada
Street deal,occasional racing, Super stock springs.
To me, i would skip right over the Calverts, for a bracket car.
I have read more threads on the internet..
“ how do i adjust these..how do i get it to go straight...it doesnt hook...which hole.... yada, yada
I don't know man. The SS springs are dated, I admit, but they're simple, cheap effective and they just flat out WORK! That's a tough to beat combination. JMO.
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dart_68
Well-Known Member
Problem is that I have no idea what the car will run as I've not run it. Best guess is 13s at Bamdimere
Have any of you ever seen a 8 3/4 housing that has Twisted? Where does it twist? Right at the ends at the spring mounts. A pinion snubber prevents this because it holds the pumpkin down instead of letting it fly up and twist the housing.
If you've been running super stock Springs without a snubber and you have never Twisted an axle housing I would suggest you get more horsepower. Because that's the way it works out. Lol
If you've been running super stock Springs without a snubber and you have never Twisted an axle housing I would suggest you get more horsepower. Because that's the way it works out. Lol
Not only that, but if you're runnin enough HP to twist the housing, you BETTER reinforce the floor above the snubber. I had a friend who had a really strong 73 Challenger with a 440 roller motor years ago. He used SS springs but they took 1/4" plate and angle and made a pinion snubber cross member. They did that after he beat the snot out of the floor pan above it. I think they got that car down into the mid 9s before they sold it.
K.O. SWINGER
Meeting in the alley since 1976
I'm going against the grain here I love the factory six leaf pack for set ups like yours .I run around 415hp /400 torque ish just make sure it's a good American steel leaf pack. Mine has a 2-in over Arch to accommodate larger tires, and the setups not so stiff that it beat your kidneys out driving on the street. I also run pinion snubber but I'm not sure I'm in love with it yet, I set it about a half an inch off the floor when I'm getting serious and drop it down for regular driving.
13’s 12’s upper 11’s I’ll second the Double Adjustable shocks. Long term investment. An adjustable snubber, thats cheap and can resell at a later date if you exceed the limits of what you have. Work on finding what it takes for hooking, the weight transfer etc. Drag radials with dialed in psi, obviously. No need for chassis re-engineering at that level, at all. If you don’t intend on making the type of power to get you into mid-low 11’s and quicker then I wouldn’t bother with re-engineering things. Increasing power, going quicker and Faster, a more serious effort and building on the tuning experience, setting up the factory style suspension you may one day exceed things and naturally have to gravitate to those modern components. Shocks and snubber for now. Cheapest and a good start. That’s my .02
This is how my old school 71 duster was built. It was made to run 11.001. It did so well that for 7 or 8 years straight it was the track champion. Narrowed 8.75 with 4.30 gears. Resplined axles. No back brace. No snubber. The spring pads were boxed in. Mopar long shocks. SS springs. Frame connectors. 6 cylinder T bars. 90/10 front shocks. 12 inch rims. 12.2x31.25x15 W series good Year slicks. Cheetah shifter. 727 with rmvb. 3800 T/A converter. 440 with the old super stock cheater cam. 10.5 compression. Pro parts headers. 2800 lbs. w/o driver. The 60 ft times were 1.34-1.37 Kim
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Set up just like the MP suspension said to. Oh but all that stuff is no good and dated.......my big old butt. lol
There are cars runnin down in the 8s with SS springs. You caint tell folks that though.
justinp61
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Has the quality of SS springs improved recently? For several years there were a lot of complaints about the quality.
If 11's were what I was planning on running and had no plans to go faster I'd just run the factory HD springs, clamp the fronts, pinion snubber, /6 bars in the front and a good shocks. If I were planning on stepping up I'd go straight to ladder bars or possibly a four link.
If 11's were what I was planning on running and had no plans to go faster I'd just run the factory HD springs, clamp the fronts, pinion snubber, /6 bars in the front and a good shocks. If I were planning on stepping up I'd go straight to ladder bars or possibly a four link.
famous bob
mopar misfit
the superstock springs of yesteryear worked , w/o pinion snubber , my old hemi belevedere tore up every pinion snubber we put on it . The springs made in mexico a few yrs back sucked , dont know about now .
Yes, if you get Mancini's, General Spring's or ESPO's versions. They are all the same thing without the inferior metal. The MP springs you're talking about were all made in Mexico, but not all of them were bad. There was a bad batch of spring steel and that's how they got that reputation. Even so, I still would not use the MP versions.
There you go.
I recently picked up a pair of S/S springs, the ones lighter than the 002/003 set. Stamped “Made in Mexico.” It’s the quality of the steel used in the manufacturing of the spring. The springs I picked up from ESPO.com were really nice and they lasted as long as I had the car.
The old school MP books suggestions are tried and true. Yes there’s better. The chassis book even suggests at a certain level that a move away should be made. I don’t remember exactly what time zone it was. Today there are guys blowing that out of the water and I’m sure it was a huge effort to work out the issues in doing so. I’d say it’s probably ot worth your effort to do so.
I see nothing wrong with S/S springs, skinny torsion bars and 4 good shocks for drag racing and even better if there adjustable in which the more adjustable the better. This will do well up to a point and then you’ll have to decide what to move to and the price of the piper to pay.
Like it was said above, the question remains, how fast is it you want to go? (That’s for anybody reading to ask themselves.)
The old school MP books suggestions are tried and true. Yes there’s better. The chassis book even suggests at a certain level that a move away should be made. I don’t remember exactly what time zone it was. Today there are guys blowing that out of the water and I’m sure it was a huge effort to work out the issues in doing so. I’d say it’s probably ot worth your effort to do so.
I see nothing wrong with S/S springs, skinny torsion bars and 4 good shocks for drag racing and even better if there adjustable in which the more adjustable the better. This will do well up to a point and then you’ll have to decide what to move to and the price of the piper to pay.
Like it was said above, the question remains, how fast is it you want to go? (That’s for anybody reading to ask themselves.)
famous bob
mopar misfit
I used to go 10:40/10:60
B3422w5
Well-Known Member
Went well in the 9’s at 3350 pounds on Super Stock springs and CE 3 ways shocks all around. Very well known car.
Car was a big wheelstander, would hook anywhere( on a 28 by 10 DOT tire) and was ultra consistent.
People don't realize how well most A bodies are suited to drag racing. They have great rear overhang and other benefits
Car was a big wheelstander, would hook anywhere( on a 28 by 10 DOT tire) and was ultra consistent.
People don't realize how well most A bodies are suited to drag racing. They have great rear overhang and other benefits
Nice! Wheels up no less. IIRC (coffee is kickin in) the MP chassis book, *I Think* recommends moving away from S/S springs somewhere in the 9 second zone to (*I Think*) a ladder bar set up, IIRC….
This could also be in part to the power and/or weight of the car? IDK
This could also be in part to the power and/or weight of the car? IDK
aaronk785
Well-Known Member
My car always swayed with the snubber. Took it off and clamped the front sections. Went straight and did 1.42-1.46 60s. Nothing but ss springs with long truck shocks. Eventually twisted the housing bad. So I would brace it if it’s a 8.3/4.
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