offset shackles (how big a tire)

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hemidart67

hemidart67

1967 dart pro-touring
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hey just wondering if anybody has put a set of offset shackles on a dart.i have a 67 planning on using a set. just wondering how wide a tire and rim combo you can use with these shackles i think they offset about .8 of an inch any help would be appriciated
 
hemidart67 said:
hey just wondering if anybody has put a set of offset shackles on a dart.i have a 67 planning on using a set. just wondering how wide a tire and rim combo you can use with these shackles i think they offset about .8 of an inch any help would be appriciated
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I offset mine with the offset shackles and hangers. I just won't to make sure you get the hangers also. I have a 15x8 wheel with 275/60/15 tire. Now after all said and done I "think" I could have went with a 10x15 and a little bit wider tire. There is no way I could have went with a larger in diameter tire but could have went wider.

The picture shows how much I have between the tire and leaf spring in which I had only a 3/4" before. So it helps alot to offset them.

Cuda boot area 069.jpg
 
hey thanks alot i plan on running a 10 wide rim so that is a great deal of help.ya i knew you had to use both front and rear.where did you get yours from.if you had part # that would be a great bonus.i know a couple of companys make them
 
Dart abd Barracuda will be way different from each other. The Offset kit should move the spring just enough allow you to use the entire wheel well. You will not get a 10" rim in there with out jacking the rear up sky high. Other wise it will hit the quarter panel.

You should be able to get a 15X8" rim with 5.5" backspacing in it though. Look for a tire with around 10" of section width. That should be 9" of tread width.

If you want more you will need to mini tub it.
 
hemi, I am running a very similar setup to mullinax on my '69 Barracuda. With the offset kit, I am running a 15x8 steelie with a BF 275/60/15. The only difference is that I added on .75" onto the backspacing which pulls the wheel in nicely. I have had trouble in the past with the wheel wells cutting into the sidetread and wanted to make sure it wasn't going to happen again. Good luck.
 
oh ok adam thats good to know.i am planning on running a 17 wheel so if possible then a 9 in wide rim
 
PM, AbodyJoe, Hes running 17s on his 71 Dart. Stock wheel wells, I believe he has 275-45-17s ?
 
i put them on this 67 i have. i had a hell of a battle to put 28x11.50 hoosier dot slicks. they wouldnt fit on 10" rims. had to go to 8s. i had to remove the outer wheelhouse and weld 1/4" rod the lip of the wheel well after i removed the opening lip. i know of a guy that fit the same tires on his scamp without removing the outter wheelhouse i think maybe he pushed it out with a jack. if he did you couldnt tell from outside. i built the rear for the car so im using 3.5" bs draglights. figured make the dana as short as possible to save a few ounces.... i also know of guys that squeezed 275s on darts without the offset hangers. im thinking of making my own setup for my 69. i really hate the relocation box deal if i felt the need for that much tire i would just go ladder bars inside the rear rails.
 
jamesdart said:
i really hate the relocation box deal if i felt the need for that much tire i would just go ladder bars inside the rear rails.
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What we have been discussing in this thread is the offset front hangers not the box type you have to weld in.
 
Rolling the inner fenders will get you a little more room as well. I have all ready rolled mine. Next is the offset spring kit. I don't know yet but I think with the two you may get a 10" tire in there. Or at least close. I won't know till I get both done and brake out the tape. My plan was to go with some 15x8's centered up in the well then cram as much rubber in there as I can with out it rubbing.

Good luck.
 
great help by all.i would like to get the widest tire possible in there without modifying the wheel wells.i hate the fact of cutting a southern car up and dont like tubed cars.i am building a 6.1 hemi for the car .plan on making about 450 to the wheels so just trying to get the power to trhe groung with as much tire as possible
 
mullinax95 said:
What we have been discussing in this thread is the offset front hangers not the box type you have to weld in.
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yeah i know, i have them in my car. i was just stating my opinion of the relocation boxes.
 
Can't see where you would get any extra room with just the offset shackles, you would need to relocate the front hangers too.

That being said I have 15x8 rims with 4.5" of back spacing and 255/60 tires. A rim with about 4" of back spacing would have centered the rim better in the wheel well and a 275 tire would easily have fit.
 
The wheel wells on Darts and Barracudas are so different that you cant use one example on the other car.

My Barracuda had 255-60-15s on it with the stock spring location. 15X8.5" rim with 4-7/8 backspacing. After I moved the springs I had 325-50-15s on it in the stock wheel well.

My Dart has much less room. 235-60-15 is about as much as most guys get under them with out moving stuff.
 
i run 255 60 15 on my 69 dart on a 7" rim and i can fit my fingers between the tire and body without the offset hanger kit. had 255 70 17 but they rubbed the paint off the front edge of the opening on big bumps i was going to shim the front hangers back but decided to just get a shorter tire.
 
I have the offset shackles/hangers on my 67 Dart with 245-45-17 tires on 17x7" wheels. My axle was shortened .5" inches, too. There is a ton of room under there. I have ESPO springs, which make it sit slightly higher than stock, but not a ton. I know that I have at least a couple of inches between the tires and spring. I haven't measured the distance between the tires and the wheelwells, but I can stick my fingers in between them on the lip. I really don't know how close it is anywhere else.

You can check out more pictures at http://www.damnimcool.com/cars/convertible if you'd like. I know I could have a much wider tire in there without spring contact, but I'm not sure how close it is to the wheel well further up.

I chose this tire size because it is really close to the same diameter as the stock 195-75-14s, so they would fill the wheelwell the same, except be wider. They are almost exactly the same diameter but almost exactly 2" wider.

Picture%2520004small.jpg
 
sweet good to know i thought about narrowing the rear end too if that would make a difference.great help tom.
 
mullinax95 said:
I offset mine with the offset shackles and hangers. I just won't to make sure you get the hangers also. I have a 15x8 wheel with 275/60/15 tire. Now after all said and done I "think" I could have went with a 10x15 and a little bit wider tire. There is no way I could have went with a larger in diameter tire but could have went wider.

The picture shows how much I have between the tire and leaf spring in which I had only a 3/4" before. So it helps alot to offset them.

View attachment 41136
Click to expand...

is this on ss leafs?
 
I have them on my 73 Sport. 17x8 wheels with 4 1/2 backspace. 255x45 tires. No problems clearing.
 
Since this thread has popped back up I'll add a few things to clean things up a bit

Not all A-bodies have the same size wheel well. In general, a regular Dart/Scamp/Valiant (swinger, hard top, post, 4 door) has about 1" less space in the wheel well than a Duster/Dart Sport/Demon or Barracuda. So if you have a Dart and want to know what fits, don't take advice with someone that has a Duster/Demon/Dart Sport or Barracuda, because with all things equal they have about 1" more room to the quarters. Even an early Valiant has a higher wheel opening than a Dart does which can change things a little when body roll comes into play.

The 1/2" spring offset maximizes the tire clearance for a stock wheel well regardless of which A-body you're talking about, the frame rails and inner wheel wells are basically the same for clearance. So, if you don't do a mini-tub a 1/2" offset is just as good as a 3" spring relocation, the wheel well is the limiting factor. Obviously with a mini-tub the 3" relocation gets you a LOT more room.

The Dart/Scamp/Valiants can usually fit a 245, some even a 255 with the stock spring locations, and can get up to a 275/60/15 with a 1/2" offset. That depends on body tolerances and on some cars may absolutely take some trimming or rolling on the quarter lip. That's more true of the '67-69 cars than '70 up, the wheel wells didn't change but it seems like the pre-'70 Darts had body tolerances that put them on the tighter side for clearance while most (not all!!!) of the '70 up cars have a smidge more room. Just what I've seen from people that have sent me measurements.

Dusters/Dart Sports/Demons and Barracuda's can usually get a 275 with the springs in the stock locations. With a 1/2" offset they can usually get a 285, and if you trim/roll the quarter lip some can even can get a 295 with the stock wheel wells. I have 295's on my Duster with a 1/2" offset and trimmed quarter lips.

All of this assumes you have the right backspace for your car, and all of it is dependent on the body tolerances on YOUR car. Mopar body tolerances are pretty loose, one car can have a 1/4" more room than another with nothing else being different. I've heard of 1/2" differences between the same body style without any accidents or damage, that's a lot but not unheard of. They're not even all the same from one side of the car to the other, so, if you really want to use the biggest tire that will fit you'd better measure YOUR car and on BOTH sides before you decide on what backspace to use on your rims and what tires to order.
 
Thanks for the update.
I’m planning on 245/60x15 on 8” rims with 4 1/2” back space on my ‘66 Dart . I will have to make sure the clearance is there before mounting the tires on the rims . This will be on an 8 1/4” axle .

I currently have 205/65x15 on 7” rims on the rear 7 1/4” axle . Seems like this should work .
 
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