Abraham Lincoln
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Who needs skills All i need is Logic
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Post by Abraham Lincoln on Feb 9, 2012 13:53:51 GMT -5
1974-1978 C Body Mopar Shocker Tips/Tricks
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Abraham Lincoln
Feature Winner
Who needs skills All i need is Logic
Posts: 141
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Post by Abraham Lincoln on Feb 9, 2012 14:08:27 GMT -5
Hardnose the bumper direct to the frame, weld bumper seams as much as possible. Weld as much frame and body seams you are allowed, remove all body mounts suck tight. add as many sub frame pin bolts as allowed, usally just one, and i do one between firewall mounts and trans crossmember dead center threw the sub. double u joint steering is a huge factor in shocker life. 8 3/4s rearend fits in very easy, just pull the springs together a bit, imp double cv shafts go right in if you take 1" out of them, weld as much as you can on the door seams, i like to do the whole front one. small and big blocks love holley 500s, i run 4.86 gears and run all sorts of different tracks. i could talk about these cars for awhile, we have built 13 in the last few years and everyone has won something, if not multiple trophies, from finale wins, to most aggressive driver and more, feel free to hit me up with questions. thanks eric #000 models covered in this tips thread: SEDANS 1974-1978 Chrysler Newport & New Yorker 1974-1975 Imperial 1974-1975 Monaco 1976-1977 Royal Monaco 1974 Fury 1975-1977 Gran Fury WAGONS 1974-1977 Chrysler Town & Country 1974-1977 Plymouth (Gran) Fury Suburban 1974-1975 Dodge Monaco wagon 1976-1977 Dodge Royal Monaco wagon Just wondering if notching the frame is worth it? Just wondering if notching the frame is worth it? you won't get a consensus from the gang on that question the way it is worded, but in general my philosophy for shocker trunks is not limited to a single build strategy. Generally speaking, if the trunk is rusty I build it to pack and if it is solid I build it to stay straight. For me, notching it would be one example of a strategy to get it to pack, while a canoe job on the lid would be an example of a strategy to get it to stay straight. Which way I go depends on the condition of the car and how I plan to use it. i was kinda thinking the canoe, and yes we can weld the redi rod to the frame but cannot go through the frame. the quarter panels are a little soft the bottoms are rotten so i guess it would make more sense to try and get it to roll in rather than stay straight. heres how i did the back of my 78 newport for next year, we tucked it then canoed it after the tuck, and v'd at the tuck as well as put a small shallow notch, then tried to crease to bring out the V... what im looking for is to get the back to roll good then be tough after i get it where i want it... what do u guys think? also nothing to frame just 6 connection points which is done..... and btw it will get canoed lower  the second pic is why i decided to do that instead of just making it tough  but the trunk floor itself is spotless Re: 1974-1978 Mopar Shocker Tips/Tricks « Reply #11 on Aug 26, 2011, 10:53am » yes, I would push that canoe job down lower especially at the speaker deck. Can you hammer the quarters in and bolt them to the trunk pan? That would solve the rust issue, but even as it is it can still be made to roll together nice. Most of my shockers look the same way, it's not that big of a deal.   Bolted in 6 spots with 2 threaded rod going threw the fame, and notched. its gonna get canoed lower, dont really know how to get the back lower, id like it lower too, its only got 5 leafs cant flat leaf and the shackles arent flipped and i cant chain humps, so any other ideas would be nice.... and no i cant bolt to floor.... its also gonna get a weaker steel backed bumper for the back or a slightly modded aluminum backed one, mainly so i can make sure to save this one to put on the front of other cars, and i dont wanna cut this one down to short so its stilll usable for a front bumper what are yall doing for a steering shaft on these cars? i've tried a couple different things and seems that welding a u-joint straight to the box has worked best for me, just looking for any other ideas. thanks. well I got a question.. its not just for shockers.. but I was thinking since they have a long back and hard bumpers what do you guys think about running or not running a back bumper.. and why do people not run one.. to keep pressure off the frame rails?    here is mine i ran this year without a back bumper i loved it ..it saves you money imo by keeping the back bumper cars rarely come with them where im from my only suggestion on it is if you rear quarter panels are rusted to patch weld them otherwise if you get hit there it will rip the sheet metal to pieces its gonna get canoed lower, dont really know how to get the back lower, id like it lower too, its only got 5 leafs cant flat leaf and the shackles arent flipped and i cant chain humps, so any other ideas would be nice.... and no i cant bolt to floor.... its also gonna get a weaker steel backed bumper for the back or a slightly modded aluminum backed one, mainly so i can make sure to save this one to put on the front of other cars, and i dont wanna cut this one down to short so its stilll usable for a front bumper Smaller tires and solid short shocks...  my car sits to level for my liking, i need either the back down more or the front up more not sure which? .... torsion bars are up, can turn a little more yet tho without maxing them, cant weld suspension, i do have another pair of tires like i got on the back so ill get a little more hight there...... as for getting the back lower idk what to do, cant flat leaf, shackles arent flipped, cant run solid shocks, or chain humps... or maybe its fine... what do u guys think i should do? I.m.o. you need that a$$ down. With the rules you have I would run some short skidsteer tires on the back because it sounds like that's all you can do. As for the front I like mine a little lower than we used to. I like it so the top of the bumper is right in the middle of your knee cap. Wich is about 23 inches. My opinion. Run like a s.o.b. with the front and make sure nobody is following you. Good luck. ok theres no bumper on the car, but itll most likely have a preran 74 newport flat on the front hardnosed to the frame.... well to the bottom of the frame he just said its only at 16 1/2 inches.... front needs more hight im thinking what kind of steering shaft, u-joint, or other method do yall use for the steering on your shockers? 3/4 inch u-joint, heim joint, 3/4 cold roll shaft, quick disconnect steering wheel setup and your good to go. I.M.O. In stock shows I just undo the bolts at the firewall and it go where it wants to.. Never had a problem .. And my front end was high. I remove the flange that bolts to the firewall, chain the column to the saddle (where the two tiny bolts are at the top), and weld in a U joint between the shaft and the slip collar at the steering box input. Looks something like this:  i just ran my frist shocker this weekend not a bad ride but the front started to bend a little in the front between the a arms and fire wall... the problem is that i used a sbm motor and sat the motor into the big block mounts now after the run the pullys and balancer are into the cross member the mounts are ok but the cross member looks bent  did anyone have this happen to them. the bumper has not gone up more then a 1/4 inch i have seem pics of the bumper as high as the roof thanks i just ran my frist shocker this weekend not a bad ride but the front started to bend a little in the front between the a arms and fire wall... the problem is that i used a sbm motor and sat the motor into the big block mounts now after the run the pullys and balancer are into the cross member the mounts are ok but the cross member looks bent did anyone have this happen to them. the bumper has not gone up more then a 1/4 inch i have seem pics of the bumper as high as the roof thanks yep, they have a wicked dog leg in front of the firewall and like to bend here from big nose shots. Also the cross member likes to pinch together under the engine especially from hard side or corner shots. Seam welding helps, hardnosing the bumper helps, cage and body mount reinforcement helps, etc. but everything bends eventually. 'Tis better to give than to receive! I was just wondering if a y framer could hold up to a shocker on the nose. Both have a pointy hardnosed will have ys plated and sub suckd tight with a dp some would say yes, I'm among those who would say no. With the Y's fixed it goes from nothing to something but personally I still give the edge to a 74-78. is the 74-75 imperial sub frame stronger than a new yorker or gran fury sub>? heres the thing......shockers bend so many different places that you better go pinning everywhere or nowhere......it all depends on how you hit or get hit that determine where they bend.....have seen them bend in the doglegs....bend up immediately in front of the a arms... kick sideways in that same spot.....down in that same spot......bend up right behind the bumper shocks .... engine cradle bends.......need i say more lol what are the best places to pin the frame on these...my last one bent right in front of the motor crossmember so im definitly putting one there...where else do you guys put them? how do keep them from bending behind the control arms .i welded both seems top and botom... plating is the only way.....6"x3"x1/4" works perfect when you ask "where does a shocker bend" here is your answer....   in case you can't tell from the pics, that is: - under the firewall - between the firewall and the A arms - in front of the A arms - the crossmember under the engine edit- I should have given more info to go with those pics. That car was built in a single weekend for a bone stock show, rubbers left in, 9 wire only, stock stock stock. I wanted to post the pics to show the baseline case and from there what y'all do to address the issues is your business  Then it limits steering. You can always do something to accommodate the rad. Plus I kinda like them up so the bottom of the rad don't get taken out then lean it back to get some vision back. The rad and steering are both pretty Important but me personally I like to have the ability to steer to full lock for tight manovers. Also if frame does move sideways it could hurt steering ability even more. Both ways should work and serve the same perpose. Guess it just depends on which problem you feel is easier to work around. Or which is more of a necessity. Jmo Running the biggest show in the state next summer with my 78 newport back a few pages, wondering what bumper I should put on it, frame seems welded a arms forward, bumpers seem welded... what I have now is 3 shocker rear bumpers, a 74 newport flat bumper that is preran with a corner bent, and a 70s steel backed ford bumper... may aquire more later but that's what I got now... what is gonna work the best? I'd choose a seam welded rear bumper itll be hardnosed without shocks, im thinking ill use the 74 newport back bumper  I've posted this before on bumper threads but these rear bumpers really are the cats azz. 74 rear on a y framer, 2nd in a weld up(Gillette), held up to a lot of hard hitting including the last full arena head-on with a 74 impala that killed both cars lol. Might be the toughest bumper I ever ran. Why wouldn't you have a shock welded along the frame and sub along with the hardnose? here is a shocker monaco with a rear seam welded a arms forward only and bumper welded solid, no shocks. he took second to me in the heat till i broke his axle, the 8 3/4s took a shoot right before the demo and all the other were being used so we had to throw a clipper back under it, this car went three more times. he ended an AMCs night in one shot....dry asphalt tack shot...  the biggest trick is how you drive them the biggest trick is how you drive them ^^^X2^^^ gotta try to hit square hardnosed pointy or whatever you got and extended and fully welded shocks on top of the frame imo notch it and weld it in place, or bend it around etc...... my havoc car was patched real heavy like that infront and behind last head on with a heavy 74 caddy and it ripped the frame at the a arms on both sides ive ran a few shockers and imo the biggest trick isn't so much as stopping them from bending but controlling where and when they bend helps more in the long run  |
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