mknherhappy Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 Installing a set of greasable shackles this weekend. Any advice on how to do this, or advice on how to make it safe and easier would be appreciated. Thanks again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mvusse Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 Front rear shackles? There is nothing front about shackles on our trucks. Front suspension is coil, rear suspension only has shackles on the rear of the springs. (with shackles on both ends your rear axle would move front to back and your springs would flop up and down). As for replacing the shackles, I just replaced the springs ion my 21 year old Ohio (as in rust belt) truck, and had no problem getting the bolts loose with a breaker bar and extension pipe. Jack up the truck by the frame until both rear wheels are barely touching the ground to unload the springs, which in turn will take the weight of the bolts so they will come out easier after taking the nuts off, and SET THE FRAME OF THE VEHICLE ON JACK STANDS. NEVER work under a vehicle supported only by a jack. Reinstall with new bolts, tightened to 109 ft/lbs of torque. Sorry, can't tell you what size, I just went to Fastenall and compared the old ones to new ones, but do know they were metric. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geonovast Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 Front rear shackles? There is nothing front about shackles on our trucks. Tell DirtyComanche that. lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOrnbrod Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 Installing a set of greasable shackles this weekend. Any advice on how to do this, or advice on how to make it safe and easier would be appreciated. Thanks again. From a previous post: I've done this quite a few times, and I don't even bother jacking anything up anymore. I use the good old MJ standard bottle jack between the rear spring and frame, and crank it up to just put pressure on the spring. To be "safe" I put a couple of C-clamps on the base of the bottle jack to hold it securely to the spring. Then loosten and remove the shackle bolt nuts, pull the bolts (bottom bolt first), pull the shackle, then jack it up another inch or so until the bolt holes line up with your new extended shackle and reverse the procedure, inserting the top bolt first. Do one side at a time; takes about 15-20 minutes per side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperWade2 Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 Installing a set of greasable shackles this weekend. Any advice on how to do this, or advice on how to make it safe and easier would be appreciated. Thanks again. From a previous post: I've done this quite a few times, and I don't even bother jacking anything up anymore. I use the good old MJ standard bottle jack between the rear spring and frame, and crank it up to just put pressure on the spring. To be "safe" I put a couple of C-clamps on the base of the bottle jack to hold it securely to the spring. Then loosten and remove the shackle bolt nuts, pull the bolts (bottom bolt first), pull the shackle, then jack it up another inch or so until the bolt holes line up with your new extended shackle and reverse the procedure, inserting the top bolt first. Do one side at a time; takes about 15-20 minutes per side. Is that "Safer" that jacking the whole back end up or just "easier", especially for a new guy who's never unbolted a spring pack before... I'm going to be doing mine in the next couple of weeks when my new Shackles show up... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOrnbrod Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 As long as you c-clamp the bottle jack base flange on both sides to the spring and wedge the upper portion of the jack between the frame cross members before applying jack tension the leaf pack can't go anywhere. Yes, it's easier but I've never had any problems doing it this way. Very little jack tension is needed; you can turn the jack screw by inserting a screw driver in the slot. Anyhow, this is just a suggestion, and I think it's as safe as any other method. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOrnbrod Posted July 4, 2008 Share Posted July 4, 2008 [is that "Safer" that jacking the whole back end up or just "easier", especially for a new guy who's never unbolted a spring pack before...I'm going to be doing mine in the next couple of weeks when my new Shackles show up... Which shackles did you get Wade? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperWade2 Posted July 4, 2008 Share Posted July 4, 2008 [is that "Safer" that jacking the whole back end up or just "easier", especially for a new guy who's never unbolted a spring pack before...I'm going to be doing mine in the next couple of weeks when my new Shackles show up... Which shackles did you get Wade? http://tinyurl.com/5nwpfu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOrnbrod Posted July 4, 2008 Share Posted July 4, 2008 Ah, the Chebbie drop shackles. Remember now. :D I tried a set of them quire awhile back; they were a bit wider than the spring bushing, maybe 1/4" or so I used a couple of HD washers so they wouldn't bend in when tightened. Worked okay though........ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperWade2 Posted July 4, 2008 Share Posted July 4, 2008 Ah, the Chebbie drop shackles. Remember now. :D I tried a set of them quire awhile back; they were a bit wider than the spring bushing, maybe 1/4" or so I used a couple of HD washers so they wouldn't bend in when tightened. Worked okay though........ Thanks for the tips on the Washers... It's a "short term" setup until I can afford and/or justify a "real" swap... I don't think I'm going big, but eventually a 3-3.5" sounds about right. SW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mvusse Posted July 4, 2008 Share Posted July 4, 2008 When I have my axle at full droop with stock leafs/shackles, the rubber brake line going to the axle is tight. With the drop shackles, you might have to get a longer brake line. Also, if you still have the load sensing rear brake valve, with the vehicle sitting higher, that valve thinks you have less weight, and will lower your rear brake pressure. You may want to think about a way to solve that as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperWade2 Posted July 7, 2008 Share Posted July 7, 2008 Installing a set of greasable shackles this weekend. Any advice on how to do this, or advice on how to make it safe and easier would be appreciated. Thanks again. You get the Shackles installed? How did it go? I'm still waiting to mine to show up in the Mail... SW2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mknherhappy Posted July 7, 2008 Author Share Posted July 7, 2008 Installing a set of greasable shackles this weekend. Any advice on how to do this, or advice on how to make it safe and easier would be appreciated. Thanks again. You get the Shackles installed? How did it go? I'm still waiting to mine to show up in the Mail... SW2 The Shackles went great, really no problems at all, did it just like the description said listed above. Coil springs on the other hand.....did not go well, ended up renting a set of strut compressors, after I could not get the coil spring compressors to work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperWade2 Posted July 8, 2008 Share Posted July 8, 2008 Installing a set of greasable shackles this weekend. Any advice on how to do this, or advice on how to make it safe and easier would be appreciated. Thanks again. You get the Shackles installed? How did it go? I'm still waiting to mine to show up in the Mail... SW2 The Shackles went great, really no problems at all, did it just like the description said listed above. Coil springs on the other hand.....did not go well, ended up renting a set of strut compressors, after I could not get the coil spring compressors to work. Nice, I think my Shackles are coming slow boat (from AZ)... it's been a week since they were shipped... hopefully tomorrow...I was hoping to toss em on after work tonight... And by the way! :needpics: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TNT Posted July 8, 2008 Share Posted July 8, 2008 My advise. Relocate the upper mounting hole forward for more flex and a better ride. Image Not Found Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperWade2 Posted July 8, 2008 Share Posted July 8, 2008 I've done this quite a few times, and I don't even bother jacking anything up anymore. I use the good old MJ standard bottle jack between the rear spring and frame, and crank it up to just put pressure on the spring. To be "safe" I put a couple of C-clamps on the base of the bottle jack to hold it securely to the spring. Then loosten and remove the shackle bolt nuts, pull the bolts (bottom bolt first), pull the shackle, then jack it up another inch or so until the bolt holes line up with your new extended shackle and reverse the procedure, inserting the top bolt first. Do one side at a time; takes about 15-20 minutes per side. Where along the Spring are you using the Bottle Jack, closer to the Axle Tube, or up higher toward the end of the spring? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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