Has anyone used jcwhitney for suspension parts? Their leaf springs are very reasonable, but I'm worry about quality. (I'm going with 4 leaf set-up, and getting rid of the air shocks) Also...who sells a good affordable front end kit....including a good sway bar set- up? .........need to start thinking about a couple of winter projects. Thanks!
I've used their suspension parts on many cars and trucks over the last 30 years. Never a problem with quality or application specific fit. They do like to entice you with free shipping and 15% off (but never both at the same time ), so make sure you check out how to get the best deal from them before ordering.
I actually used their heavy duty leaf springs on my 70 when I did the v8 swap. The are actually very good springs. They are stiff enough for decent handling but not too stiff for normal driving. Just whatever you do, DO NOT buy their shackle kit because the bushings don't fit right(made in India) and they will fail. Spend some extra money and get poly bushings for the shackles.
I have their leafsprings on my car and they're great. JCW does not actually make leafsprings, they are just a distributor. They had the best price of anyone. Fast delivery too. I hear their shackles suck though. I used my original shackles with new bushings...
I've had their 4-leafs on my 70 for about 13 years now. Work great. Once, about 15 years ago I bought ball joints from them. They were pretty cheesey, didn't last too long. Maybe they're better now.
espo springs has anyone got rear leaf springs from them? i have their catalog. they are from danville,pa. www.espo.com
i put their (4 leaf) rear springs on my (m.a.v.'s) '71. it stood it on its nose...put them on my '73 and it set like stock... ...frank...
Thanks for the tips guys. I was going to buy their shackles too....not now....who would you suggest getting the poly bushings/shackles from? D. Ray
I bought a set of ESPO's u-bolts. They were slightly smaller in diameter even though I told them what I needed. Haven't put them on yet, guess they'll be strong enough.
I would either use your stock shackles and use new poly bushings or get the whole shackle kit from www.p-s-t.com.
I bought all of the new hardware from ESPO (Springs 'N' Things). Shackles don't wear-out (just the bushings), so unless they are severely rusted, you only need to get new bushings for them. ESPO is a great place to ger springs too, but I believe JCW has the lowest price...
Tip......Do not tighten the eye spring bolt or shackles bolts until you have it sitting on the ground. If you tighten them in a bind(ie unloaded)they dont relax and settle.
That's true, and they also squeak if done this way. Learned that the hard way when rebuilding a front end on a 4x4 truck If any of you have any shackles (original or left from a kit) Id be interested in them... as i have no shackles at the moment, just some homemade type crap.
Glad you told me. May have saved me a headache. Thanks for the tips....probably just need the bushings since the car is a southern car and has no rust underneath. So tell me yall...will I feel much difference in the ride and handling once I go from the air shocks to the HD leaf springs? The car handles bad (all over the road) I imagine it's from a number of factors, so going to try to correct it by replacing springs, installing a sway bar kit....changing tire size..(front tires are 1/2 in taller than rear...) any other suggestions? D.Ray
