What suspension changes would you recommend for drag racing?

I want to take my hobby just a little more seriously this year. I believe making the right changes to my suspension will get me going in the right direction.

I was thinking shocks all around, but unsure what to get for the front and rear.

I want to unload the 4.5 leaf mid eye springs and go with a 2 or 3 leaf reverse eye to make the rear a little softer and still keep a low ride height, what do you think?

Skinnys on the front, what size rim? 14 or 15? How wide? I will want to keep a radial tire on the front.

I may move the battery to the trunk, but not sure I want to go there yet.

I will get in the 11`s with my drag radials. Just need more bite off of the line and the stiff road racing suspension is not getting it done.

Thanks.
[addsig]

If you don't drive it everyday, I'd put some 3 1/2 wide 15 in. rims on the front.
Take the front swaybar off if you have one. Lakewood makes an inexpensive drag shock for just about every Ford. Install solid front spring eye bushings. Test and more testing.

I run CE adjustables front and rear - the front set at 60/40 for the street and 90/10 at the track. The rear is set at 50/50. I run a set of Southside Machine lift bars and stock Falcon springs, aged not gently over 30 years. The front springs are Moroso Trick springs whiich have about the same rate as the old stockers (260- in/lb). I have the sway bar bushings glued together with RTV, so I can remove one side at the track easily (easier that threading all the little pieces). It has the stock dinky swaybar on it, so I just dsiable it by removing one side link. The car drives OK with the drag shocks around town. I fabricated a tool that lets me set the front shock valving at the track with the shocks on the car.
[addsig]

This is what I was looking for with my post of, "Suspension and Stuff...73 Mach 1" What do we recommend for that? Again, weekend car for the most part.

Jeff Given

[addsig]

The things that ckelly said is a good basis for any car wanting to launch well. I personally would completely remove the front sway bar. They don't drive too bad on the street with out it.
There is not one magic item that you can bolt on that will solve all traction problems. It's a combination of parts and testing to maximize weight transfer. You need to get the front end up and keep the rear end planted. That's the big secret to traction. Every car is different, and will react differently to traction aids. Notice I said TEST. You will learn a lot by trying different things.
[addsig]

The only thing I would change right now would be a switch to either CalTracs or the CE Slide-A-Link bars. I really think I need more roll rotation, at least with the BFG DRs. And to get that, I think I need a longer "lever arm" than one acting purely on the front spring eye. Having said that, MT ET Streets might be cheaper and work with the existing SSM bars. (that slick vs drag radial business was hashed out elsewhere) I run the stock sway bar as it weighs less than 3 lbs - opposed to the 1" STAM bar I had at about 20. At my ET level, not worth the hassle of removing completely. I'm currently working on lightening the front end - 'glass bumper, AL radiator, pulling the heater/AC box, etc. That's about 50 lbs off the nose.

Note that I was running 420 in/lb springs, 1" front bar with rod ends and 225-60x14's all around at one time. A drag launch felt like the car was glued to the ground. Not traction-wise, just the thing didn't move around, or up, or anything at all. At least now it jumps up on all 4s and gets going.

I removed both sway bars at the begining of last year, I sold the rear bar because the thing handels so well w/o it, the front I still have but again it handles fine w/o it. I was thinking a softer rear leaf spring in back would give the better roll or weight transfer I need in conjunction with some drag shocks. This thing has almost no body roll front to back.


So ya or ney on the softer rear leaf, weight transfer vs. waisted energy off the line.

[addsig]

I say no on the soft rear springs. You are probably thinking that a soft rear spring will let your rear body swat on the launch. That is not the best thing to do. If the body is swating, the counter action is that the rear axel is being pulled up into the body (away from the track). That does not promote traction. You ideally what the body and axel to separate or even better, stay even. That will plant the tire into the track.
[addsig]

When a car squats on the right rear it isn't from body roll or anything of this sort. It is actually being pulled into the fender well as the left rear tire is being force out of the fender well due to torque characteristics of changing direction of the spinning driveshaft to the two wheels (simply stated).

To help over come this, you need to stiffen the right rear spring and the comression of the right rear shock. Also you need to tighten the rebound of the left rear shock so it is hard to pull apart and soften the compression. Generally these types of adjustments can only accomplished with double adjustable shocks.

You also need to tighten the rebound and loosen the compression of the left front shock making the left front corner not shift the weight unequally to the right rear corner. And at the same time loosesn the rebound of the right front shock.

Another suggestion is to unclamp the rear half of the leaf springs on both sides and clamp the front halves really tight. This helps the springs act as traction bars also.

You want to limit the amount of pinion 'roll-up' as you can. You also want to start with 4-6 degrees down angle from the centerline of the drive shaft to the pinion yoke. This allows the pinion to be inline with the driveshaft under acceleration. You can help part of this on leaf spring cars by welding small plates to the area of the axle spring perches (front and back) so they don't evenually roll the back side. The more the roll of the back side of the pearchs, the more pinion angle above the centerline of the driveshaft you will get and binding of the yokes will occur. Also, get one of the pinion snubbers that is adjustable to help prevent pinion roll up above the centerline.

You also need subframe connectors if you don't have them already. This help take some of the body twist and flex out of the unibody cars. Also at least a 8 point roll bar set with and X brace in the back bars helps reduce body flex.

Hope some of these ideas help you. The best book I have found on chassis tuning is the one titled "The Doorslammer" by Dave Morgan. I always wanted to attend one of his smeinars. I am not sure he still gives them or not.
[addsig]

nasty if you have a 65 mustang recommend running a 175 or 200 lb monoleaf spring with good aftermarket shocks and they work take a look at Nick bacalis how runs hot street with a powerglide his 60fts are low 1.40s and runs 9.40s at 140mph motor only at 3150 lbs