lowering my LRE???

ok so i've read a few old threads about lowering this year truck but still have questions...


front end.. if i go with a van lower control arm i need to drill the mounting hole correct? i didn't really want to do that. want to make it easily back to original if i want..

i was given this link to a set of springs.. the guy said they will fit perfectly and lower the truck about the same as the van lowers.. https://www.summitracing.com/oh/parts/djm-cs2391-2/overview/



as far as the rear goes i'm not sure what to do.. again i want to be able to easily go back to stock if i choose.. is putting the axle over the springs the best way? thats what a 4" drop? don't want to notch the frame so i can't go too low. will doing the axle flip hurt the drivability? cause wheel hop/spring wrap? is there a kit to easily do it? i have a 9 1/4 rear in this thing.. or do i just weld new spring mounts to the opposite side of the rear?


kinda lost on what way to go.. like i said it doesn't need to be slammed but lower then what it is now would look nice.. i was thinking 4-6 inches in the rear and 2-3 inches up front....
.

on my 85 stepside and the 88 d100 440 truck I used a front rear leaf spring hanger to replace the rear shackle hanger. then flip the shackle over.

on a 4x4 with axle under spring it lifts truck 4-5 inches

on a 2x chassis it moves spring down away from frame rail to make room for a axle on top of spring and a set of car shock plates with 3 inch u-bolts

called a flip flop. I have done about 6 trucks already. I run a stock front end set up with the rear flip flop. gives a nice stance, ride and handling.

FYI. on the 440 truck I used an A-body 8 3/4 to tuck 12 wide rims with a set of 29x15x15 M/Ts in the fenders.

on my stepside I have a 67 polara C-body 8 3/4 tucking a set of 10 inch rims and 29x9.50x15 tire.

it will drop the rear bumper level with the front bumper, still haul a 440/727 in the bed with out hitting frame rail, no wheel ho off the line,stock front end with a sway bar clears a parking stop

this is why I don't lower the front and ajust with tire size. whacked my swaybar end links on the parking stop and broke them.

make the truck ride and handle like a car on the street.

A 6 inch drop at the rear will leave very little room for travel before bottoming out. At that point, you would need a C notch for the frame.

I Agree if you don't flip the shackle and move spring down away from frame it slams it to the ground and whacks frame rail with slow normal driving on the street.

c-notches are needed for axle clearance.

well i don't want to notch the frame.. whats would a happy medium be then?

just flip the rear and be done?

On my tubbed 84 all I did was put the axle on top of the springs and used 4 inch lowering blocks and that rear end never touched the frame. No c notch needed.

Put the rear axle on top of the springs will give you about 5" drop. You will have enough room for travel up and down for the axle. Change your shocks to the right size needed. I change the shock angle for racing. I still run the rear stock springs. Any question send me PM> The last picture was taken when I first lowered the rear, before the bed was taken off to modify the frame for a fuel cell and paint.

For the front, if you don't want to drill out the lower mounting point , it's a bit pricey...BUT YOU WILL NOT FIND A BETTER SOULTION
http://www.x2industries.com/control-arms-dodge-c-89_568_579_615.html

the 94+ front drop springs work for about 2-3 inch drop, on your 79 it will be a 3 inch drop, but I've had alignment issues with those springs, , not enough camber on 3 of the 5 trucks I've used them on....Quality control on these 72 -80 trucks lacks a bit. I used a modified B- body upper to fix it.

for the back since you want to be able to go back to stock if need be, just flip the axle on top of the springs, no need to c Notch unless you plan on carrying 750lbs or more. I've found thru the years that a W300/350 rear springs work nicely with a axle flip, gives a about a 1-2 inch arch, remove some of the spring pack if it's too rough of a ride.
one suggestion that will be hard to return to stock.....move the top of the shocks as close to perpendicular as possible(or bring the top as close to the frame rail as you can) ride quality and traction increases by a fun factor of AWESOME.

Here is a thread from a few years ago addressing this very thing...
P.S. The thread is about a sleeve so you don't have to drill the lower control arm mounts. Guess I shoulda included that, sorry.
https://board.moparts.org/ubbthreads/ubbt...tml#Post1384107

Just for reference, we tried changing just the rear shackles which was good for a 2”+ drop...

See this thread: https://board.moparts.org/ubbthreads/ubbt...tml#Post1624610

(Ultimately we ended up changing everything and 4 -linked it).

Did the van LCA thing in the front with stock springs...

Just went thru this on my '72 D100 & decided to just do a mild amount lowering to take the fender gap out & keep it so I can still use it as a truck. I am running a 28" tall tire on 18's.

On the rear I went with a square body McGaughys rear lowering shackle which lowers it a little lower than advertised for the GMs because the factory Dodge shackle is shorter than a GM.

On the front I cut 1/2 a coil out & it took it down a little over 2".

The stance of the green truck is great.

Did I tell you I "DIG!" that truck?
That's just gorgeous.

Mine. Axle flip with 1 inch lower block in rear. Front lowering is another story.

wow! that's a nice truck.

not a fan of lowering block, but that is one sexy truck

That sounds very interesting, how do you modify the B-body UCA? I've got a spare set that I wouldn't mind chopping on a bit, the upper ball joint angle is the one thing that concerns me the most on my lowered '77.