Saw it's been posted on Chevelles.com I have a 70 Chevelle, but I also have a Buick. So don't hammer me too hard
Suspension setup? I had Gary's thread saved. Details spring and rear control arm setup: https://v8buick.com/index.php?threads/traction-for-a-body.62860/page-2
No that's not it. Pretty awesome though. I'll go back and read for sure. Someone shared a link on TC, but link doesn't work. Traction Recipe - simple version [Archive] - V8Buick.com Also some one posted it here back in 2015 it was still a good link. See thi thread a couple posts down. https://www.chevelles.com/threads/traction-recipe-for-a-body.813777/
GW TLC Arms 5 to 6in of front travel HanR rear Bar Viking Shocks Stock rear springs The tallest thinnest wire spring you can pack in the front Rear lower control arm as level as possible Metco billet lowers or TRZ spherical Metco or TRZ upper adjustable arms The biggest tire you can pack in the tubs 325/50 DR,..275/60 PRO,...28x10.5 Pro bracket radial,..or a 28 to 29.5in slick on a 10in wheel for all of them,......you'll hook on gravel
Hey thanks hugger, I have a lot of those items already. I'm just curious about this specific post. Sounds interesting. The rear of my car is done. I'm mainly looking for front end setup options. I wanted to read that archived post before the car goes back together.
Don't be too sure... https://www.v8buick.com/index.php?threads/traction-recipe-simple-version.213538 Thread posted by board member Gary Bohannon: After years of traction problems; Here is what really worked for me. I installed soft springs (front and rear) and got the surprise of my life. The front flies up and the tires plant, and I have gotten awsome traction on the street as well. I want to share some stuff here. First I want to back up what I'm about to say. March-April GSXTRA has an article on page 16 where a GN runs 9's with: 1. Stock rear arms 2. HR bar 3. Standard gas shocks and 4. Soft springs. After reading that, I got brave enough to share my thoughts on traction. SHOCKS- Plain low cost gas shocks have worked for many racers I have talked to. Some tried adjustables only to find the old gas shocks worked fine. Faster (500+ HP) cars often need good adjustable shocks to correct problems such as controlling front end rise or rear end seperation; springs too soft, pitch roll, etc. Shock adjustments can be of great help in some chassis tuning situations. Viking double adjustable shocks... Best bang for your bucks! SPRINGS- Soft springs (and shorter springs) are a major ingrediant for a traction recipe. I have avoided the Moroso racing variety because they have a short life. I'm not doing monthly alignments due to constantly falling springs. MOOG springs, however, will settle a little then stabilize for the rest of your lifetime. They made a tremendous difference on my 1967 GS. FRONT SPRINGS ARE CRITICAL.... Moog 6204 front springs (or 5230 for lightweight cars) are super great for traction and not too tall. Try these, even if you do not change the rear springs. Also consider Santhuff springs. The 200 lb is similar to moog 5230 and 225 is similar to moog 6204 These hold up for years, moroso will not. Moog 5379 rear springs will help keep the rear up a little for tire clearance if needed, but are soft enough to definately help traction. Moog CC501 springs are firm and about stock height and have worked well for some racers. Moog 6321 springs are soft and about stock height. Moog 5401 springs are lower and may work if the tires clear. Don't try to use the bigger tires only to loose traction & stability by jacking the rear up higher for clearance. If you plan on using dropped lower "lift bars" like Southside style, go with the MOOG CC501 for better results. FRONT A-ARM BUSHINGS....Global West Del-a-lum bushings will allow smooth free movement of the front end yet hold lateral movement rock steady. These bushings complement the use of the soft springs stored energy and will survive years longer than factory style bushings. Get some OFFSET upper bars to press the new upper bushings onto. This gives better alignment for the front end, and safer handling. NOTE: New original rubber bushings locked down my front end when tightened to specs. I had to remove my brand new set of rubbers and install Global West to free up my front end. Poly bushings are even worse! You can use these squeezed type bushings with the bolts loosened, but risk pounding out the bolt holes. GW bushings hold a firm tight alignment, allow free up-down movement, and never wear out. FRONT SWAY BAR- If traction is not satisfactory yet, some guys remove the front sway bar. Handling may suffer on turns but some guys say their car still will handle reasonably well on the street if an HR bar is on the rear. AIR BAGS- These are good for keeping the body from rubbing big tires. But jacking the rear end up will also cause the rear control arms to angle upward. If the front of the lower arms are higher than 1.75" above the rear of the arm, this may hurt traction, cause brake hop and wheel hop. For performance, air bags are mostly used to help preload the right rear tire better for the launch. Some guys don't like preloaded right air bags because they jack the car out of shape and become less managable when on the brakes hard. Air bags are normally removed as a traction device if an anti-roll bar is used, but especially when traction bars (no-hops or lift bars) are used. BRACES- Trailing Arm Braces/Control Arm Braces/Frame Braces, will protect your rear cross member from major damage.... http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?t=73629 .... good insurance against crossmember destruction and crashing into the retaining wall. "DON'T LEAVE HOME WITHOUT'EM"... see thread above. ANTI-ROLL BAR- An HR bar can save spending excess money on traction bars, air bags and expensive racing shocks, etc. One guy got great traction with an open rear end! Try these before throwing $ at other equipment. www.hrpartsnstuff.com (soft springs and HR bar are priority). For those of us with less than 500 HP, the cheaper way to go is a Hellwig 1 1/8" adjustable #55864 (1964-67) or #55868 (1968-72)... Shop for prices (Amazon, etc.) REAR CONTROL ARMS/TRAILING ARMS- Stock control arms are often OK for performance, but the lowers must be boxed. Too much stress and twisting can make the bushings work loose. Also, the factory swaybars actually add stress these arms. (HR bar connects to frame and axle, not control arms) The best aftermarket control arms will have a flexable bushing or bearing on one end. This helps provide good articulation rather than binding which is a common complaint on heavy built arms with standard poly bushings. HR Parts n Stuff has a special flexable poly bushing to solve this. We have often been told to get the lower control arms level, but that is difficult due to tire clearance and finding springs low enough. Level lower arms are a plus for handling/cornering/rally racing. ADJUSTABLE UPPER ARMS- Adjustable upper arms help with getting pinion angle correct and may improve ET. Once the angles are set, use the right side only to adjust for off tracking to the left or right when launching. Leave the left side to hold he pinion angle secure. Get the special poly flexable bushing, or spherical ends for the front of these arms. Some racers claim significant ET gains with proper pinion angle settings and others have suffered drivetrain destruction because they didn't set the pinion angle. Minus 2 degrees is ok for most street/strip cars. Don't set pinion angle off the driveshaft. Do it right.... tranny shaft vs pinion shaft. TRACTION BARS/ CONTROL ARM RELOCATERS- No-Hop (upper) and Southside (lower) "lift" bars are well known but often misunderstood. No hops raise the back of the upper arms to shorten the IC (instant center). Southside "lift" bars have brackets that lower the rear of the lower arms which will shorten the IC as well, but also raise the IC a little. Both of these designs will help load the rear tires during launch. They make the body rise, which pushes the rear tires down.This effect also reduces the need for air bags and an exotic anti roll bar, since the natural pitch roll toward the right rear tire is subdued. These work best on cars that are LOWERED first, and have soft front springs. Chose only ONE style of traction device, upper or lower,not both together. * No-hops (for upper arms). TA is a good choice of no-hops, as they are shorter than most (2 7/8"), have better angle, and less apt to hit the bottom of the car body (edelbrocks are 3 3/4" & Lakewood 4"+) . Moser and Art Morrison racing rear ends have the "ears" raised (1" & 1.5") on their pumpkins to do this same thing. Art Morrison also has add on no-hops for stock rearends that start at about 2" lift. No-hops are hidden for stock appearing cars. They also provide better leverage angles for hard launches if the car sits low and has soft springs front and rear. High powered cars like lower settings. * Southside style "lift bars", lower control arms or arm lowering brackets made by UMI (2" or 3" drop choice) and others, will lower your lower arms just like the Southside bars did. This may complicate factory style swaybar location unless you purchase lower arms pre-drilled or modified for that purpose, or you can switch to a far superior anti-sway bar. These are advertised as "for lowered cars", so make sure your original lower control arms were ALREADY level, or near level with the frame before installing these arm dropping brackets. A little upward angle of the LOWERED arms will not hurt traction. Again, soft springs front and back are necessary for best results. For best street handling, use the 2" setting. NOTE: IF YOU LOWER YOUR CAR OR RELOCATE THE ARMS, HERE ARE 5 THINGS TO DO. 1...RECHEK FRONT WHEEL ALIGHNMENT. 2...CHECK FOR REAR TIRE CLEARANCE, ESPECIALLY AT THE REAR INNER PANELS. 3...For tire clearance: GET SHORTER TIRES OR PURCHASE ADJUSTABLE LOWER CONTROL ARMS TO ALLOW PULLING THE TIRES FOREWARD. (for an added bonus, get "flexable" poly bushings or spherical bearings to avoid binding). 4...RESET PINION ANGLE: Pinion shaft vs tranny shaft (not driveshaft). 5. FRONT YOLK -Make certain the driveshaft yolk is not pulled too far out of the tailshaft as a result of lowering the body and adjusting the pinion angle. Adjustable upper and lower control arms may be needed to push the yolk foreward into the transmition to it's original depth. TIRES- If you have radials on front, use radials on the rear also. Most racers run too little air and shorten tire life. Burnouts are often overdone as well. I like 26" tires for better gearing, good stance, and better body/wheelwell fit. High HP cars just cut stuff to clear bigger tires. IF LARGE TIRES REQUIRE JACKING UP THE REAR, THIS MAY DO MORE HARM THAN GOOD FOR TRACTION. Just do these traction remedies and do some testing before you decide you need giant tires. PRIORITIES- Sticky tires, Soft front springs. Then take a look at the rest. HR bar would likely be the next item, if all else is in good shape and safe. Two things to go fast: GREAT TRACTION & A GREAT CONVERTER. * HOW FAST IS FAST? *HOW GOOD IS MY TRACTION?.... score your success here.http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?t=212126...page 2 & 3. WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO IS GET THE GREATEST TRACTION POSSIBLE... THEN INSTALL A HIGH STALL KICK ASS CONVERTER AND PUT ALL THE TORQUE TO THE TIRES WE POSSIBLY CAN.
Well learned a few things. I did lower my car with a coil over kit and didn't think about checking my trans yoke. 5. FRONT YOLK -Make certain the driveshaft yolk is not pulled too far out of the tailshaft as a result of lowering the body and adjusting the pinion angle. Adjustable upper and lower control arms may be needed to push the yolk foreward into the transmition to it's original depth.
