Heating coil springs to lower front end?

[crsevns90]

How good does heating up the front coil springs with a torch to give it a 3" drop work? ( take them out of the truck to do it of course!) Would it be a rough ride? Anybody tried it?

[canyoncritter]

it takes the "spring" out of the spring steel. and when you do it that way you leave the springs int he truck. heat the springs, and they will sag.

your better off to cut the springs if your going to go the ghetto route like that.

[Insanejughead]

I cut mine and I still have all the "springyness" (if you could call it that) in my springs.


I only have 1 1/2" of I-beam travel, but I don't hit the hard bumps.

Cut them... better than heating!

[keith0486]

heating them turns your spring in to just rolled up metal rods put it that way

[Wicked_Sludge]

PLEASE dont heat your springs!

[ILLEGALCONCEPTS]

Besides the heat altering the spring rate, you'll have a very hard time matching sides. This is NOT the way to lower you truck. Even cutting coils is wrong, I would only cut 1/4 to 1/2 a coil out of any coil spring. More then that and you start changing spring rates. Buy the coils, they are cheap.

James

[thoughtcriminal]

please tell me your joking.

Spring steel is specially tempered to be, for lack of a better word, "springy". If you heat the springs, it will lose that temper and springyness. Doing so will be extremely dangerous. The springs will become weak and be much more likely to break or give out, which could kill or injure you and others.

[rat_ranger]

it may have been acceptable in the 50s, but the time is now for real drop springs. they are cheap and much better matched than heating or cutting coils. IIRC chassis tech makes a 3 inch spring for 98+ rangers. just be sure to get good cambur adjusters or it wont align.

[Army]

Save your money in a little jar until you get enough for a real drop kit. More than worth the wait.

Don't destroy what you can replace.

[gw33gp]

Actually, if it is done by someone who knows what they are doing, it is a good inexpensive way to lower a vehicle. I had it done to a 68 Fairlane 500 within 6 months from the time I bought it new. It was done with the springs in the car. The whole spring is not heated, only near the bottom and when that area gets hot enough to lose its spring rate, it just lays down and the heat is spiraled along the bottom until you get the ride height you want. Those coils just lay on each other. The rest of the spring still maintains its spring rate. The real trick is to get it equal on both sides. I watched from the front while the guy was doing it and when it looked level, side to side, I told him to stop. We then measured it to be sure and it was perfect.

I only lowered the front about two inches and it had little effect on the ride of the car. I just had to be a little more careful going through big dips because it would bottom out easier. I drove that car with those heated spring for 6 years and never had a problem with them. I had it aligned right after lowering it and a couple more times while I had it. The front tires wore very well and the alignment held well. The rear tires didn't wear so well because I loved to drive that car sideways (I guess they call it drifting now). The car handled much better after lowering the front. That era of cars stock ride height was too high back then.

[Hazmat Ranger]

I have a set of Springtech 3" Drop Springs for the Gen 3 Rangers - PM me if you are interested . . .