FSJ front springs...

Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.

Jake_S

Full Access Member
Joined
Mar 28, 2013
Posts
112
Reaction score
7
Location
Charlotte, NC
First Name
Jacob
Truck Year
1984
Truck Model
K20
Engine Size
350/SM465/NP208
So, I'm looking to improve the ride on my stock 84 K20, and slightly lift the truck as well, and was looking at wagoneer springs for the front.

FSJ (76 and newer) front springs:
47" eye to eye (22.5/24.5.. moves the front axle 1" forward)
Have 3, 5, 6, or 7 leaves
Are arched for spring under
Can be found relatively easily and cheaply


I owned an 84 G Wagoneer, and it road wonderfully in stock form, and that ride would be perfect for front. Of course, I realize there can be an issue with using to soft of a front spring and retaining the stiff factory rear springs.

Any thoughts?

Jake
 

hirschdalechevy

Full Access Member
Joined
Mar 8, 2011
Posts
726
Reaction score
511
Location
norcal
First Name
rich
Truck Year
1977
Truck Model
k-30
Engine Size
454
My kid and I are building an 84 blazer and have been messing around with different front springs. The problem you might have is the shackle angle when messing around with different length springs with a fixed front spring mount , (to long shackle is against the frame , to short and the shackle can flip up forward and lock up against the frame) . So what we did was buy new front spring mounts with multiple mounting holes. That opened up a whole new world of spring choices. We first tried late model rear suburban springs , (to soft and not high enough to clear big rubber) , then we tried ford rear f-150 springs , (to soft and not high enough again) . We tried many other springs as well not hitting the ride height that we are looking for but with that front mount you could move the spring forward or back to get the proper shackle angle. Anyway we ended going with brand new skyjacker 4 inch, 52 inch long rear springs with 6 inch shackles and that hit our ride height we needed and is still really soft but not to soft.

If you get those front mounts you could play around with all kinds of springs until get what you are looking for. I think stock rear chevy 52 inch springs in the front works out to about a 4 inch lift with a stock front shackle. You also have to watch spring width as well.
 

Jake_S

Full Access Member
Joined
Mar 28, 2013
Posts
112
Reaction score
7
Location
Charlotte, NC
First Name
Jacob
Truck Year
1984
Truck Model
K20
Engine Size
350/SM465/NP208
The FSJ front springs are the same eye to eye length as Square body front springs. The only difference is the locator pin is one inch forward.

I have looked into the B52 kit, but it's overkill for my truck.

Jake
 

hirschdalechevy

Full Access Member
Joined
Mar 8, 2011
Posts
726
Reaction score
511
Location
norcal
First Name
rich
Truck Year
1977
Truck Model
k-30
Engine Size
454
10 4 , I would give them a shot and let us know how they are.
 

yevgenievich

Full Access Member
Joined
Mar 1, 2014
Posts
4,781
Reaction score
3,300
Location
Texas
First Name
Viktor
Truck Year
sad
Truck Model
very sad
Engine Size
less sad
Sorry no feedback, but interested in the results. I am always looking for a better ride keeping stock height
 

Jake_S

Full Access Member
Joined
Mar 28, 2013
Posts
112
Reaction score
7
Location
Charlotte, NC
First Name
Jacob
Truck Year
1984
Truck Model
K20
Engine Size
350/SM465/NP208
I may have a line on J truck springs, and I'll update everyone on the fitment, amount of lift (if any), and the ride compared to stock.

Jake
 

Craig 85

Full Access Member
Joined
Jan 25, 2017
Posts
3,889
Reaction score
4,024
Location
Nashville, TN
First Name
Craig
Truck Year
1985
Truck Model
K30 SRW
Engine Size
454/TH-400/NP205
Here's my 2 cents. My last truck was a '79 K10 with a 4" Tuff Country EZ front spring. This was a 3/4 ton axle swap truck. That truck was the best riding of the 4 lifted square body trucks I've had. I sure the spring was a big help, but on that truck I added 2 other parts that I think really helped the ride. I'm going to do the same set up in my K30, but only with HD springs, since I have a big block.

Off Road Design offers a replacement front shackle that is greaseable. The second part I added was the sway bar disconnect kit. I think the disconnect kit is the real reason the front of the truck rode better. Square bodies have the sway bar attached at the shackle plates, giving you 2 fixed points. This creates a single arc that the springs must follow. It's my belief that the sway bar prevents the spring from flexing past a certain point causing a bind in the suspension, making the truck more rigid. The disconnect kit adds an end link to the sway bar at the shackle plate. This allows the sway bar to move (arc) independent of the spring, getting rid of the bind. This is how most passenger cars are set up.

You have to have at least a 2" lift to run these. I would recommend use a 2" lift front spring and the below linked parts. In the rear, a 1" zero lift my work to raise the back.

http://offroaddesign.com/catalog/swaybarkit.htm

http://offroaddesign.com/catalog/hdshackles.htm

http://offroaddesign.com/catalog/Zero Rates.htm
 

yevgenievich

Full Access Member
Joined
Mar 1, 2014
Posts
4,781
Reaction score
3,300
Location
Texas
First Name
Viktor
Truck Year
sad
Truck Model
very sad
Engine Size
less sad
Just talked to offroad design and they said to fix the swaybar issue without the lift is to install a poly bushing on the axle side and drill the bolt to make it greasable. This is my imidiate next project. Already have hd shackles with greasable bushings front and back of the spring.
 

Latest posts

Forum statistics

Threads
41,857
Posts
903,628
Members
33,370
Latest member
mitchell1128
Top