Spring Perches – a solution

So I want to put a Ford 8.8 under my truck. There are a ton of advantages to these Explorer standbys over a typical 9 inch in many of the earlier cars. The Jeep boys love them for their strength over the Dana 44’s.

They have:

• limited slip differentials
• Are beefy with 3.25 diameter tubes and 31 spline axles(arguably so are 9’s)
• Have a great after market parts selection
• And best of all can be found with disc brakes.

The down falls are:

• The use c clip axles (this can be eliminated if you want/need)
• Have tubes that aren’t welded to the third member… but they can be welded

International trucks have a 1.75″ rear spring which is thin by today’s standards. So the options were to make some funky new spring fit with some customization…. or…. find someone who could make perches. I looked all over on the Internet and didn’t find a 1.75″ wide 3.25″ diameter perch (imagine that). However, a guy on http://www.oldihc.org named Spreader had the perfect solution! It turns out the guys (Kert) at http://www.diy4x.com could make me a set…. luckily all of their tool dies just fit and they turned out great. Check them for your perch needs. Pictures below.

Progress Shots – Misc.

I figured I would post some progress shots. I have the whole front suspension off and have removed the steering components so they hang free. Right now I am working on stripping the frame to get ready for por15.

Got Dirt?

My Sunday project was to get my bed on some furniture dolleys to easily move it around my garage. The bed is fully painted top and bottom so I figured, I would blow off a little dust on it. This truck was “restored” by the previous owner, so surprise surprise I managed to get about a grocery bag of dirt and dust out of the 3 rails that support the bed metal. This guy did a terrible job restoring, he even painted over dirt with rattle can on the bottom. I wonder if 50 year old dirt from Kansas is a collectors item?

Springs

So I have a problem that I have been working through with the guys at oldihc.org. Currently my front leaf springs are nearly flat under weight. I found this link which kind of details what should be done about this problem: Leaf Spring Restoration… it was at Mobile One’s website of all places. It is fascinating that they don’t mention that you should find the original spring height etc… prior to bringing the springs in. They mention in the article that you basically leave your springs to the gurus and they will know (because they are gurus with experience) what height the springs should be at and re-arch them appropriately.

More to come on the springs after I have a chat with the guys at Denver Spring. On a related note, I just purchased these shocks (Rancho 5119) for the front to replace the done for Delco shocks currently on it. Rancho seems to get good reviews with people on their shocks and anything probably beats a plain jane Monroe shock.

p.s. I will put some pics of those shocks up tonight, they are a hot mess.

MT-63 Manual

The L-line Parts Catalog. This catalog covers 1950-1952 L-line series 110,111,112 International Trucks.

Index, Abbreviations, and Service Notes Part 1 Part 2 Group 1 – Frame and Bumper Part 1 Group 2 – Front Axle Part 1 Group 3 – Chassis Springs Part 1 Part 2 Group 4 – Brakes and Clutch Control Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Group 5 – Steering Gear Part 1 Group 6 – Propeller Shafts Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Group 7 – Exhaust System Part 1 Group 8 – Electrical System Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Group 9 – Grille, Hood, Fenders, and Running Boards Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Group 10 – Speedometer, Tools and Miscellaneous Information Part 1 Group 11 – Cooling System Part 1 Group 12 – Engine and Clutch Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Group 13 – Transmission Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Group 14 – Rear Axle Part 1 Part 2 Group 15 – Fuel System Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Group 16 – Cabs, Cowls, and Bodies Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Group 18 – Wheels, Hubs, and Drums (Disc) – Front Part 1 Group 22 – Wheels, Hubs, and Drums (Disc) – Single, Rear Part 1 Numerical Index Part 1 Part 2 Part 3