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Springs and things-espo

MerlinsMopars

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I noticed that my 71 rt had air shocks with extensions on it and that didn't fend well with me so, I had a pair of coilovers laying around but they don't fit the upper mount. After a few threads here I decided to replace the leaf springs due to 50 yr old sag and didn't want coilover shocks anyhow.
I ordered the espo springs for a 440/hemi car instead of the 340 ones as they have an extra leaf and I went +1.5". Then I bought the Qa1 non adjustable star stocker shocks.
Anybody have this setup? I am wandering if these parts are gonna provide a good ride.
Thanks for the input!
 

Montclaire

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I loved my 440/Hemi springs, albeit behind a big block. Took a month or two for them to settle in, then they felt great. No idea as to your shocks though - I was running Monroe-matics. Very cheap shocks but they felt good with a stiff spring.

My current e-body has ESPOs with Competition Engineering drag shocks. I don't know what they're set at but it rides like a haycart. It'll be getting another cheap set of Monroes or Gabriels.
 
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MerlinsMopars

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I loved my 440/Hemi springs, albeit behind a big block. Took a month or two for them to settle in, then they felt great. No idea as to your shocks though - I was running Monroe-matics. Very cheap shocks but they felt good with a stiff spring.

My current e-body has ESPOs with Competition Engineering drag shocks. I don't know what they're set at but it rides like a haycart. It'll be getting another cheap set of Monroes or Gabriels.
Thanks for the reply. I was gonna get the kyb 5512 shocks as they are only 36$ and heard they are great for the money. QA1s are salty. Was like 500$ for 4 of em and those were their cheapest ones.
 

Montclaire

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I wasn't happy with the KYBs at all. Rode much too harsh. I've had a few people tell me that they take a while to settle in and I probably didn't put enough miles on them. I guess it all depends what you are expecting. Personally, I like a little feedback when I'm driving.

I had always wanted to try the Edelbrock shocks, but didn't get around to it and now they are disco'd.
 

Montclaire

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Am I reading you right that you went 1.5" over the stock Hemi/440 leafs? She's going to be riding high! Will work well with a tall front tire though. Or slam the nose and hang some huge meats on the rear.
 

MerlinsMopars

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Am I reading you right that you went 1.5" over the stock Hemi/440 leafs? She's going to be riding high! Will work well with a tall front tire though.
Yep. Im planning on a 10" wheel with 5.5 backspace and a 295/60 but not completely sold on that yet.
The 440 is like 300lb heavier but i dont anticipate it making too much difference in the back. I went off of pics on the site here. Not sure about fronts yet. Im gonna run steelies with the dog dish caps.
 

Adam

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I have 1 inch over Espo springs and really like them. I think stock Challengers sit low in the back & 1 over only takes it to where it should be. 1-1/2 over will be fine. My 2 cents.
 

MerlinsMopars

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I have 1 inch over Espo springs and really like them. I think stock Challengers sit low in the back & 1 over only takes it to where it should be. 1-1/2 over will be fine. My 2 cents.
Got any pics?
 

Adam

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This was a couple of years ago. No sag since then. Espo +1. I had also upgraded the front torsion bars from the factory 340 bars to some aftermarket bars a little over 1 inch in diameter , I don’t remember exactly, but this also helped level the car.

CF1A582A-EBF2-46F3-AD0C-1214BE687670.jpeg
 
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MerlinsMopars

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Were they for a big block car? That's sitting about perfect. I like the rear higher than the front but not too high. Super stocks would be overkill for the street and bouncing your head off the roof every bump. Lol. Overall, I was thinking +2" but its hard to judge without pics. I seen an orange 1 on here with. +2" and it looks good too but definitely higher than your car. Nice ride by the way!
 

Adam

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Were they for a big block car? That's sitting about perfect. I like the rear higher than the front but not too high. Super stocks would be overkill for the street and bouncing your head off the roof every bump. Lol. Overall, I was thinking +2" but its hard to judge without pics. I seen an orange 1 on here with. +2" and it looks good too but definitely higher than your car. Nice ride by the way!
Well, I read an article about stock torsion bar sizes. If I recall correctly, a big block car had t-bars in the .900 thou range. Since my car is an iron head 440 I went with aftermarket, American made bars that were just over an inch. They came bare steel, unlike factory bars with a flexible coating on them. I sprayed mine with rubberized undercoating to prevent rust.
 

Adam

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Adam, what size tires are you running? Thanks
235/60 r15 on the front, and 255/60 r15 on the back.

No reason other than they were new and came on the wheels from the guy, when I bought them. I figured I would toast em in short order, but they are working out nicely. Here is a pic of the front tire, sidewall and width.

IMG_20210419_171159460.jpg
 
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Chryco Psycho

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I will never use KYB even for free , welding the shock so it cannot move will be about as soft LOL!
I probably would have gone +1 but you could use a 1/2" block to lower it if you prefer .
 

MerlinsMopars

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I will never use KYB even for free , welding the shock so it cannot move will be about as soft LOL!
I probably would have gone +1 but you could use a 1/2" block to lower it if you prefer .
Did you ever use the QA1 star stockers?
 

Chryco Psycho

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No I have not . Probably released after I stopped restoring Mopars after 35+ years
 

fasjac

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This was a couple of years ago. No sag since then. Espo +1. I had also upgraded the front torsion bars from the factory 340 bars to some aftermarket bars a little over 1 inch in diameter , I don’t remember exactly, but this also helped level the car.

View attachment 82002
That looks like it’s right on.
 

i_taz

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I don't have the boxes in front of me for a part number but I went with the QA1 w/ the 6 pos adjustment when Edelbrock discontinued their AIS line. They were expensive (w/o being better than the Edelbrocks ) but to me it was worth having the adjustability. One odd thing about the QA1 is there's no rebound at all just compression. There also not model specific, meaning you get a selection of inserts that happened to be too wide for the rear mounts so they have to be trimmed to keep the shock from rattling around. I can't remember if I had too much trbl with the bottom mount but the top was a royal PITA since the access holes on the 70's aren't user friendly.

There's a Bilstien made shock called RCD just for classic cars....

 
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