Goodmorning all, I’m currently doing a 63 swap on my 91 pickup and made some progress on it this past week. Everything is buttoned up for the most part, but as I got everything hooked up and tested it out on a ramp, I realized that I have very limited downtravel in the rear. When I backed up on a ramp I could only get one side up about 6-12” before the tire on the other side came off the ground with only a couple inches of droop. Ride in the rear also seemed to be very stiff as I pulled out of the driveway to turn the truck around. I have a couple thoughts on what it might be but wanted to see if anyone had some input as well.



So here is my rear shackle angle right now. My first thought is that it might be a little steep, even though it was a bit better with the weight of the bed on it, but still a little steep and I’m thinking that might be the biggest part of limiting travel?



Front hanger.




Rear shock setup. Billie 5100s that came with the sky’s 63” swap kit. Planning on moving the top mounts out as much as possible without losing up travel.



Ride height with the bed on (chopped up a bit). So my thoughts are either cutting and moving the rear hangers forward a couple inches, or pulling either one of the leafs or the overload from the leaf pack to hopefully drop ride height down a bit and get some more flex. I don’t think it’s the shocks maxing out as I disconnected the top mounts and ran into the same issue on the ramp. Any input you guys got would be much appreciated!

 

The installation looks good. I think you just need less spring rate or more weight in the truck. Take out the over load and try it. You won't know until you try. I know it's a lot of work but ,the more you do it the faster you get.

I'm only running three leaves total and no overload. It's flexy and rides great. I built an anti- wrap bar because I was getting axle wrap though. There's always tradeoffs.

Also; I've seen where some people cut off the back half of the overload. They claim the front part will limit any axle wrap. I don't know as I've never tried.

 

Awesome thanks for the info aztoyman! I’ll try some different variations of the spring pack when I get home from work. This trucks never gonna have much weight in the bed aside from a 37” spare and maybe some trail gear. So if I had to run only 2 leafs with that overload cut as an anti wrap, would there be any downsides to that? Or should be good as long as it supports the truck properly? Thanks again!

 

What it comes down to is experiment with the pack and dial it in to YOUR truck. I'm on my second used set. The first lasted quite long. The second set that's on it now is from a 2017 Chevy 1/2 ton 4x4. They were fairly new take offs. I have the two main leaves and a third one I cut to length to kind of fit in place like it should. No overload at all.

This time I experimented and put some more arch in them by pressing each leaf in my HF 20 ton hydraulic press. I made a jig and put a line across each leaf spaced two inches apart. I pressed on each line and kept checking the arch against the stock one until I got what I wanted. It took a while but I got some lifted Chevy 63's that work perfect with my 4" front TG springs. No lift blocks. It rides great and flexes great. I have DIY 6" shackles. I did get axle wrap on hard climbs in double low so I built an anti-wrap bar that really made a difference. It hooks up great, no more wrap. (35" KM3"s and 5.29"s) I've been running them for years and they are holding the lift so far. Been to Moab, Sand Hollow, Colorado, and all over Arizona on some hard trails.

Note: I tried to re arch some sagged out TG front springs and they just snapped. Worked on OEM Chevy springs though.

 

So I pulled a leaf out of the pack and it’s flexing a lot more now. Still hoping with the weight of stuff I put in the bed and after a couple wheeling trips they’ll soften up a bit more and get a bit more flex, but this is how it sits for now! Thanks for your help Aztoyman!

 

Thanks for following up. Dead end threads suck.
Once you get some trail time the springs will get better. You might end up putting a leaf back in at that point. I think you will be happy once you get them dialed in. A HUGE improvement over the stock springs for sure.