This is just an FYI post:
Someone asked me how I mounted my rear Hotchkis leaf springs using the filler plates and longer bolts that Hotchkis supplies (after you request them).
The pics show how they went together into an 8.5" multi-leaf Nova rearend.

I removed the original center bolts in the leaves, replaced them with the longer center bolts, then bolted the filler plates to the bottom leaf. The nut fits perfectly into the center hole in the shock plates. I had to shorten the new bolts because they were different lengths to begin with, and they're more than long enough.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v59/HwyStar/LeafMount1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v59/HwyStar/LeafMount2.jpg

Yes, that's bondo dust and dog hair all over everything. :rolleyes: I wish I had a 'clean-room' to work on the car in!

Great, Joe. Did you torque the center bolt?

Thanks! Just in time, I plan on installing my new rear end with the Hotchkis spings soon. Do you know how thick that plate is? I need to fab one up.

Thanks!
Mike

Mike, Hotchkis will send you the plates and bolts for free. Just call them and tell them which springs you have. But they're 1/8" or 3/16" plate. I'll measure them to be sure.

No and yes Rick. I have no idea what the center bolt was torqued to, but it wasn't very tight, that's for sure. The bottom leaf could be twisted with enough force. I just tightened it down as tight as I thought was necessary and used Blue Loctite.

Joe, I bought the spring kit from another team member, they are new though they were mounted at one time. I think I will go ahead and call Hotchkis anyway to see what they say.

Mike

They won't say a word. Just call the sales line, tell them you have their rear leafs and that you want the mounting\spacer plate and bolt kit.
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I apologize if I missed something and this is a stupid question, but I've installed two sets of these. Why did you leave out the spring pad between the bottom of the leaf spring and the shock plate?

Thanks Joe, I just got off the line with Hotchkis and they're sending me a set. :D

Mike

David, just for a more positive connection between the shock plates and perches. I may take the top pad out also and put a plate in there if I don't like how it performs. I'll have to take a closer look and see if my shock plates are tight agianst the perches or not. If they are, I'm wondering if I have enough clamping pressure on everything.

A lot of people say they have a problem with the top poly pad seating in the axle tube locating hole, and fitting over the spring center bolt head. I didn't have a problem, and if I did, I didn't notice it. I put the top pad on the spring while still off the car and it seemed to fit fine to me. In fact, now that I think about it, I have the feeling that the bolt head doesn't even come close to engaging the locating hole in the axle tube. I left the little steel cups in the upper poly pads without a problem at all.
I'm thinking now (that I think back to when I installed them) that I could back off the U-bolt nuts and push the upper pad out no problem. The heads on the center bolts aren't very 'high'. They can't be any thicker in height than the thicknes of the filler plates. It makes me think that the nuts going through the shock plates are all that's going to hold the springs into the rearend!! :eek:

Mine sat a bit lower than I wanted so I had the hole in the center of the spring perch filled and drilled to the exact fit of the head of the pin or center bolt. Use caution not to drill into the axle tube and have someone that knows how the springs need to be located do the drilling since the locating hole has to be exact if you do this!! Then I mounted the springs without the upper pad, got extra plates from Hotchkis and installed them below the spring in place of the lower pad. I gained maybe 5/16" - 3/8" if ride height this way. My one worry was having the drivetrain and road transfered through the mount point to the rest of the car but it never manifested...

Joe I was thinking you could use a bit more fill, I think I would rather see a slight gap in the perch and lower plate when the u-bolts are tight then know you can snug the lower plate right to the perch. You might want to throw a washer and nut on the center bolt to help keep things in line as well.

Dennis, do you mean to take the existing nut off the bolt, and put a washer and nut on the OUTSIDE of the shock plate?
I might just do that.... but leave the existing nut on the bolt.

I might pull one of the wheels and take the rear loose to see exactly what the upper pad is doing as far as the head of the center bolt and the pad bushing also.

Joe - leave the existing nut there, it holds the springs together, just add a large flat washer a lock washer if you want and another nut. The lower the gears, and the more torque put to the tires, the greater the chances of the axle moving in the perch.

As far as if there's enough pressure or not, it looks to me like the upper pad should be "squished" a bit more. Maybe the bottom plate should be thicker.

I see exactly what you mean David. But at the time, I didn't really pay close attention when I torqued the u-bolts up. But the poly pads are very stiff. They don't 'squish'.
Like I said, I'm going to take one side apart and investigate a little. Maybe my center bolt head is causing an interferance, but I don't think so. Both sides centered just fine.

Dennis.... where would I be without you!! ;)
I guess I would have realized I was doing something stupid if I took the nut off. :rolleyes:

You'd have figured it out Joe... By the way those pads can be compressed to about 1/2 their orig thickness if you throw another plate under the lower spring.

I like that extra nut/washer recommendation. I just weighed my old 5-leafs (45#) and Hotchkis 3-leafs(35#). The center height is 8.5" on the old ones and 6.5" on the Hotchis. Don't know what this will translate to in ride height but I'm wondering if it will be a bit too low. Stay tuned. I'm scaping and painting while I wait for the longer bolts to arrive. I'm going to try that Rust Bullet since the rest of the underneath is gray, too. Anyway, I'm on a rant. Thanks for a great thread.

I was going to retract what I said about compressing them. But by half? Holy gorilla grip. They feel more solid than that. But then again, this is my first experience with polyurethane. Totally an assumption on my part.

Well Rick, does that answer your question? ;)
This has been an education. I can't remember reading anything about the extra nut\washer on the center bolt, for starters. And the fact that the shock plates contact the perches is another. It never dawned on me that day.

With 25.5" tall tires, the fender lips are 26.5" from the floor. No trunk lid, interior, windows or engine.

Joe, thanks for the pics and info. You know, Hotchkis had sent me 4 of the poly pads, maybe one for the top and bottom per side?

That's what I assumed Rick. But whenever I assume.... well, you know.

I guess with all poly at all points front and back, it wouldn't make that big of a difference if both upper and lower leaf spring pads were poly also. Just poke the bolt through the bottom pad dimple.
I wonder if I could get away with putting the bottom pads on, then "squishing" them in with the plates beneath.

Whatever.... just another addition to the winter work orders! ;)

Originally posted by RickD:
Joe, thanks for the pics and info. You know, Hotchkis had sent me 4 of the poly pads, maybe one for the top and bottom per side? That is the intention. I have a '68 and a '69 Camaro that I've done the install on, and everything worked out fine.

I know the Hotchkis' intention is to put poly pads on top and below the leaves. Then whats the true intention behind the steel filler plates? Am I making this more difficult than it's supposed to be as usual?

I wanted a solid connection between the shock plates and the springs so I asked for the plates. That way there's no way the center bolt (or the springs) can move anywhere with the bolt nut set into the shock plate hole.

My idea of sandwiching the lower pad between the plate and the spring sounds like the best solution then. The center bolt nut will still index in the shock plate hole. Then a second nut and lock-washer on the shock plate.

The extra spacer is needed even with both pads to allow everything to be tightened down and hold the springs properly in a multi leaf perch. If you install the springs without the additional spacer, perch-->pad-->spring-->pad-->shock plate, the shock plate will tighten up against the perch and the pads will not be compressed enough. When I did it this way and went for a test drive I didn't get 20ft before the rear end shifted and one tire went toward the front of the car and the other went toward the back... :eek:

Dennis's idea is good. I left out all the pads on the rear axle.

I placed the spring up into the spring perch and placed a spacer plate on the shock plate. I drilled a hole in the spacer for clearance, barely of the spring center bolt. I then welded a nut to the spacer plate on the other side fitting into the shock plate hole.

The spring is located to the spacer plate, the spacer is located to the shock plate, and the rear axle doesn't move. Yes, Dennis, I know also, ask me how I know.......School Of Hard Knocks!!

I also made the spacer plate 1/8 inch thicker to allow some "crush" when shock plate is bolted to the spring perch.

I also added a bent plate from front spring perch edge, over the top of the tube and to the rear spring perch edge. Weld in all three places, but carefully, you don't want to upset the rear axle tubing. This triangulated the spring perch to the tube. To finish off the job, re-enforced welded the original weld of the perch to the tubing.

I used a 5/16" carriage bolt for the center spring "clamping" bolt by grinding the four square corners down under the head and it was flat enough, it never bothered my mono-leaf rearend pads at all. I think I even piened it some, flatter too to be sure.

But I did pitch the mickey mouse little metal nut cup thingies on the bottoms b/c the nuts were too big!!

pdq67

Joe, on my setup those metal bushings in the poly pad pockets won't go over the bolt head or nut. They're too small. I have to remove them to get a proper fit. I had to use both poly pads top/bottom and the spacer plate to get a proper fit.

:mad:
I swear guys, I had no problem with the upper pad cup things. At least it went to gether that way.
I'm thinking now that the little cups got pushed up into the indentation against the axle tube and that's why I didn't have any problem fitting them.

I've already added "Remove rear springs - Add lower pads - inspect upper pad cups" to my winter to-do list.

You really didn't want to stay warm in the house this winter, did you? I thought my top pad/leaf had fit well but upon closer looking, I could see the top pad 'rock' a bit due to not being completely flush tot he spring leaf.

I just got my 2407C springs and they came with the filler leaf and four pads.

Originally posted by CJ'S67RS:
I just got my 2407C springs and they came with the filler leaf and four pads. Is a filler leaf the small plate an a new bolt? If not what is it?

I guess so. In Joe's pic you can see the new plate. My springs came with the extra plate. So in all it has three leafs and a plate.

Hotchkis is finally getting the picture.
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