Rear suspension

[bobtile]

What to do?
Caltracs or Ladder bars?

 

[aldal]

I'm going with Caltracs but that's just my build and opinion.

 

[Cranky]

Street car too? What's your weight bias and how fast is the car? I helped a buddy a few years back that ran high 9's on motor and 9.30's on a small shot and we started out with CT's. The car was a bit heavy on the nose and we never could dial in the CT's so after several months of messing with it, we stuck ladders on it and they made an immediate difference in how the car got off the line. The cost isn't much more but welding will be required with the ladders.....

 

[Budnicks]

CalTracs are a bolt on & there's guys going deep into the 8's using them too,
especially with their mono-leaf's, different ride heights available...

you need to free up the front suspension travel like 5" or so the get the weight transfer,
so the CalTracks will work properly, they are very street-able too...

Ladder Bars especially double adjustable type like from Chassisworks
are better for a dedicated racecar,
they will work with axle housing floaters with leaf springs
or you can add/weld in an upper support for coil over shocks,
a Panard bar, {Diagonal bar/link} or watts linkage is required to keep the axle centered properly
& welding with some fabrication is required...
Just a warning/heads up; I'd highly suggest that you use some good high $$$ heims & hardware too,
don't go cheap on the set-up either, get a double adjustable set,
it's not a good place to skimp on $$$,
your whole car is riding on those 3 bolts/connection points {& they aren't good for ever either, they do wear out}
the 2 points on the diagonal or panard bar or 4 points on the watts linkage connections also
3 on each side of the axle, with all the load transferring thru those heim joints,
you'll also need to add a new cross member too, front adj. mounting point too...

but they do work pretty damn well thou...

if you want the best of both worlds ??
Than a 4 Link is far superior, far more adjustable, still a coil over style shock
{or axle floaters, IMHFO not recommended thou}
but it's a little more cutting, fab work & welding for about the same initial costs
as a Ladder Bar or CalTracks bars...

 

[SUPERSTOCKRACER]

Stop poking the bear Bobtile!!!
Yeah go Caltrac!! And pick up .02

- - - Updated - - -

CalTracs are a bolt on & there's guys going deep into the 8's using them too

you need to free up the front suspension travel like 5" or so the get the weight transfer

Budnicks stop giving him false hope. :icon_eyes:

 

[MarPar]

Blue GTX'er

after further review...im a dumbass

 

[actionange1]

Caltracs.
And single adjustable shocks get the job done for me.
Oh and small slicks...get it to hook and no need to drag around big rubber in third gear.
Go watch Stock eliminator at a LODRS NHRA event. These guys FLY and not a ladder bar in sight.
Ok I'm waiting for the bashing to begin...3...2...1!

 

[SUPERSTOCKRACER]

Caltracs.
And single adjustable shocks get the job done for me.
Oh and small slicks...get it to hook and no need to drag around big rubber in third gear.
Go watch Stock eliminator at a LODRS NHRA event. These guys FLY and not a ladder bar in sight.
Ok I'm waiting for the bashing to begin...3...2...1!

But if you were to do it all over again and remember how long it took you to dial in those Caltracs, wouldn't you go the other route?.
I sure know I would have never ever bought a set of Caltracs. I switched out all 3 cars to ladder bars and never looked back.
light blue dodge
Caltracs 1.29-1.31
Ladder bars 1.24-1.26

65 belvedere
Caltracs 1.39-1.41
Ladder bars 1.28-1.29

 

[actionange1]

But if you were to do it all over again and remember how long it took you to dial in those Caltracs, wouldn't you go the other route?.
I sure know I would have never ever bought a set of Caltracs. I switched out all 3 cars to ladder bars and never looked back.
light blue dodge
Caltracs 1.29-1.31
Ladder bars 1.24-1.26

65 belvedere
Caltracs 1.39-1.41
Ladder bars 1.28-1.29

Took 3 passes to get the shocks setup. Bars were set from the get go.
And I never wanted to cut up or weld the car for ladders.
Just sayin...
:3gears:

 

[bobtile]

Street car too? What's your weight bias and how fast is the car? I helped a buddy a few years back that ran high 9's on motor and 9.30's on a small shot and we started out with CT's. The car was a bit heavy on the nose and we never could dial in the CT's so after several months of messing with it, we stuck ladders on it and they made an immediate difference in how the car got off the line. The cost isn't much more but welding will be required with the ladders.....

Ultimately low to mid 10's. Right now the car is low 11's with xhd leafs.

 

[SUPERSTOCKRACER]

Took 3 passes to get the shocks setup. Bars were set from the get go.
And I never wanted to cut up or weld the car for ladders.
Just sayin...
:3gears:

So you think that your 60 foots would be any better if you were using ladder bars over Caltracs, and can you honestly say your car is very consistent? What about hot summer days when tracks are slippery? Just sayin'

 

[bobtile]

Are the caltracs not as adjustable as the ladderbars?

 

[Jet Doc]

Check out those Assassin Bars, look to be a little better design than a Caltrac.

 

[383man]

What to do?
Caltracs or Ladder bars?

Neither just SS springs for me.

My best 60 on just the 3400 lb SS springs is 1.50 at 10.70's so far. Most have said I should pick up about a tenth on Cal Tracs once dailed in. But I have heard some say they are very noisey driving on the street and to be honest its not worth me spending the $800 plus dollars for a tenth or so on my budget. But since mine is a street car I wont put ladder bars on it so if I spend the money later it would be Cal Tracs for me I guess as mine will stay a street car as long as I have it. Ron

- - - Updated - - -

You know whats funny I have a pic of Mavericks 63 Dodge from an article in 1963 and he has a bar from the back of the car up to and bolted on the axle as its says its a suspension setup he uses to help hook the car. It made me think of Cal Tracs as soon as I saw it. I did not know they even thougt of using anything like that back then ? Ron

 

[mopar 3 B]

Yea! Think NHRA banned it even tho it supposably worked well.

 

[HT413]

Ultimately low to mid 10's.

This just in, bob has something in the works... and it ain't just some suspension work.

Spill it, bob!

 

[MarPar]

This just in, bob has something in the works... and it ain't just some suspension work.

Spill it, bob!

I betcha the a-body guys already know what it is

 

[Cranky]

Yup, many cars out there running in the 8's and faster on CT's and on small tires. How many are in a class that says they have to run the stock type (leaf springs) suspension but are allowed 'traction aids'? There's not many choices if you are in a class that says you have to keep leafs on the car. Ladder/slapper bar in the same sentence? Really? lol John Calvert came up with something just for the guys that couldn't run coil over suspensions on leaf spring cars because of class rules. All I know is that they are not the cure all end all traction solution. We chased our tail with them and the car was equipped with everything John said should be on it. The car would hook on a well prepped track but if it wasn't well prepped, we were diving under the car to make adjustments and sometimes the car wouldn't cut consistent 60 foots when the track was well prepped. After many many hours of trying to find the right adjustment, sticking on different rate springs and a dozen or so calls to John, we finally threw in the towel on them and went with the complete coil over ladder system which included a diagonal link instead of a panhard bar. We set the car up on scales and made a slight adjustment once at the track and never looked back. If your rear suspension is on the soft side, you probably won't like the panhard bar setup. I dunno man....just relaying what we went through with our traction issues....

 

[bobtile]

I betcha the a-body guys already know what it is

Yes, you can read all about it on a-bodies

- - - Updated - - -

Yup, many cars out there running in the 8's and faster on CT's and on small tires. How many are in a class that says they have to run the stock type (leaf springs) suspension but are allowed 'traction aids'? There's not many choices if you are in a class that says you have to keep leafs on the car. Ladder/slapper bar in the same sentence? Really? lol John Calvert came up with something just for the guys that couldn't run coil over suspensions on leaf spring cars because of class rules. All I know is that they are not the cure all end all traction solution. We chased our tail with them and the car was equipped with everything John said should be on it. The car would hook on a well prepped track but if it wasn't well prepped, we were diving under the car to make adjustments and sometimes the car wouldn't cut consistent 60 foots when the track was well prepped. After many many hours of trying to find the right adjustment, sticking on different rate springs and a dozen or so calls to John, we finally threw in the towel on them and went with the complete coil over ladder system which included a diagonal link instead of a panhard bar. We set the car up on scales and made a slight adjustment once at the track and never looked back. If your rear suspension is on the soft side, you probably won't like the panhard bar setup. I dunno man....just relaying what we went through with our traction issues....

That's some really good information there.It seems that the caltracs work well but the ladder bar setup works better and in more conditions.

- - - Updated - - -

This just in, bob has something in the works... and it ain't just some suspension work.

Spill it, bob!

You mean the thing about moving to Utah and starting another family?

 

[SUPERSTOCKRACER]

I rest my case. But we all know Bobtile doesn't listen to me.