Whos running split mono leafs ?

[Canadian1968]

I'm going to be replacing my original worn out rear leaf springs this winter . I thought I had made my mind on getting a set of Calvert split mono leafs. I do like to race the car a few times each summer. I thought the weight savings and consistency of the mono leaf design would be a great pick.

I just got done reading a thread where it was mentioned if you do not have the full cal Trac setup with the springs they work poorly ? I had no intentions of purchasing the cal Trac bars . I was going to my adjustable pinion snubber .

Curious if there are people running mono leafs without the cal Trac or similar bars?

 

[Runner 68]

Haven't run them yet on this car (68 Runner) but my son has run them on his 72 Duster for a year or so now. Pretty much all street driving and he likes them. Set them up for zero pre-load on the street and you will be fine. My son's and the pics below are both the one inch drop low profiles. If you want to hit the strip, crank in a quarter turn or less of load.

I understand that it's a bad idea to run their split mono leafs without the CalTrac bars. I'm sure the gurus on here will correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[RemCharger]

Running the split monos on a 12.5 car. Used to run 12.10s.
Work great.
The bars are more for stability on a serious car

 

[33 IMP]

I would just call Calvert, see what he says.
I don't think I would try the springs without the bars.
And I wouldn't use a pinion snubber on anything, adjustable or not.

 

[493 Mike]

Multi leaf springs provide dampening action that mono leaf's cannot. I would think that high end adjustable shocks could make up for the lost feature. I suspect more opinions will appear here.
Mike

 

[gkent]

At some point there was a company making one-piece mon-leaf springs (years ago). Also there was a company making them out of fiberglass (can't see those lasting long!).

This took me 3 seconds to find:

Speedway Chrysler Type Mono-Leaf Spring, 65 Lb. Rate, 5 Inch Arch

Speedway circle track racing mono-leaf Chrysler type springs offer consistent quality at a great price! Each spring includes a front bushing. Item Details Front Bolt: 5/8" Rear Eye: 1" Approx Lbs/Inch 65 True Arch: 4.25 Rough Arch: 5"

www.speedwaymotors.com

 

[Canadian1968]

Running the split monos on a 12.5 car. Used to run 12.10s.
Work great.
The bars are more for stability on a serious car

Did you mean the other way around? 12.10 used to run 12.5s ? Or why did you get slower ?

Are you running their cal Trac bars ?

 

[mmissile]

I'm trying out the Caltrac stuff in the spring. I have the split monos, bars, sliders, and Afco DA shocks on Krusty. Supposed to be a killer setup.

 

[Curiousyellow71]

There are some cars running split monoleafs and no Caltracs. Jordan Pennington ZL1 camaro in F.A.S.T. is one running mid 9s. I think the caltracs hit to hard on the small tire he would lose traction. He took the cal tracs off...But...he also has really fancy shocks and a longer front spring segment then any mopar.
We are going to try the split monoleafs(no caltracs)on our bb 65 dart. Figure we would try it...but car isn't running yet to tell you if it is a good idea. We have the entire split monoleaf cal Trac set up for one of our b bodies. But that isn't running yet either. So I am following along this thread.

 

[Canadian1968]

This is directly from their site

Calvert Split Mono Leafsprings are designed to work with CalTracs to maintain arch. While street driving does not put undue stress on the springs, racing with Calvert springs without a traction device installed may result in bent or de-arched springs.

Simply says traction " device " To me they are basically telling you other setups will work, obviously they want theirs on there but a pinion snubber to stop that diff from Turing up and wrapping up front segment

 

[sabre67]

following

 

[RemCharger]

This is directly from their site

Calvert Split Mono Leafsprings are designed to work with CalTracs to maintain arch. While street driving does not put undue stress on the springs, racing with Calvert springs without a traction device installed may result in bent or de-arched springs.

Simply says traction " device " To me they are basically telling you other setups will work, obviously they want theirs on there but a pinion snubber to stop that diff from Turing up and wrapping up front segment

They're talking about seriously fast ****, like 8 second leaf spring cars.
The front half is rigid, the rear half is replaceable.
And you really don't want a pinion snubber in a good leaf car. They hinder the proper action of the spring.
Old school tech for junk springs.

 

[RemCharger]

Did you mean the other way around? 12.10 used to run 12.5s ? Or why did you get slower ?

Are you running their cal Trac bars ?

Sorry, used to run low 12s with a plain 440 with a 5500 stall. Pull both wheels. Now we have a 383 in there , mid 12s. An old set of Calvert springs from a buddy s/s racecar. No bars. Watched the car leave many times, nothing wrong going on.

 

[Project66]

I'm running Calvert split-monos with Hotchkis hangers and I haven't had any issues. They are a lot stiffer than the the old springs and I like that. However, now the front feels too soft, so I'm going to replace the torsion bars with some heavier ones. Probably the PST 1.03s or the Hotchkis 1.1s.

The front spring pivot is made narrow so that you can fit the Caltrac bars with the springs. I would not recommend installing the springs with that much slop. I went to the hardware store and found perfectly-sized washers for my install, torqued everything down and the car has been fine for the few hundred miles that I have driven this set-up. The front spring pivot uses an aluminum bushing rather than a rubber one, so it might feel more harsh or sound more noisy. I haven't noticed that in my car, but my car is pretty loud and rowdy so consider the source.

 

[Canadian1968]

Well good to hear people running them with out the bars , with no issues.

Makes me feel bit better moving forward with the purchase !

 

[6PKRTSE]

I run Caltracs and-1" split mono leafs on my Challenger with never any issues on the street or strip.

 

[Runner 68]

My only comment would be why mess with the designer's recommendations? Get the whole package. $400 extra dollars isn't ****.
Plus if guys see them hanging down there they'll know you're packing. To me the split mono leafs seem a little flimsy without the bars to support them.

 

[Canadian1968]

My only comment would be why mess with the designer's recommendations? Get the whole package. $400 extra dollars isn't ****.
Plus if guys see them hanging down there they'll know you're packing. To me the split mono leafs seem a little flimsy without the bars to support them.

$400 US = $555 CAN + 13% ontario tax = $627 . Don't forget probably another $100 in shipping on that. Looking around $730 . I mean maybe not a lot to you but to me that's a fair chunk of change .

 

[Canadian1968]

If I can save myself $700 and still be happy with the product, then that seems like a.pretty good move to me .

A business is always going to try and " sell" their product . That's why I came here looking for honest opinions from real world experience.

 

[RemCharger]

If I can save myself $700 and still be happy with the product, then that seems like a.pretty good move to me .

A business is always going to try and " sell" their product . That's why I came here looking for honest opinions from real world experience.

3 track championships in the Polara. Been on the track everyday its open since 2016 or so.
I can't post a speculation, because I already know it works through true testing.
I also made spacers for the front spring perch.
You'll be happy