rear springs in front?

[75F350]

Ive used these before, ands till shy away from them. They require more work to use than the SD fronts would. After using both, I chose to stick with the SD springs: These required more shackle length than I was comfortable with. I suppose with some additional fabrication, I could get them to work well, but the effrort is more than I am willing to spend. These give up a few inches of overall length to other front springs, and that additional length is fairly critical.

[itsnotanova]

75F350, What about chevy 64's in the front? I've already got them in the back and am considering them for the front. I'm using an E350 chassis for my mud buggy project and I would have to extend the front frame anyway for any spring longer than 50 inches.

[Prozon]

Why use the chassis if you have to extend it?

[itsnotanova]

Because the V10 tranny and disc-brake rearend only have 40,000 miles and best of all it was free!!

[Prozon]

Sounds like a good deal to me! Haha.

[75F350]

While I like the possibilities of the Chebby 64 incher up front (I use them in the rear too) I still feel that the approach angle will suffer far too much for this set up. EXtending the frame that far forward starts to defeat the purpose of the longer spring.
With this longer spring comes quite a bit of axle wrap under braking. Larger tires are going to take a toll on these springs when the binders are applied, and this might have a negative affect on the design as a whole.
Heak, I dont really know first hand, as this is only speculation on my part.
This really falls into the custom fabrication category, since both the front and rear hangers have to be modified.
I believe that the OP was trying to use something that was as bolt in as possible, and the closest would be the front spring with slightly more length. This is the best compromise between total function and its ability to be installed easilly.

[teds74ford]

I didn't realize that you HAD used the blazer springs, Ed. I was just throwing it out there as an option. Based on all I have read, it still seems to me that for the fords, the SD springs are the best option.

[75F350]

Originally Posted by teds74ford

I didn't realize that you HAD used the blazer springs, Ed. I was just throwing it out there as an option. Based on all I have read, it still seems to me that for the fords, the SD springs are the best option.

Ive tried just about as many options as can be. In that pic above you can see a set of chebby springs working well, but the length is somewhat of a dissappointment. Fully extended the arch becomes such that the shackle has reached its limit. Littereally out of extension this spring is just physically not long enough to achieve performances of the longer spring. A couple of inches goes a long way here.
Yes longer shackles can and will help but take up space and the sacrifice is suspension compression as well as wheelbase changes when the spring goes flat. If the shackle is too long, the truck can develop some sway so it becomes unstable. This is compounded by the springs narrow width. This longer shackle will also promote wheelbase changes during heavy suspension cycles which can lead to a truck that drives / steers rather funny.
This can be seen with many chebby trucks and blazers. Notice that these vehicles cam from the factory with a very short shackle? Hanger dimensions were quite a bit shorter than we find on our later fords, and using these springs does not merit, or justify the use of them.
They are good, and a decent alternative, however, we have better options.