The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Anyone running a Four Link rear?

Looking at spring options,
I found that CPP's four link kit isn't too much more than a new set of leafs.
Add the cost of a sway bar, and it's a wash...

Anyone use this (or another) four link kit,
and care to share your experience?

What are the advantages, and disadvantages, compared to a "traditional" leaf spring setup?

Thanks,
mark.
'51 KY 3100

just a word of advice dont buy anything from cpp. i have delt with them on more than one occasion and have found there help and return service unsatisfactory. if i was buying a front clip or a rear 4 link i would probably go with chris alstins chassie works. his last name may not be spelled correct, not sure on the spelling. i would highly recommend you stay away from cpp.there stuff is imported from overseas and when you have a problem and something does not go togeather easily he will say that you are doing it wrong or in the case of the spindle i bought from him he said the spindles were assembled nothing is wrong. when i disasembled them to grease the bearings the caliper pins were going in crroked.good luck tim

uh...i have seen 4 links in many off-road applications. i know that they ride way better, and the suspension can travel better. i also know that drag racing types like to use them because they keep the rearend on the ground better. it is a superior setup to leaf springs in many ways, the only thing that i am unsure of is its ability to handle a alrge load. my friend has a chevy with 17 inches of lift on it and it has a four link rear end. he mashes the hell out of that thing and it has never broken and even tows a boat well. he claims it rides twice as good now. i think that it is worth looking in to, it may be expensive, and it also requires a lot of careful measurement and calibration once installed. everyone i talk to who has one loves it though.

Mark, you will not believe how much better your truck rides and handles with the bars and coilovers. The panhard bar eliminates any sway and you can get springs in any rate. I have two sets--one for empty super smooth cruising and one for loads or trailer pulling. It's a snap to change them out. One thing you might consider is to use ladder bars instead of 4 link because they are much simpler. The 4 link is better for race applications since they are infinately adjustable and the setup can be dialed in for strip conditions. This is not necessay for street or regular performance. If you want to see a picture of this setup on a frame just like yours you can go to the Chevy Duty site and look at the "frame mount gas tank" posting on the first page. It's about a gas tank but shows the ladder/coilover setup.

Hi Mark, google 3 and 4-link rear suspension and you will have more info than you could ever read. After much research I decided against a four link and fabbed my own 3-link. Under cornering loads a 4-link will bind more as the body rolls over on the suspension, a 3 link reduces this tendency and is widely used in dirt track and road racing applications. Will it really matter on a 50 chevy pickup? I doubt it, but I feel better anyway. Another thing to consider is the durability of rod-ends in an everyday application. If the system uses rod ends make sure they have dust boots, or they will wear out. Another option if you are on a budget, or like me like to make things instead of buying them, take a trip to your local salvage yard and start looking at later model suv's for some inspiration. Isuzu Rodeo's for example run a 4 link, and the Trooper model uses a very simple 3 link. Have fun, John

my buddy put "heim joints" on all of the rod ends for his four link. again it is for an off-road application. but darn you should see that thing flex.

I am too cheap to buy a complete 4 link, at least for now

I removed the torque tube diffy from my 51 last weekend. I was not sure how the axle pivoted on the spring hanger until I got it all apart. After studying this setup, I am planning to keep the stock springs with the stock differential spring mount. I will make a bracket to weld on my 9" which will accept the stock bolt, allowing the diffy to pivot on the stock springs just as before. I then will make an arm that will go from the top of the rear end housing to a crossmember, making this arm the same length as the distance from the front spring shackle bolt to the axle pivot bolt. I plan to get the pinion angle correct and then weld the bracket to the top of the 9". I shouldn't need a panhard bar because the stock leaf springs will keep the diffy located side-to-side.

The four link suspensions I have seen in the magazines all appear to to have the axle housing centered between the upper and lower links. I am not sure how important this really is. I'm not going to be out drag racing--I intend to use this as a truck, at least occasionally. I didn't mind the ride when the pickup was in stock form.

Any thoughts pro or con would be greatly appreciated!

I bought a four bar setup from CPP and it turned out to be a Total Cost Involved unit. The quality was good and the installation was very easy. The coil over springs that came in the kit are a bit stiff, unless you have a work truck, but that's an easy fix. The real beauty of a coil over setup is the ability to taylor height and ride quality at a very low cost, springs are cheap. If you are building a hot rod type of truck go for it, if you plan on a bed full of rocks and 100,000 miles stay with leaf springs.

Richie,
Would like to know more about your experience with this.
Was the CPP / TCI kit install as straightforward as shown on their web site?
Looks like the only tricky part is setting the pinion angle and welding the brackets on the rear end housing. Any tips there?
(I have a friend to help with the welding, if I can be sure to get the angle right.)

Any other "gotchas" to watch out for?
Any interference issues with the bed?

Thanks!!
mark.
'51 KY 3100

Mark it's as easy as it looks. The shock mounting surface of the brackets needs to be parallel with the carrier (or rear cover) mounting surface of the rear end housing. When it's installed you can adjust the length of the bars to get your angle exactly right. When welding on the housing apply some heat to the opposit side of the axle tube at the same time to prevent any warpage to the tube. I would put 175#-200# springs in a normal truck, the springs in the kit I got were 325#ers, killer harsh.
I have a Dakota front end in my truck along with the four bar and I'm here to say that it rides like a brand new truck. Good luck Richie