Suspension Set-up/ Tuning
 

Hello all, trying to set-up a 1980 Camaro.. leaf spring car. 3680 lbs. 90-10 70-30 summit shocks, moroso coils, slapper bars set to hit eye of spring there is about an 1" travel between rubber stopper and eye resting. Not sure of pinion angle or front and rear separate weights. Essentially stock other than what listed.
26" slick. Aluminium headed BBC, TH350 JW converter flashes to 5000 with current set-up.
Aside from Cal-trac's is there anything I can do to launch better? Don't have any numbers with current engine, but it did 60 ft. a best of 1.78 with the previous SBC with a best et of 12.01 @ 113. Car does squat a bit. Does have new solid bushings in rear springs, rubber trans and engine mounts.

Thanks

Re: Suspension Set-up/ Tuning
 

I have '78 Camaro stick setup.
When I did nothing else BUT go from slapper bars to
Cal-tracs it was like a new car.60 ft better, launch straighter and a
breeze to set up and fine tune.Worth the effort of installing them, even if you
do nothing else.
Terry Knapper

Re: Suspension Set-up/ Tuning
 

If I had the $1800 to spend on Cal-tracs I would, but this is just a street car that does the occasional blast down the track. I was sort of hoping for some tuning tips with what I already have... might have a few bucks to play with but not $1800.

Re: Suspension Set-up/ Tuning
 

It would be nice to know the corner weights. When I ran my 1971 Formula, with slapper bars , I usually had the Passenger side snubber preloaded against the spring eye with me in the drivers seat . Should have about 75 lbs extra on the right rear corner.

Re: Suspension Set-up/ Tuning
 

You might get the book How To Hook & Launch written by Dick Miller...the hook guru !
It's about $25 and has a lot of info that might help you. If you can't find it locally go to www.Amazon.com to get it ..........

Re: Suspension Set-up/ Tuning
 

The last cal tracs I bought were about $350.00. What's with $1800.00? Has the prices went up that much?

Re: Suspension Set-up/ Tuning
 

I just checked their web site for fun because $1800 seemed crazy. Cal-tracs for that specific car are $339.

Re: Suspension Set-up/ Tuning
 

The OP never stated if this was for all the Caltracs components or just the bars. If he was intending on complete system I can for certain see the $1800 and more. Taking into consideration the low $CDN and the obscene shipping rates and brokerage fees to Canada. Here's how I see part of the breakdown.
$398 Split mono springs
$339 Caltrac bars
$238 ($119ea x 2) Calvert rear shocks
$118 ($59ea x 2) Calvert front shocks
$29 Calvert wrench
$1122 USD total x 1.32 CDN exchange= $1481.04
$1481.04 x 15% HST (harmonized sales tax)=$222.15
Now we are at $1481.04+$222.15= $1703.20 CDN and the transportation and broker fees still aren't included and they are many many times what the Continental USA rates are. So when the OP quoted $1800 if that was for the complete system I believe he is still short by a bunch.
Just for conversation sake all those big mail order stores that offer free continental USA shipping those in the US are getting a bargain compared to what your friends to the north are getting. I am in no way venting it just is what it is. Doug

Re: Suspension Set-up/ Tuning
 

To use slapper bars compress pass. side snubber 1/2 inch. 1 inch gap on drivers side. Leaf spring car should separate ,not squat. Try setting the rear shocks 50/50 at first . Remove front sway bar and make sure nothing is bound up in front susp. moroso springs are cheap and really help. Set front shocks as loose as they will go. Use a 29 inch slick, should fit easy with 8 inch wheel. Move the battery into the trunk if you have not already done so. I ran slapper bars for years , they work very well but after a while they tend to bend rear springs and you will need to shim the snubbers . When you get the money get the calvert springs and bars as they can be adjusted. you can make the slappers work very well ,just takes a little time and work. Rick.

Re: Suspension Set-up/ Tuning
 

Thank you Rick and others who posted. And yes I was referring to the leafs bars etc... Last time I looked into it, it was around $1200 and it was too much then...lol. I will look into that book and also try what was suggested. I do have access to some 29's so I will give them a go to. The weather is starting to clear here so hopefully get it out soon.

Re: Suspension Set-up/ Tuning
 

You might get some info from this website.... www.dickmillerracing.com
No cost to check it out........

Re: Suspension Set-up/ Tuning
 

Bought a package similar to this from MoneyMaker last year and it was around $1200 without rear shocks. I have since added the suggested Strange adjustable units back there. Alex always did know his stuff.

Dale.

Re: Suspension Set-up/ Tuning
 

Just need to work with what you have. It takes a little more time, but you can get great results.


I had & still have the cheapest slapper bars collecting dust. They were not the more expensive J-bolt style. I think they cost me $40 many many moons ago. I extended them out so the snubbers hit under the spring eye. I had zero preload on the drivers side & preload on passenger side. Don't know how much, just a trial & error deal. I also used 1/8 thick shims between rear mount & springs to make bars level with the ground. I used the cheap adjustable shocks front set @ 90/10 & rear set @ 50/50. The coil springs were stock with about 2 coils cut.


The car weighed 3200-3300 with me in it with an all cast iron 385 SBC. That went a best of 10.40 with 60's in the low 1.40 range. Below is how the car reacted with this set-up.

http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r...0/100_0145.jpg

Re: Suspension Set-up/ Tuning
 

Thanks, your car leaves nice and straight.. 10.40s is moving pretty good :). I made my own bars too. I will get a picture of them tomorrow just to see if the are. I used 1/4" plate with some square tubing.. I had to replace the frame rails about 4 years ago and repair the spring eye mounting points. I ended up putting some frame connectors in also.

Re: Suspension Set-up/ Tuning
 

If you post a simple video of the car launching it would be much easier for people to give advice. At the very least you can have someone use their cell phone. You might be surprised how well it turns out. I have solved many problems by watching videos.

Re: Suspension Set-up/ Tuning
 

here's a couple of the most recent videos 2013. Aside from putting a bbc in, nothing has changed suspension wise other than what the weight difference will do.

I don't think I can upload any videos.

Re: Suspension Set-up/ Tuning
 

to set the slapper bars right, first the pinion angle must be correct. then the car must be race weight and race ready. either weight the driver seat [some weight must be on the floor board, to simulate leg weight] or find someone exactly the same size and weight to set in the driver seat. then set the bars. both should be the same-distance or compressed. with the weight out of the driver seat, the pass side should remain the same and the driver side should have a gap. more gap, on both bars, will equal a harder hit, less air gap will equal a softer hit. adjust the bars depending on what the car requires to get the 60 you want. leaf spring cars should rise at the rear [not squat] if the car does not rise, you must change the angle of the bar [read higher in the front]. most Camaro/Firebird cars have the front spring eye the same height or lower than the center of the axle tube. the only way to make the car rise in the rear, especially if the front of the car is lower than the rear, is the make the front of the bar contact the spring some distance behind the spring eye. it will be hard on the spring over time. however, if the car does not rise, you are fooling yourself.
some thought should be given to putting both shocks on the same side of the axle [if rule legal]. shocks should be as straight up/down as possible.
you should also fab up some sort of safety loop, at the front of the bar, in case the bar should break and dig into the strip.
over the years I have seen a lot of really fast slapper bar cars. I once watched a big block Camaro almost pull the rear tires off the ground on gear change. I made a few suggestions and the car picked up 4 tenths. with only a slapper bars angle change, totally free, that is a deal.
when it is race time, you need lots of videos. I dont care how much you think you know from the driver seat, nothing beats a photo.
Rod in AZ