1969 Camaro Suspension Help...

Grant Eldridge · 06-04-2008, 12:57 AM

Just to clarify, if anyone thought I was copying John Calvert's excellent bars with my Slide-a-Link modifications, that was not the case. In fact, I first bought the Slide-a-Link system locally before I knew how to get the Cal Trac bars and was having problems hooking the car. First I made up aluminum bushings to replace the poly bushing, and that helped but was still inconsistent. I then tried spacing down the back of the bar, thinking to change the instant center which also seemed to help but it was hit and miss and touchy on the adjustment. Finally another racer suggested eliminating the flex by making the bar one piece and rigid. During all this, I tried various shocks and later bought and tried a set of split monoleaf springs from John Calvert, which I still have and plan to use in my next car. Ironically, I had not realised that a good deal of my problem was too low tire pressure. Thanks to another suggestion by a fellow racer, I raised the tire pressure on the radials to 21-22 lbs and with the other changes the car has never failed to hook since. I know what I went through, time and money and effort to finally get a decent 60 foot. If I was starting fresh, without a shed full of bits and pieces, I would definitely call John and buy his bars and use his springs. On the other hand, I also have seen the Alf Weibe bars work very well on a lot of cars in my area.
Thank you so much to all you guys that are willing to share knowledge on this forum! If I had been following these posts then I probably could have avoided a lot of mistakes.

06-04-2008, 12:57 AM	#21
Grant Eldridge Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 124 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: 1969 Camaro Suspension Help... Just to clarify, if anyone thought I was copying John Calvert's excellent bars with my Slide-a-Link modifications, that was not the case. In fact, I first bought the Slide-a-Link system locally before I knew how to get the Cal Trac bars and was having problems hooking the car. First I made up aluminum bushings to replace the poly bushing, and that helped but was still inconsistent. I then tried spacing down the back of the bar, thinking to change the instant center which also seemed to help but it was hit and miss and touchy on the adjustment. Finally another racer suggested eliminating the flex by making the bar one piece and rigid. During all this, I tried various shocks and later bought and tried a set of split monoleaf springs from John Calvert, which I still have and plan to use in my next car. Ironically, I had not realised that a good deal of my problem was too low tire pressure. Thanks to another suggestion by a fellow racer, I raised the tire pressure on the radials to 21-22 lbs and with the other changes the car has never failed to hook since. I know what I went through, time and money and effort to finally get a decent 60 foot. If I was starting fresh, without a shed full of bits and pieces, I would definitely call John and buy his bars and use his springs. On the other hand, I also have seen the Alf Weibe bars work very well on a lot of cars in my area. Thank you so much to all you guys that are willing to share knowledge on this forum! If I had been following these posts then I probably could have avoided a lot of mistakes.