Thread: Squirrely 57 Chev

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The fat tires on the rear have about 20lb air pressure. the front
tires are mickeys 5.5 in 6 ply with about 40 lb psi. I'm thinking
front suspension. Had to put blocks in between springs to keep
the hooker headers from draging. when tubbed the car sits about
1 inch lower in front on drivers side. I have not had the front end re
aligned, possibly this could be some of the problems. I also noticed
a bit of wobbling when I tried to stop it. yes, this is my first big block,
always ran sb strokers in past.
rdobbs

You mean something like this?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2tk8X8tZok

Be very careful.

Kitz

Originally Posted by rdobbs

The fat tires on the rear have about 20lb air pressure. the front
tires are mickeys 5.5 in 6 ply with about 40 lb psi. I'm thinking
front suspension. Had to put blocks in between springs to keep
the hooker headers from draging. when tubbed the car sits about
1 inch lower in front on drivers side. I have not had the front end re
aligned, possibly this could be some of the problems. I also noticed
a bit of wobbling when I tried to stop it. yes, this is my first big block,
always ran sb strokers in past.
rdobbs

Just the usual case of lots of horsepower and lousy handling.... The front suspension is critical to proper and safe handling, and probably the most overlooked area in a build....

The old Tri-Five's run on ball bearing wheel bearings, wasn't a good setup in '55 when they were built. Those front springs that are now 50 years old and fatigued were made for either a small block or a six cylinder, not a big block. There are any number of companies making quality components, good A-Arms, disc brakes, coilovers, or a number of other options up to and including rack and pinion steering.

The spacer in the springs trick never was a good one. You will probably have to do some rebuilding on your headers to keep them from dragging, not just raise the front end higher...

IMO high horsepower engines is just one part of the buildup of a high performance car. Don't want to sound like I'm picking on you, many others are guilty of the same mistake thinking horsepower is the only thing that counts. I've seen a lot of fast cars jump curbs, go sideways and flop on the top, and lose a lot of races just because they don't handle well because of poor suspension....

Some upgrades are in order for that front end, probably going to take a lot more then an alignment to make the car realize it's full potential.

Originally Posted by rdobbs

The fat tires on the rear have about 20lb air pressure. the front
tires are mickeys 5.5 in 6 ply with about 40 lb psi. I'm thinking
front suspension. Had to put blocks in between springs to keep
the hooker headers from draging. when tubbed the car sits about
1 inch lower in front on drivers side. I have not had the front end re
aligned, possibly this could be some of the problems. I also noticed
a bit of wobbling when I tried to stop it. yes, this is my first big block,
always ran sb strokers in past.
rdobbs

Without being too judgmental, your front end setup is an accident waiting to happen. I highlighted the few (?) things that struck me in your descriiption. Realignment is NOT your only problem. Listen to Dave, and give that front end some attention. Good springs . . . A-arms . . . bushings . . . etc., etc., etc . . . In addition to a marginal setup, something sounds loose to me.