First, by "spring pockets" I presume you're talking about leaf springs moved inboard to give you tire clearance (as you stated). Dave's comments about the floaters and some form of bar set up; e.g. "traction masters", ladder bars, four links; something to control the rotation of the axle housing on acceleration forces are well founded.

I comes down to how you intend to use the car MOST of the time. Both systems you are contemplating can work for occasional drag racing (or acceleration demonstrations ), as long as the axle housing is secured.

If most of your use, and hopefully enjoyment, is going to be the "driving around" kind, then I'd strongly suggest the leaf springs and some good gas shocks. Some people will probably disagree with me on this point, but on a car the weight of a tri5 Chev coilovers are not real satisfactory. (My personal belief is that coilovers are inappropriate on any car over something around 3000 pounds if ride quality is to be preserved) Yes, there are units with spring rates high enough for the load, lots of guys have used them, but carrying the load, and doing it with "grace" are two different things. Now I'm not talking panty waste "grace" here, I'm talking ride quality and handling on anything besides a straight and flat surface. If you grew up enjoying buckboard rides then the limited spring travel of a coilover won't bother you. But you need to understand that as a coil spring compresses it tends toward binding, thus yielding less, and stiffening it's compression. Look at the coil springs under cars with good ride quality and road holding ability. They're not coilovers, they're larger diameter wound springs, usually with a "progressive rate", that give readily at low rates, and provide adequate travel to dampen sudden jolts (e.g. potholes, drainage swales, etc.). Just to add more controversy to the mix, most pro street setups use a coilover; mounted vertically!! That sucks for lateral control.......like going around corners. They're patterned after the drag racing setups of the pros................whose primary interest in life is going in a straight line for the briefest amount of time. Not the ideal model for a primarily street driven suspension. Hey, it's great for the ricky racer image, and if sacrificing ride quality for appearance and occasional performance is something you can live with, great! Go for it. It just depends on what the use goals are.