Anyone put a spring hanger on a first Gen? (1 Viewer)

[40LandCruising]

I have a 1982 Toyota Pickup that I want to put an aftermarket front hanger spring hanger on. It will have 6"(2.5" over stock length) shackles and i'm trying to decide if i need a standard or low profile spring hanger. i understand that the solid axle frames are lower than the ifs truck frames so if you put a standard hanger on it it drops the front of the leaf down too low.

 

[Pacer]

I have a 1982 Toyota Pickup that I want to put an aftermarket front hanger spring hanger on. It will have 6"(2.5" over stock length) shackles and i'm trying to decide if i need a standard or low profile spring hanger. i understand that the solid axle frames are lower than the ifs truck frames so if you put a standard hanger on it it drops the front of the leaf down too low.

I am at this crossroad right now with my build.
See most recent posts for pics of why to consider the taller front spring hanger.

I like the low profile ones too, but the tall one I have (not installed yet) will alleviate interference of the driver side spring contacting the drag link at full stuff.

You may not have high steer and none of this will be relevant...

Builds - '81 Trekker ReDistruction

I picked up a rusty '81 Toyota Trekker a year or so ago. It is a mess! Floors rotted on all four corners of the cab, sliding windows and tailgate look as though they leaked from the factory and the globbs of silicone applied by previous owners tells a similar tail. I never posted a build thread...

forum.ih8mud.com

 

[msahr]

I added a spring hanger on my 85 when I went to all new front suspension (because no project exists in a vacuum, when I went with crossover steering I needed to redo the suspension too). Spring hanger came from All-Pro off road. It's the standard profile version.

 

[msahr]

I don't know anything about the different frames being lower or higher. I liked the standard one since it gives a little more room, which I needed with the Hi-Steer.

 

[40LandCruising]

@Pacer @msahr well it sounds like I can do a standard hanger then! I do have hy-steer. Thanks yall

 

[40LandCruising]

For those of y’all that have lifted first gen trucks, did y’all leave the shackle in the factory location for the front? I wasn’t sure if that’d work once I put higher arch springs and a hanger on mine.

 

[Pacer]

For those of y’all that have lifted first gen trucks, did y’all leave the shackle in the factory location for the front? I wasn’t sure if that’d work once I put higher arch springs and a hanger on mine.

Yes, stock location with a longer shackle.

 

[msahr]

Yes, stock location with a longer shackle.

I'll second that.

 

[40LandCruising]

Thanks y’all, I’m going to order those 6” shackles, a u bolt flip, and a spring hanger soon. I had ordered the shackles and u bolt flip from Marlin last week but they were out of half the u bolts and half the shackle plates I needed so I had to cancel my order because I have a wheeling trip soon I have to be ready for.

 

[chesshircat]

If you are going to wheel it go with a standard hanger. You need to lower the front mounting location to roll the axle forward. When the passenger side gets close to full droop on stock locations the drag link will touch the leaf springs. I replaced my stock hangers on my 85 to fix the drag link issue and bc I kept breaking the stock hangers. I used a slag factory hanger, best on the market imo. Sky off-road makes a good ubolt flip kit. The ubolts are tight on the housing and two are squared off. Look at smaller suppliers vs the big box stores and you can find better stuff.

 

[40LandCruising]

If you are going to wheel it go with a standard hanger. You need to lower the front mounting location to roll the axle forward. When the passenger side gets close to full droop on stock locations the drag link will touch the leaf springs. I replaced my stock hangers on my 85 to fix the drag link issue and bc I kept breaking the stock hangers. I used a slag factory hanger, best on the market imo. Sky off-road makes a good ubolt flip kit. The ubolts are tight on the housing and two are squared off. Look at smaller suppliers vs the big box stores and you can find better stuff.

I ended up ordering a Trail Gear standard hanger, 6” shackles, and u bolt flip. I have ordered from slag factory before and would have ordered the hanger from them but I am on a college kid budget and have to save every penny I can right now. I also picked up a new set of Trail gear 3” springs front and rear last night off a guy who bought them and never installed them.

 

[liveoak]

I used a slag factory hanger, best on the market imo.

The problem with that hanger is that they expect you to advertise for them. A bit gaudy/obtrusive if you ask me.

 

[joseywales]

The problem with that hanger is that they expect you to advertise for them. A bit gaudy/obtrusive if you ask me.


View attachment 2148734

That is definitely ugly, but nothing a piece of 2x1/8 flatbar wouldn’t fix.

 

[joseywales]

Here’s another option for you. Sky sells about 5 different levels of kit for this application. Link below is to hanger only. I used his shackle reversal kit on two of my F350s. He makes great stuff.

Toyota Solid Axle Leaf Spring Hangers

Full Brace / Ultra Clearance Hangers Includes: 9/16" Bolts w/ 18MM sleeves 29" Spring Pin Center (Toyota Mini-Truck) Material is 1/4" at spring eyes, 3/16" center Hanger measures 2.75 from spring eye to frame base Designed to fit Toyota springs with supplied sleeves or domestic springs without...

www.skysoffroaddesign.com

 

[40LandCruising]

I looked at sky stuff too, ended up going with trail gear just because they had 15% off for Black Friday so I saved a good bit.

 

[GRM]

Just make sure the spring hanger drop matches the shackle drop. You want the spring eyes to be level. If the rear eye is lower than the front eye, the spring will compress when you hit the brakes, causing brake dive. If the front eye is lower than the rear eye, then the truck will slightly lift when hitting the brakes.

Most kits make the rear eye sit lower than the front for better ground clearance; done at the expense of on-highway performance.

 

[40LandCruising]

@GRM i was wondering how that would effect things. I think with the 6” shackles and a standard hanger I should be right about perfect. But I will see as I install.

 

[Manhattan]

Another reason to match the drop - shackle and hanger - is caster. If you rotate the axle (longer shackles or hangers) either way, you're also rotating that plane the steering moves through... and can really screw up how the truck turns and self-centers... or doesn't.

I put longer shackles on a CJ (they're in front; rotates the axle top-forward) and it was enough to make the Jeep un-towable. If the tow rig went left, it went right. Driving it, didn't self-center... it did the opposite. Lesson learned.

 

[chesshircat]

The problem with that hanger is that they expect you to advertise for them. A bit gaudy/obtrusive if you ask me.


View attachment 2148734

Yeah but I’m about function not fashion and their hanger is the best I’ve seen. Once you throw a bumper on it’s barely noticeable.

 

[40LandCruising]

Another reason to match the drop - shackle and hanger - is caster. If you rotate the axle (longer shackles or hangers) either way, you're also rotating that plane the steering moves through... and can really screw up how the truck turns and self-centers... or doesn't.

I put longer shackles on a CJ (they're in front; rotates the axle top-forward) and it was enough to make the Jeep un-towable. If the tow rig went left, it went right. Driving it, didn't self-center... it did the opposite. Lesson learned.

Yeah I will have to pay attention to that because I never did caster correction on my 80 and it drove horrible. I would like to avoid that with this truck.