Death wobble
- Thread starter coldtaco
- Start date
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The problem w/balancing on the truck if you can find someone who does it is when you take the wheel off for any reason and do not put it on exactly the same lug you took it off from and you are out of alignment again.
Drop a leaf spring, pull the bushings, take a measurement with a digital caliper of these things and post it here with pics of you taking the measurement. It's pretty obvious to me that it is the bushings since it started right after the install. Did you also replace the frame bushings for the shackle? If so take all those measurements too. What springs do you have?
Bushing diameter (the part that goes in the spring eye)
spring eye inner diameter
shackle bolt diameter
bushing bolt hole inner diameter
combined bushing width (both bushings together, width including the shoulder section)
shackle inner width (this should be the same width approximately as the bushing width)
Bushing diameter (the part that goes in the spring eye)
spring eye inner diameter
shackle bolt diameter
bushing bolt hole inner diameter
combined bushing width (both bushings together, width including the shoulder section)
shackle inner width (this should be the same width approximately as the bushing width)
- Thread starter
- #25
While looking things over again I noticed that the bushings did not snug up on the on the solid mounts, like as if they slowly spread apart over the last 31 years. So I got some 2" washers and modefied them to fit on the outside end of the bushings, you can see a little bit of it in the picture. Looks snug now. Did one drive afterwards and all seems good, will have to see after a week of driving if the wobble stay's away.
All the bushings took a little push to get in the eye of the spring ends, except one that seemed a little loose. Don't know if these are still the original springs or not, previous owner did not replace them the 6 yrs he owned the truck.
All the bushings took a little push to get in the eye of the spring ends, except one that seemed a little loose. Don't know if these are still the original springs or not, previous owner did not replace them the 6 yrs he owned the truck.
@coldtaco .... "Don't know if these are still the original springs or not, previous owner did not replace them the 6 yrs he owned the truck."
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The previous owner was cheap.
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The previous owner was cheap.
to be fair, if it sat for a bit or it was a DD, 6yr springs are not unheard of 
A cheap bastid, fer sure...@coldtaco .... "Don't know if these are still the original springs or not, previous owner did not replace them the 6 yrs he owned the truck."
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The previous owner was cheap.
It would be very, very unlikely that the spring frame mounts opened up. Did you keep the old bushings? Take some measurements and compare the old to the new. Consider for a minute that the vehicle didn't have the death wobble with old as hell, Probably as old as Charles himself, bushings, but yet now does with brand spanking new bushings. It's pretty clear to me that you have the WRONG bushings in there. The shoulder (Part that rests on the frame mount, between the spring eye and frame mount) width is too narrow, thus requiring washers as spacers. I suppose the washers will work for now, but that there is some red neck, bastardized, nearly as bad as duct tape, kind of solution. For the sake of safety, get the right ones. And for the sanity of all Cruiser owners, please, for the love of God, DO NOT sell the vehicle with those wrong sized bushings and washer combo still in there. Just my 2cents worth of advice.