Trouble cranking torsion barsor the (1 Viewer)

[Ryan5255]

So I have done a lot of research and decided that I would replace my rear springs with OME 865's, try and add a 30 mm spacer on top of the new springs and crank my torsion bars up to add some lift for the time being. I want a lift but don't have any bumpers or anything to make a real lift necessary. With all the parts and tools in hand I jacked up the cruiser to find the 30mm torsion bar bolt almost impossible to turn. Under extreme force it would turn slightly when all was said and done I think I got a full turn on each before giving up. Has anybody else experienced anything like this. I did spray a lot of PB blaster on it about 15 minutes before. Does it sound like the bolt is being stubborn or does this happen when you run out of threads on the bolt?

It's a 2000 LC with 195k new to me so I don't know what if anything was done before. Thanks for the help.

 

[FxFormat]

You should inspect the torsion bar adjuster while at it, for some reason my passenger side i could crank 10 turns, on the driver's side, 3 turns and it was locked. Make sure you have threads left on the adjuster to crank, or else you'll end up stripping/breaking that bolt. Inspect it again, and if there are threads left to crank, just put a breaker bar on it and go HAM. PB blast, then add some WD40 so that it spins easier.

 

[Ryan5255]

So I had a buddy who is a Toyota mechanic look at cranking the bars and he found that I am out of threads and the plan now is to re-index however my droop is already at the lower limit of 50 mm. Now with the OME 865's and the 30 mm in the rear the truck rides a lot better. Apparently I previously experienced a lot of body roll that I accepted and got used to and now that the springs have been replaced the ride is a lot better and tighter. The only issue now is that I have the dreaded stinkbug stance and I would like to lift the front and get as close to level as reasonably possible. My mechanic told me that he can't re-index until we restore the "droop" in the front and that I should get new shocks on the front, which will lift it and then we can re-index.

Is that an accurate statement that new shocks will restore the droop in the front or can we just re-index and that will restore the droop? I have read Gunny's torsion bar write up in the FAQ and still need some clarification.

I am sure I need new shocks as the car is now 17 years old and I have owned it for 1.5 year. Then the dreaded question which ones? I have searched a lot and see that the OME's aren't great and the Ironman's are better. Any opinions are welcome.

 

[gatormark91]

So I had a buddy who is a Toyota mechanic look at cranking the bars and he found that I am out of threads and the plan now is to re-index however my droop is already at the lower limit of 50 mm. Now with the OME 865's and the 30 mm in the rear the truck rides a lot better. Apparently I previously experienced a lot of body roll that I accepted and got used to and now that the springs have been replaced the ride is a lot better and tighter. The only issue now is that I have the dreaded stinkbug stance and I would like to lift the front and get as close to level as reasonably possible. My mechanic told me that he can't re-index until we restore the "droop" in the front and that I should get new shocks on the front, which will lift it and then we can re-index.

Is that an accurate statement that new shocks will restore the droop in the front or can we just re-index and that will restore the droop? I have read Gunny's torsion bar write up in the FAQ and still need some clarification.

I am sure I need new shocks as the car is now 17 years old and I have owned it for 1.5 year. Then the dreaded question which ones? I have searched a lot and see that the OME's aren't great and the Ironman's are better. Any opinions are welcome.

Shocks of any kind, new or old, don't have any effect on the height of the truck, whatsoever. They don't support weight, they just dampen suspension movement.

And as far as shocks go, I love my Tough Dogs. Not a single complaint about them, on road or off.

 

[Ryan5255]

Thank You. So if I am at my lower limit of my droop at 50 mm can I simply re-index and more "droop" will magically appear? Sorry if I am missing something.

 

[yotasavg]

First, just reindex, then set the ride (and therefore droop) where it needs to be. You won't accomplish that until you reindex.

For shocks, it's really hard to beat OEM at about $40/corner, if you're not running much lift or added weight. I decided to go that route, pretty happy until I decide to go higher.