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traction bars......

3K views 25 replies 7 participants last post by  C-Power 
#1 ·
i still cant figure out how to make a set......and i dont really have time right now so i was thinkin either 1. some one could give me a real good description and parts list.......or 2 i can just pay some one to make me some... thanks....
 
#2 ·
I based mine off these instructions but made them much longer 72 inches i think, i would have an exact measurement but my trucks in kentucky right now. and yes the little ( I ) is the link i dont know whys its like that.
I
 
#4 ·
When i built time, I clamped a string between my frame and axle and picked the truck up with a forklift to droop the suspention (the same thing could be acheived with a come along to compress the suspention). Then all you do is adjust the length of your string so it doesn't tug or go slack. Make the center of your pivot point along the string and you'll have the correct length for your truck.

I still have full droop and compression with my traction bars, so you don't even know they are there most of the time. The ride wasn't affected at all.
 
#5 ·
man it just sounds real confusing......im gonna do some checkin tomorrow ill put the truck on the lift and get under there to do some lookin.....i might keep the truck up about 2 inches to stretch the suspension.......then it will be a terrible ride but it will do a better job of keepin it in place.......i was told by a buddy that pulls a cummins thats how he did his and there is no bounce in the suspension but it hold up wieght great........
 
#10 ·
Bad Idea for a street truck. It will either bend bars or break off the mounts if the length is too far off.

Its not that hard to understand once you see it done. Your suspension have the shackle at the rear, causing it to move up and back as it compresses. All you have to do is have your bars at such an angle that they move up and back with the axle. Everything moves with an arc, nothing binds.

I'll try and sketch up something on paint real quick.

Edit. Nevermind, paint sucks. You're on your own unless i remember this tommorow and do it on AutoCAD
 
#6 ·
Give me a call if I can help or pm me.
 
#8 ·
If it's holding up weight then it's binding the suspension, which is not a good thing.

Like OldschoolPSD, I built mine so they let the suspension compress and droop freely. No change in ride height or ride quality, and no hop.

Dave
 
#9 ·
hmmmmmmmm good point......he is supposed to email me some pics.....i know that his truck doesnt even bounce.....you could drive threw a ditch and the back wouldnt bounce...
 
#11 ·
haha ok thanks any way.....i just talked to my dad he said we can look it over in his shop this week....im hopin coope3 can hook me up.....im also puttin block in the rear......bad for ride qaulity good for sled wieght....
 
#14 ·
so what your sayin is if i block my rear end i really dont need them??? well i still want them b/c they look BA........
 
#16 ·
you still need them, it just doesn't matter how long they are because your suspention wont move. Do yourself a favor and make them the correct length and make your block removable. Mine come right out with hitch pins from tractor supply. Do a little thinking with your design. I hate seeing nice trucks with some farmer john scrap metal welded to the frame... take a little pride in your work.
 
#17 ·
haha my truck isnt nice but i still take pride in my welding.....im good at it.....i want to go to college for it i just dont know what one to go to or if now is a good time to become a welder......but how do i know if they are the correct length.....
 
#18 ·
mine are drive shaft angle, and the suspension still operates smoothly i can have a load of dirt dumped in my bed and the suspension will sag,droop.
 
#21 ·
:whs: Mine are 76" center to center on a sclb F250, and approx. parallel with the rear section of the 2-piece driveshaft.

And you want traction bars whether you run blocks or not, over 99% of the time those blocks won't be in there.

Dave
 
#19 ·
ok so what just eye ball it........haha thats how i usually do stuff and some times it works but there is the other times it hasnt haha.......
 
#20 ·
my buddy and i have done a set on his 2006 cummins and mine and have been trouble free with the eye ball method.
 
#22 ·
Stringline. Know it, love it. It is your best friend.

Let me break this down Barney-style:

step 1: Fab your axle brackets, weld them in place.

step 2: clamp your new best friend to your new bracket, approximately center of your pivot point (the hole you DRILLED {NOT torched!} in your bracket)

Step 3: Stretch your (now clamped) string to a point on your frame where you think it will be happy and clamp it.

Step 4: compress or droop your suspension.
If your string goes slack, move the front clamp toward the front of the truck and try again.
If your string tried to pull itself out of your clamp, move the front clamp toward the rear.
You want the string to be tight enough to stay strait, but not too tight like a guitar string. You know you are in the right spot when you can move the suspension without the string getting any tighter or looser.

Step 5: Fab your front bracket

Step 6: place your front bracket so that the string crosses directly over the center of the hole that you DRILLED in your bracket, and weld/bolt your braket to the frame.

Step 7: Measure from center to center of the holes in your brackets, and fab your traction bars so that they are the same length eye to eye. Be smart and leave yourself room to adjust the bars. Make them some that when the eyes are threaded approx half way out, it is at the lenght you measured.

Step 8: Make the other side exactly the same.

Tips: make your brackets so that the eyes fit snugly into them, and make the holes no bigger than they have to be to fit the bolt or pin that you are attaching them with. Put a little grease on them. Silence is golden, my friend.
 
#23 ·
haha man i feel stupid i got it now....i can just use the car lift to jack the truck up so it stretches the suspension and use my best friend stringy to get my angle.....alright thanks guys.....still dont know if ill do it or not just depends on time........
 
#24 ·
Heres my design...........

I run 2 mounts in the rear (upper and lower) and a shakle that mimics the travel of the spring shakle in the front.
 
#26 ·
ok so you just slide the cut in half third link into the pipe weld it in place then.......alright i got it......i may end up with a set after tonight......
 
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