Removing a few rear leafs

[SA Fan]

I have a 85 K30 which I shortened to a K10 wheelbase and I'm ecstatic about it. It drives nice, the turning circle is short, the whole feel is just awesome until you go offroad. This thing is so hard in the rear I'm thinking of getting a brazier and a kidney belt. The front feels hard but nothing like the rear. It has a 9 leaf pack of which the second one from the top is at least one and a half times the thickness of the others (is this standard?). I'm thinking of removing the bottom two to start off with but it'll still have a 7 leaf pack which I think is still quite heavy. Initially I planned a 8" suspension lift but I've decide against any lift for now as I'd like to use it often and would like the wife to be able to handle it now and then. The stock height on the K30 in a K10 wheelbase looks like at least 3" higher than a stock K10. As stock it looks like the rear is a bit lower than the front (I guess about an inch). If I remove leafs I'll have to add in a spacer to compensate for the extra loss in height. If possible I'd like to eliminate schooling fees by trial and error and would really like if someone can confirm or suggest what is necessary to achieve a slight more comfy offroad experience. The next item on my to do list is a right hand drive conversion as it is just more convenient on our roads and at our malls and toll gates in South Africa. Allthough these trucks were available in RHD in SA they are very scarce and a RHD donor is just not available. I'm thinking of relocating the steering box to the opposite side by manufacturing a protruding bracket to bolt the box onto. Then I want to do a cross over steering conversion to the left to achieve the handling one requires. as for the gearshift I was thinking to convert it to a push/pull system. The dash is going to be as interesting as the firewall. The pedals will have to be relocated and I was thinking of just cutting the right firewall out and weld it into the left firewall and visa versa. Again if I could save unnecessary schooling fees it'll be greatly appreciated. Any ideas and suggestion welcome. Thanks in advance

 

[SA Fan]

Wow 41 views, no comments, must be something I said

 

[theblindchicken]

Unfortunately, I cant help you too much with the steering or RHD conversion.

My truck used to haul around a 1000lbs over cab camper on a daily basis. To compensate for the weight, a 1" block and a couple leaf springs were added to hold the weight better.

I removed a few of the springs and the blocks from the rear when the camper was removed. This alone made the truck ride much smoother.



It depends on how many springs you want to remove. If you plan on removing multiple ones, go with the "every other" removal idea.

This would be that you remove springs that are duplicate lengths and take out springs throughout the entire pack instead of just the bottom.

To compensate for loss of height, you can use either blocks (best are ones that bolt to the spring pack with the centering pin) or longer shackles (if you install a shackle flip).

Sent from my SM-G935P using Tapatalk

 

[jetman]

Hat's off to you for the K30->K10 wb mod! Would you have any pics and or advice from that experience?
I presently have a K10 which has been beefed up w/ K20 running gear. That truck is used daily for our business which demands SWB, I am always on the lookout for new ideas.

 

[SA Fan]

Hi Jetman. The shortening was not difficult at all. I removed 355mm where the chassis was parallel and cut of 160mm from the end of the chassis as the K10 loadbin is shorter at the back as well. Fortunately I had a K10 loadbin so I did not have to alter the K30 loadbox. The drive shaft had to be shortened as well as the rear brake line. I used a 8mm plate and welded that on the inside of the chassis. I also cut holes in the plate with a hole saw and welded inside those holes for added strength.