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Spring travel / deflection; GROUP 27 SPRINGS
Topic Started: Mar 4 2009, 07:48 AM (652 Views)
johnrb
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OK, this might seem like a dumb question, but I'll ask anyway.

My 3B springs are pretty rusted. The rears especially are rusted solid, but the fronts were replaced some time in the past and don't look too bad.

Question
If I stand on the front bumper and jump up and down, should the frame move? I can bounce the whole body of my mini-van with just my hands so I thought I ought to get some bounce with the 3B if I used my whole body weight, but - nothing.

Are these springs so much stiffer than a normal car, that you can't move them just by jumping on the bumper? What should I expect out of good, stock springs, not considering age and rust?
John Burch - west burbs of Chicago
1946 2A - now I have one older than me
1949 - me - no longer older than all my vehicles
1954 3B - mostly stock - fun driver and snow plowing
1957 - 6 cyl Station Wagon - hope for the future

past Willys
1954 3B - no tub | 1959 3B - engine in pieces in a box

past addiction - VW
1969 Bus | 1970 Westfalia Camper | 1984 Westfalia Camper
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jeeper50
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ol' skool jeeper jeff
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I think that your leaves are bound up with rust inbetween them, you should get some bounce outa those stock springs. Spray them down with a good penetrating oil for a few days and see if they loosen up.

Oh yeah, there are no dumb questions when dealing with jeeps.
In the land of the blind... the one eyed man is king
Texan at heart, Georgian by paycheck

'53 CJ3B, F134, 12v alternator, lockrights, Hot-Spark electronic module,11"self energizing brakes, Belleview winch, Beachwood summertop, OD color, built to honor all Veterans of this great country


Kayaks- Hobie Revo 13, Hobie Outback 12' both ready for the salt...
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P8106jr
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off road vechicles in general have stiffer springs. Surface rust should not be a issue. I am a big guy and it takes a lot more effort for me to move my jeep up and down over my Ford Explore.

What ever you do, don't make the mistake I did and buy new Springs. Jack her up and take them to a sping shop. I got mine re-arched, painted and repaired for about $80 a set.

If you are going to drive it on road only and not use them for a snow plow you could always have them loosened up to make the ride more comfortable
Jamie Powers
1963 CJ3B
1947 Bantam Trailer
1973 CJ5
Houston TX
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Rus Curtis
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John,
You mentioned the fronts were replaced at one point. Those IMHO will be stiffer than your original rears. After spraying the rears to assist with the rust build up, try your bounce test on the rear of the jeep to see how it compares.

I will echo what Jamie said and keep the original rears. As one who was my own Previous Owner (PO), at a young naive age, I erroneously swapped out all my originals for replacement springs to find that the ride was *much* stiffer. My first post on the 3B BB here, http://www.film.queensu.ca/CJ3B/Tech/Frame.html, was a result of the springs not giving. There are ways to compensate, i.e. fewer leafs, different aftermarket companies, to reduce the stiffness.

Now knowing what seems to be a market shift on shocks - where all seem to be gas assist vs. just hydraulic - my feeling is reconditioned original springs and these new shocks will be a good match.
Rus Curtis
Alabama
'54 CJ-3B "Green Gruntt"
Bantam T3-C
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Larry (TX)
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John,

One other very important thing to remember about old jeeps is that they were not originally designed for driver/passenger comfort, so you may never get your's to a comfortable ride level using original and/or aftermarket suspension items.

The only way I know of to soften a jeep's leaf springs would be to remove a leaf or two, but then the jeep most likely won't sit as nice. I too am in favor of having springs re-arched (if they're in good enough condition to do so) versus buying new springs, however, even after having that performed, the springs can remain stiff for a while.

The best of luck to you whichever route you choose.

Larry S.
Larry Steed
Pearland, Texas
'53 Willys CJ3B
'52 Willys M38
'86 Chevy M1009 CUCV (K5 4x4 Military Blazer)
M100 1/4 ton jeep trailer
M416 1/4 ton jeep trailer (2 ea.)
M101 CDN 1/4 ton jeep trailer
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oldtime
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Seems I recall some of the early service manuals indicating to lubricate between spring leaves with kerosene.
Currently building my final F-134 powered 3B .
Rock Crawler using factory parts from the Willys Motors era (1953-1963)

http://s4.zetaboards.com/CJ3B_Bulletin_Board/topic/30228766/1/#new
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COPPERSWILLY
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Copperswilly
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Good call Oldtime I was going to say that...

Another way to break the hold of rusty springs is articulate your jeeps suspension. Find a curb or you can even jack up one tire at a time so that the other side comes off the ground. If you were off roading this could happen anyway. When they articutate they should open up a little. You can use Oldtimes idea and with a spray bottle spray a little k-1 in between them or a penetrating oil.

I've rapped on my springs with a hammer to break up the packed rust...you can actually see it dust out between the leaves. I try to hit my spring once a year with k-1 and a used motor oil mix in an all purpose hand held spray bottle (the trigger type)

One more thing you should look for in springs is cracks. You can clean the junk off them with a wire brush or wire wheel grinder and see the cracks in bewteen them most times.

One more thing to look at is the U bolts and the spring plate. If you tap on them with a hammer they shouldn't move. My 53 that I brought home last year had loose spring packs...mostly do to broken springs
Chris .... MD
54 cj3b OIIIIIO
62 cj3b OIIIIIO
74 cj5. OllllllO
49 Bantam TC3
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nick
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if your jeep is equipped with the old horseshoe shackles, make sure they aren't seized into the spring and hanger. One of my jeeps had seized ones on it and that didn't allow the spring to flex at all. The springs rely on movement of the shackle to perform as they should.

Nick.
'60 CJ3B
'52 M38 CDN
'47 CJ2A
'46 CJ2A
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