Sliders vs shackles?

Caver Dave

Caver Dave

Just holdin' it down here in BFV
Moderator
Joined
Mar 10, 2005
Location
Hooterville (24171)
Several years ago, I saw a group of 5-6 ton axled truggies bashing up Lower2 and noticed they all had sliders on the front leafs (may have been on the rears, but I didn't notice). They appeared to be custom, as the slots for the bolts/plastic blocks were angled up (front) & down (back) in the channel... not parallel like the AFCO sliders (below) and worked pretty well from what I saw

astatic.summitracing.com_global_images_prod_large_afc_20236s_w.jpg


Pros:
- should snag less than shackles, ends could be tapered/rounded a bit to reduce catching
- should be fairly strong
- should reduce the amount of junk hung off the frame... be it longer than shackles or mounts for reversal = better approach angles?

Cons:
- appear they would offer less lateral movement/bind when twisted up
- could be a PITA to make a set with a slot long enough to work with flexy leafs?
- may not last long (w/o rebuilding regularly) in our dirty environment?


Anyone used them or have experience with them offroad?

I realize this is "archaic", since everyone's gone to links & Coils over leafs. However, I like the simplicity of leafs... since I already have them and ain't considering links anytime soon.

Other opinions?
 
I recall those. Seems there was a discussion on ORC about them a couple three years ago. I think the only real Con was dirt Grit and grime screwing up the bearings and sliding feature. Then again, that's what I read, not what I practiced.
 
Seems like it would be noisy sliding back and forth to each end. Clank! ....slide....Clank!
 
mbalbritton said:
Seems there was a discussion on ORC about them a couple three years ago.
Click to expand...

FWIW, it was 8 years ago... JYG blew a bunch of smoke, but no real tech.

spraypaintman said:
Seems like it would be noisy sliding back and forth to each end.
Click to expand...

Only if the slot was too short... the sliders I saw in use had nylon looking blocks and made zero noises (that could be heard over a SBC turning 8K rpms :D )
 
Why reinvent the wheel when you just spent all that time getting your shackles dialed in.
 
uglyjeepoffroad said:
Why reinvent the wheel when you just spent all that time getting your shackles dialed in.
Click to expand...

Cuz they are not! Oh, and he wants to keep the simplicity of leafs....but he wants to put some silly chit on the leafs that he's gonna have to rebuild every year or so....Guess he's trying to beat your record of no wheelin....:D
 
lomodyj said:
Cuz they are not! Oh, and he wants to keep the simplicity of leafs....but he wants to put some silly chit on the leafs that he's gonna have to rebuild every year or so....
Click to expand...
and here I thought the only thing dialed in on the Moss was a Rotatry phone.
Guess he's trying to beat your record of no wheelin....:D
Click to expand...

Well, at least he's got some work to do to catch me...:shaking:
 
Ok, aparently i'm just stupid - but I'm having a hard timing seeing how these wouldn't affect your steering, partiularly up front. When one slides forward, but the other dosn't, won't that shift the whole axle?
 
These replace the shackle not the fixed end of the spring.

(note to ratlabguy: have docs return brain before leaving work) HAHA
 
I have looked at these before. There mainly a drag or road raceing item. I do not think they would help flex but would help reduce wheel hop.

Sam(slim)
 
You'll go through bushings faster too..
 
I wheeled with an isuzu guy over Turkey Day that used these. He said he loved them but wishes he had made the slot a tad longer. His were home-brewed using a nylon block I believe.
 
I have seen them on the trail at Tellico a few years back. Home brew, but used bearings. I really didn't see any benifit except for lower profile. And, even though the bearings were sealed, the owners say that's the part has to be replaced.
IMHO ....snake oil
 
I don't know much about leaf springs and while I hate to hijack Caver's thread (*snicker*) how are those of any real benefit? For the length of the slide portion wouldn't it actually hinder by allowing the spring to slide vs putting force down on the tire?
 
you might lose a little of the droop you'd get with shackles, you'd probably go through eye bushings quicker, but you'd improve your approach/departure angles, probably reduce the chance of tweaking a leaf, etc.
 
Joel said:
I don't know much about leaf springs and while I hate to hijack Caver's thread (*snicker*) how are those of any real benefit? For the length of the slide portion wouldn't it actually hinder by allowing the spring to slide vs putting force down on the tire?
Click to expand...

The only reason shackles exist is to allow for the movement when the eye-eye length of the spring changes during droop-compression. Sliders allow the same thing... let's 1 end of the spring move to accommodate these changes. As long as the slot is long enough to allow for the same range of motion the shackles allow, there should be no difference in operation.

mbalbritton said:
These slide, Shackles swing. not much a difference when it comes to down force.
Click to expand...

Agreed

paulevans76 said:
you might lose a little of the droop you'd get with shackles
Click to expand...

Agreed

paulevans76 said:
you'd probably go through eye bushings quicker
Click to expand...

Rich thinks the same. Explain WHY you think this would be the case!
:popcorn:

paulevans76 said:
but you'd improve your approach/departure angles, probably reduce the chance of tweaking a leaf, etc.
Click to expand...

Agreed
 
It would ware the spring eye bushing faster because the twist of the spring would be working on one bushing instead of two you have with a shackle. Why not try these with a set of those trick toyota spring bushings with the ball joint in them.

Sam(slim)
 
sam(slim) said:
It would ware the spring eye bushing faster because the twist of the spring would be working on one bushing instead of two you have with a shackle. Why not try these with a set of those trick toyota spring bushings with the ball joint in them.
Sam(slim)
Click to expand...

Thanks Sam... that's exactly what I was thinking too, just wondered if anyone actually thought through WHY it might wear bushings faster.

If only I had Toy leafs! ;)
OTOH, the poly bushings in there now seem to have held up well to the POs use & are doing just fine...
 
This is info from the AFCO website. For more info.
http://www.afcoracing.com/tech_pages/leaf.shtml

SLIDERS
The AFCO leaf spring sliders (SEE PHOTO) can eliminate the up and down movement of the rear spring eye caused by shackles moving through their arcs during suspension travel. Consequently, the rear suspension's loading points displace less during suspension movement. Sliders, depending on their installed angle, generally reduce the shackle effectæ and provide more consistent spring rates than shackles. There is no shackle effect to the rate of the spring when the slider is mounted to point directly at the front spring eye center(this is the preferred mounting position). Since sliders are usually more rigid than shackles, they have less tendency to bind laterally during cornering. In general, sliders improve the handling consistency and predictability of leaf spring equipped race cars.
 
Back
Top