[89_tintop]

so i am getting ready to do a few things to the sierra and the suspension is on the list.

as usual the drivers side has sagged (close to an inch) and i am wanting to level it back out. once level i will be evening out the weight a little bit. dual batteries, relocating spare tyre etc.

so i have heard good and bad things about resetting them.
whats the go with it?
is it worth it or am i better off getting new springs?

[gypsy]

i had mine reset and they dident last long

[89_tintop]

what did it cost??

was it the same one that sagged??

[BUZOOKA]

i think it goes close to the same price as a brand new one

[ajsr]

personally id swap them side to side both front and rear.
did it on mine a week ago (it had a 2" sag)
now sits about 3/4" low on the other side.
I figure it will settle soon
your other option is to ad an extra leaf on drivers side(probably not ideal)

[steak_knife]

Resetting is what it say's it is, thay take your old spring's & reset to the original tension & height, not worth the time & money as far as I'm concerned, I have seen reset's last as little as 200km (street use ) but have also had custom job's done by the same mob that are probably still in the car.


Get new, thay aren't that expensive.

[89_tintop]

cheers guys ... i guess i will just start saving more $$$

antone know of someone or peosonally used rockcrawler springs and rancho shock combo??

[weaves]

McWilly had that exact setup. Wasn't a soft setup, but he's changed to SPOA on standard springs in search of better flex

weaves

[eldo]

89_tintop wrote:

cheers guys ... i guess i will just start saving more $$$

antone know of someone or peosonally used rockcrawler springs and rancho shock combo??

only in my hilux, probably no use to you though am i?

[89_tintop]

weaves wrote:

McWilly had that exact setup. Wasn't a soft setup, but he's changed to SPOA on standard springs in search of better flex

did he do the usual load leaf removal?
what did he do with the kit?

eldo wrote:

89_tintop wrote:

cheers guys ... i guess i will just start saving more $$$

antone know of someone or peosonally used rockcrawler springs and rancho shock combo??

only in my hilux, probably no use to you though am i?

you could be...

what did you think of the quality???
would you buy again??

[weaves]

89_tintop wrote:

weaves wrote:

McWilly had that exact setup. Wasn't a soft setup, but he's changed to SPOA on standard springs in search of better flex

did he do the usual load leaf removal?
what did he do with the kit?

Your better off asking him, i can't remember specifics too well from time of my life.

shoot him a PM

weaves

[mcwilly]

I had that exact kit off 4wd1 they weren't to bad as a starting point. I did however find them very firm in a spua setup. Also didn't flex aswell as a ome setup. I am still running the rancho shocks at the moment. They aren't to bad a shock I run them on the softest setting all the time. I'd probably go ome shocks next time though. My setup was rockcrawler 2" springs rancho 9000 shocks 2" body and 2" extended shackles. I removed the load leafs and the shackles and it flexed a bit better. My mate now runs my rockcrawler springs on his spoa setup and it works very well.

[v.w.dave]

I have rock crawler 2"springs in the rear and they are extreemly rigded and have next to no flex. I pulled the load leaf and it made it feel very loose on road and still no flex unless all of the weight is on the rear. I run my rig very light only with a spare tire and tool kit. With having a tin top it will ride differently.
When I first got my zook it had the crawlers front and rear. The front was the same story as the rear it had very little to no flex unless all the weight was on the front. I have since replaced the front springs with a very low k set of rear springs and now it has flex for days.
Nick (your-mum) has seen the differance in what mine was like and what its like now. My avitar was taken the day I changed the rear springs.

IMO get yourself 2 2" shackles move your rears to your front "RUF" this is very simple just a few holes to drill. Get a set of rear 2" OME springs remove the load leaf and install them with the factory length shackles. After messing around with about 5 sets of springs and different shackles this is by far the best set up I have found. I am suggesting the OME springs over the Crawlers because they are a little softer and will flex better.

But thats my opinion do what you with with your money....

[v.w.dave]

Ohh and I still have standard shocks and I still have more flex then most I go out with.

WIth the 2" shackles in front and the standard shackles in the rear it makes it sit leavel and rides well on road and in the bush.

[Fatzook]

IMO just go new springs. I've never had any luck with resets either...

[Highway-Star]

I reset my own using a sledge hammer and a railway line. Pull apart the spring packs, and reset one leaf at a time. run this leaf through the railway line (or channel) and strike the leaf with the hammer. This will gradually reset the spring. It is labour intensive work, and you need 2 people. or also jars the fark out of your hands and I wear ear protection as its also loud.

I have to use reset springs, short of getting custom ones made; as my fronts are a custom hybrid pack that cannot be bought off the shelf. My first reset lasted about 6 months, before they came back off, and the drivers side only needed a touch up because of the Suzuki lean. I did a reset again the other day because I snapped one of my springs. Now there is a chance that the resetting contributed to my spring snapping, as the resetting probably work hardened the spring, but either way I'm trying it again.

My father also runs reset standard springs with extra leaves, his does not sag at all, but is also stupidly stiff. One of my LJ81's I bought had reset standard LJ springs in it. They were reset in 1988 (when the car was "built") by the owner and were holding up fine.

It requires trial and error and patience, but to me its definitely worth the effort

[mcwilly]

Vw dave did you redrill the rear mount or was it ok with just 2" shackles. I tried to do ruf tonight but ran out of time and patients and couldn't jack the car high enough to get the shackles on. Diff was to far forward used the wrong hole aswell

[303zuke]

Highway-Star wrote:

I reset my own using a sledge hammer and a railway line.

True. There are two ways to reset springs, Cold reset and Hot reset. Hot resets are what's done by spring places and is the quickest and easiest and can acheive high lift in the reset, but unless they properly quench the spring from hot, they will sag over time.

Cold resets are the bush blacksmith's method and work harden the spring. It's more physical work to get the lift you want, but the springs will hold their lift much better. Just be careful you don't put a twist in the spring. Resetting with a towel wrapped around the eye ends saves the jarring, and using a hardwood log or stump as a form is also quieter (but it's still noisy!).

[Highway-Star]

303zuke wrote:

Highway-Star wrote:

I reset my own using a sledge hammer and a railway line.

True. There are two ways to reset springs, Cold reset and Hot reset. Hot resets are what's done by spring places and is the quickest and easiest and can acheive high lift in the reset, but unless they properly quench the spring from hot, they will sag over time.

Cold resets are the bush blacksmith's method and work harden the spring. It's more physical work to get the lift you want, but the springs will hold their lift much better. Just be careful you don't put a twist in the spring. Resetting with a towel wrapped around the eye ends saves the jarring, and using a hardwood log or stump as a form is also quieter (but it's still noisy!).

The work hardening is the biggest problem with it to my mind. Never had a problem with a twist, tough it definitely would be a problem if you did set a twist into a spring.
It's hard work depending on the individual spring leaf. I've found genuine Suzuki springs to be much tougher to reset, and hold their set better. I've also reset some OME's, don't need a sledge hammer for these, I can just manage to do these one handed with a ball peen hammer the stupid weak pieces of tin; and naturally they hold their ride height for a lesser amount of time.

I hold the springs with leather welding gloves, and it helps allot, but nothing stops the jarring altogether

Not all spring places seem to do a "hot reset". I know of at least one that does it cold.

[BlueSuzy]

I have used a 12t bench press to reset my rear corolla springs in suzy.

Work well for my needs. Been running 6mths no problems.

[Gadzooks]

Had to replace my rear springs on the Stockman.
Did quite a bit of research on re-setting - if yours are pitted and/or flaking then they cant be re-set apparently and even if they can, they probably wont last long. Also re-setting is a dying art, so finding an expert wouldnt be easy.
Lastly, as others have said - the cost saving is small especially if at best they wont last all that long.

Finding a direct replacement is also not all that easy. Most, if not all new springs are sold with quite a large lift - fine if you want a lift but if you are trying to level out the car by matching the other springs, then chances are the new one will be higher than the old. especially as the old one will no longer be as high as when it was new.
I ended up getting mine made by a real Aussie springmaker http://www.industrialsprings.com.au/ has been in the business since 1935.
Their leaf configuration and sizing matched what was on the car very closely (and all of the aftermarket ones I found, were quite different to the originals possibly because they werent the correct rear Stockman springs just a standard swb spring). They also described theirs as heavy duty.
Theirs have a small lift, but quite frankly I cant notice a difference in height between the front and the back of the car.

These arent specialised springs for some sort of modifications, they are as close to the originals as I could find.
Hope that helps.