Travelall Spring lifts...

[jmbrodsky@domain.elided]

     Jason and Maria, and the original poster,
     
        Something occurred to me, I DO remember seeing a 'split-year' 
     '69 Travelall in Tulare.  It was a dated '69 lineset with a '68 
     body style.  My guess is you have the 69-75 style.
     
        Currently there are no manufactured spring kits available for 
     the Travelall in any weight 4wd application for any Year.  I 
     looked for about the past year, before I opted for the 3/4T 
     springs in my 1/2T.  If you find a spring lift kit, please let me 
     know.  The shackle in the rear of the 1/2T points down from the 
     bracket to the spring, where in a 3/4T the bracket is lower, and 
     the shackle points UP to the spring. Jason and Maria, can you 
     confirm this?  All the Trucks I have climbed under confirm this. 
     
     With the 3/4T springs in the back and the 1/2T shackle pointing 
     down, I netted 6.5 inches of lift in the rear.  I have yet to 
     find a 3/4T front spring set.  The front ends of 1/2T and 3/4T 
     are mounted the same, the 3/4 springs appear to be MUCH stronger. 
      With the 3/4 in back and 1/2 springs in front, the rear does not 
     articulate more than 2" while the front is left to do all the 
     work (weaker springs) with about 30 inches of travel.  I suspect 
     that with 3/4T springs all the way around in a 1/2T T'all it'd 
     sit about 3" higher in the rear (compared to the front ) due to 
     the shackle inversion/direction and the entire truck would sit 
     about 4" higher than stock.  Watching 3/4T Travelalls articulate 
     (with a matched factory 3/4 spring set on all four) it appears to 
     work fine.  Just that now, my front moves and the rear does not 
     (too strong).  Bear in mind that if you need to replace the 
     bushings in any spring set from a 69-75 Travelall you need to get 
     74 Dodge 4wd truck bushings and trim the shoulder off.  These 
     bushings are about $25 per pair of springs and are available 
     almost anywhere.
     
        With the reply/sugestion no.1 below, the shackles are in the 
     same orientation as a scout.  Spring islower that the shackle.
     
        I hope this isn't too confusing.  Feel free to contact me for 
     more discussion.  My Travelall currently ramps as well as a 
     ScoutII with a 4" SkyJacker lift, and 33s.
     
        And, my Travelall, is only 3/4T rear springs and 31s.
     

     -Joel Brodsky

         '76 IHC Scout II 345/tf727 RE8000, Cibie40s, custom 
                rear tire rack, 6 different color body panels.
                Not much sport, all utility.
         '75 IHC Travelall 150 4wd 392/tf727 Hummer brush guard, 
                3/4T rear springs, Hella Rallye 2000s, Con-Ferr 5x7,
                Class IV hitches front and rear, 3" Exhaust.
                1st Place, Rocky Mountain IH Rendezvous,
                3rd Place, Tulare IH Western Regionals

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Date: Sun, 9 Aug 1998 22:38:55 -0400
From: "Jason and Maria Colavecchia" <jasoncolavecchia@domain.elided> 
Subject: 69 Travelall lifts, etc...
     
My recommendation for lifting the '69 Travelall would be to consider a few 
options....one is not necessarily better than another, or any cheaper... 
Keep in mind the 1969 year was the first to have the "new" body style, that 
was touted to be "lower" than previous models....
     
     1/ If you look under the T'all, you will see the rear spring 
     shackles are slung "over" the mounting bracket, unlike a Scout.  
     
     <snip>
     
I hope some of this helps, and of course anyone is welcome to jump in to 
add to this...the possibilities, I guess, are truly endless...
     
Jason and Maria Colavecchia
1979 IH Scout II,  V304, modifications ongoing
1969 IH 1210D Travelall 3/4 ton, V345,  restoring slowly
     
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