78 bronco shock advice

[fahrenheit451zz]

Hey! First post ever but have gotten tons of use from this forum. Thank you all.

Problem: 78 Bronco leans a bit left to right in the rear and when the rear flexes while driving it gives me a bit of tail waggle because of the Deaver spring flex. Want advice on stiffening the rear and thought a set of ride height adjustable coil over shocks would be a good idea. There are so so many options out there but I am still having trouble finding some that would work in this application. Was hoping for Bilstein's b8-5100 42mm or b8-6112s 60mm but I cannot figure out how they would mount. Eye to Eye in the rear. Open to other ideas and brands. Trying to keep cost reasonable.

Questions:
Which to go with 42mm or 60mm?
How would I mount these at the top or convert from the eye to eye setup?
Or could I get any shock and add a coil to it by modifying the shock itself?

BILSTEIN B8 5100 (Ride Height Adjustable) - BILSTEIN Off-Road

Designed to level the front of mid-size to half-ton trucks and SUVs, BILSTEIN B8 5100 (Ride Height Adjustable) shock absorbers are the perfect alternative to coil spring spacers.

offroad.bilstein.com

BILSTEIN B8 6112 - BILSTEIN Off-Road

Large 60mm coilover shock with ride height adjustability. Kit includes (2) 60mm shocks paired with (2) springs.

offroad.bilstein.com

Ride details: JBG Deavers for all springs - coil front - leaf rear. Made drop brackets so I could keep the sway bar. Adjustable track bar on the front. 37's x 12 Tires. Quad Bilsteins shocks on the front (love these).

 

[Tiha]

Have not tried the coil over shocks. But I can say I put 5100 bilstiens on my F350 and they are way too stiff. Shocks need to move to absorb suspension travel and these don't not move.
So I would certainly lean towards something lighter.

So if it is leaning, is there a bad spring? Or another suspension part worn out?

 

[Motech]

Check the radius arm bushings up front too. If they are bad, one side worse, the lean will be more pronounced in the rear.

 

[goodO1boydws]

Hey! First post ever but have gotten tons of use from this forum. Thank you all.

Problem: 78 Bronco leans a bit left to right in the rear and when the rear flexes while driving it gives me a bit of tail waggle because of the Deaver spring flex. Want advice on stiffening the rear and thought a set of ride height adjustable coil over shocks would be a good idea. There are so so many options out there but I am still having trouble finding some that would work in this application. Was hoping for Bilstein's b8-5100 42mm or b8-6112s 60mm but I cannot figure out how they would mount. Eye to Eye in the rear. Open to other ideas and brands. Trying to keep cost reasonable.

Questions:
Which to go with 42mm or 60mm?
How would I mount these at the top or convert from the eye to eye setup?
Or could I get any shock and add a coil to it by modifying the shock itself?

BILSTEIN B8 5100 (Ride Height Adjustable) - BILSTEIN Off-Road

Designed to level the front of mid-size to half-ton trucks and SUVs, BILSTEIN B8 5100 (Ride Height Adjustable) shock absorbers are the perfect alternative to coil spring spacers.

offroad.bilstein.com

BILSTEIN B8 6112 - BILSTEIN Off-Road

Large 60mm coilover shock with ride height adjustability. Kit includes (2) 60mm shocks paired with (2) springs.

offroad.bilstein.com

Ride details: JBG Deavers for all springs - coil front - leaf rear. Made drop brackets so I could keep the sway bar. Adjustable track bar on the front. 37's x 12 Tires. Quad Bilsteins shocks on the front (love these).

Do you mean the rear of the vehicle is leaning sideways when no one is aboard and there is not an unequal EXTRA LOAD in it?

If so, the first step is to figure out what is causing the unevenness-weather something is worn, bent, is a WRONG part, or is broken. It could be something as simple as a bent frame-or they might have shipped a pair of mismatched load capacity springs. Or something such as missing/worn body bushings, or a slightly twisted body-or even a body that was originally MADE or repaired poorly.

With all tires at equal pressure, have you measured the AXLE distance left and right to ground, plus the body and frame distances to a level surface at several points along the frame on both sides?

Let's say the axle AND frame measurements come out in close agreement side to side, from front to back, but the body measurements are off.

Then you'd want to inspect all the body to frame bushings/cushions for condition-and to see if their through bolts are all snug.

Its possible to have one or more body cushions that have cracked and gotten chewed up and fell out completely-or to have the body metal rust enough that its thinner and flexes at that point-or has rusted through and the bolt isn't holding anything together any longer. (With a missing cushion the body can drop by up to an inch where the cushion is supposed to be-especially if the cushion missing is the front or rear one.)

Even with the body metal at full thickness and undistorted at the points where the body cushions are located, having 40+ years on those weight-carrying cushions (if they're originals) tends to flatten them considerably (and soften them) which ALL BY ITSELF can create considerable vertical clearance that wasn't there when the bolts were first (or last) tightened. IF that's the case here, with the bolts now able to move vertically, there would be the potential for considerable EXTRA body lean when an uneven side-to-side load is put on them by turning the vehicle. (body lifts on one side while compressing softened bushings on the other side.
That could explain what the body is doing while driving.

(But if they are all THERE it wouldn't explain the body being lower on one side at the back when parked. )

If the body cushions are all in good-or in EQUALLY flattened) condition, the axle to ground distances equal, and the frame distances measure out equally as well, the body itself would be suspect.