1962 5 leaf rear springs

[Russ C.]

I was under the impression that all 62s, except big brake cars, had 4 leaf springs. my car isn't big brake, but it is a big tank car (tank now missing). would these 5 leaf springs have been a part of that 488 RPO? any other thoughts also welcomed.




Thanks,

[Mike E.]

Re: 1962 5 leaf rear springs

Russ,
Welcome to NCRS! My guess is that the fourth spring from the bottom (second from top) is probably an add-on. The bottom three are correct for 4-leaf configuration, however, they no longer have the bands around them, indicating they have been apart at some point. It was common over the years to add a leaf to regain ride height. Check that one I mentioned-I'll bet it's configured differently than the other 4.
regards,
Mike Ernst

[Russ C.]

Re: 1962 5 leaf rear springs

Thanks for the welcome Mike. You are actually to blame for my joining, you know, as you sparked my curiosity about the history of these cars when you helped me "over yonder" to confirm the RPO 488.
I'll be taking a closer look at the #4 leaf to see if it appears to match the others.

Cheers,
Russ

[Robert K.]

Re: 1962 5 leaf rear springs

Russ,
Welcome to NCRS! My guess is that the fourth spring from the bottom (second from top) is probably an add-on. The bottom three are correct for 4-leaf configuration, however, they no longer have the bands around them, indicating they have been apart at some point. It was common over the years to add a leaf to regain ride height. Check that one I mentioned-I'll bet it's configured differently than the other 4.
regards,
Mike Ernst

Yep, that's what I did to my first 62.

[Tom P.]

Re: 1962 5 leaf rear springs

And the same has been done to my 56, which I bought in 73. A leaf was added (next to the main leaf) by a previous owner.

[Terry D.]

Re: 1962 5 leaf rear springs

Very common back in the day to stiffen rear end to try to eliminate wheel hop and/or raise the ride height.

[Steven B.]

Re: 1962 5 leaf rear springs

I did it to my '57 in '65 after installing 775's on 6" mags. The California Rake was cool back in the day.

[Russ C.]

Re: 1962 5 leaf rear springs

Awww sooo. I wanted to do some housekeeping in that area today anyway, so I pulled the r wheel off to do that. now that I can see the end of the #4 leaf, I can see that it's obviously a foreigner. more square cut on the end, and no center groove.



On to the next mystery.