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Five Alive - 1957 Chevy Rear Suspension Upgrade and 9-inch Install

Total Cost Involved resurrects this '57 for the street

  • 57 Chevy Rearend Upgrade
    The front brackets are tack welded to the frame. Start by drilling outthe tack welds, and then use either a cut-off wheel or plasma cutter toremove the rest of the bracket.
    57 Chevy Rearend Upgrade
    The front brackets are tack welded to the frame. Start by drilling outthe tack welds, and
  • 57 Chevy Rearend Upgrade
    On the TCI spring pockets, there are two holes you can choose from whenmounting the leaf springs. The relocation kit lowers the vehicle, butdepending on which hole you decide to mount the leaf springs to willdetermine if it's roughly a 1 1/2- or 2-inch drop...
    57 Chevy Rearend Upgrade
    On the TCI spring pockets, there are two holes you can choose from whenmounting the leaf s
  • 57 Chevy Rearend Upgrade
    ...There is a 1 1/4-inchhole in the frame. Use this hole as a reference point, because one ofthe two holes on the spring pocket should be centered in this hole wheninstalled.
    57 Chevy Rearend Upgrade
    ...There is a 1 1/4-inchhole in the frame. Use this hole as a reference point, because one
  • 57 Chevy Rearend Upgrade
    For TCI to clear out 3 inches of room, the kit relocates the leafsprings inside the framerails. By cutting out a section from the bottompiece of the frame, this spring pocket is placed up into the framerailand becomes the new mounting position. To get an idea of where to cut,place the pocket against the frame and make a few reference lines on theframe. Remember, one of the holes on the TCI spring pocket needs to bealigned and centered in the OEM frame 1 1/4-inch hole, so use that as areference point when placing the pocket on the frame to make yourmarkings.
    57 Chevy Rearend Upgrade
    For TCI to clear out 3 inches of room, the kit relocates the leafsprings inside the framer
  • 57 Chevy Rearend Upgrade
    With your lines drawn, begin cutting. The total area to be removed isapproximately 3 inches wide by 16 inches long.
    57 Chevy Rearend Upgrade
    With your lines drawn, begin cutting. The total area to be removed isapproximately 3 inche
  • 57 Chevy Rearend Upgrade
    It may be necessary to do a little grinding to clean things up a bit andhave a proper fit for the new spring pockets.
    57 Chevy Rearend Upgrade
    It may be necessary to do a little grinding to clean things up a bit andhave a proper fit
  • 57 Chevy Rearend Upgrade
    Once your initial cuts are made, place the pocket up into the frame. Ifthe mounting hole is centered and the pocket is following the contour ofthe frame, you're in position. In some cases, the pocket may be in theright position, but the rearend of the pocket may be sticking out just alittle bit. Instead of hacking away at the frame, trim down the TCIpocket at the end to fit.
    57 Chevy Rearend Upgrade
    Once your initial cuts are made, place the pocket up into the frame. Ifthe mounting hole i
  • 57 Chevy Rearend Upgrade
    Once the pocket is installed, tack it into place. Then measure 57 inchesfrom the center of the 1 1/4-inch hole to the rear of the frame wherethe leaf spring used to mount.
    57 Chevy Rearend Upgrade
    Once the pocket is installed, tack it into place. Then measure 57 inchesfrom the center of
  • 57 Chevy Rearend Upgrade
    At the 57-inch spot, mark the frame and place the new TCI shackle hangeron top of the frame with the hole of the hanger centered with the markon the frame. This is where the new leaf spring will mount in the rear.
    57 Chevy Rearend Upgrade
    At the 57-inch spot, mark the frame and place the new TCI shackle hangeron top of the fram
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