MG Metal Works DIY kit knowledge share - Page 29

TXTOM · 06-12-2020, 11:41 AM

Getting ready to install this kit on my 1998 E350 Airstream 190B Conversion. I've sourced all the front end parts. I am using a pair of 4.10 axles from a 2010 F-350. I need some help figuring out the rear springs. I have called around to a few of the 4x4 conversion companies, and the prices they want for their "custom" springs are ridiculous. I am not opposed to buying a new set of stock replacement springs and using blocks, but I would prefer to get a set of new rear leafs that are arched for my weight and that match the front end. I am sure some of you have done this too. Please point me in the right direction.

Thanks,
Tom

Lilnuts2 · 06-12-2020, 12:48 PM

You might consider using your existing springs and installing blocks and see how your van rides and if the ride height is what you want. Then weigh your loaded van (after the 4x4 conversion). With all that info you can make an informed choice on springs. Then go shopping for springs or a spring shop that can dial you in.

TXTOM · 06-14-2020, 09:01 AM

I decided to go with the Sky Manufacturing 4.5" shackle flip lift with their 1" lift shackle. That should give me 5.5" more than stock. I will use the original springs for now. If I need to make any adjustments up or down, I have some 2" F-350 blocks, and the original shackles. That should give me a couple of different ways to get +/- two inches. Who is running air bags on their rear. How do you have them mounted to accommodate the lift? I have seen buckets that allow the bags to float. How does that work? Where can I get them? Thanks,

Houstonredrider · 06-15-2020, 10:30 AM

I just installed the SKy shackle flip and with the original OEM shackles I am getting 4" of lift. Tom, if you ever swing by The Woodlands you can take a look.

TXTOM · 06-15-2020, 10:31 AM

Cool. Did that level you out with the MG kit up front?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Houstonredrider

I just installed the SKy shackle flip and with the original OEM shackles I am getting 4" of lift. Tom, if you ever swing by The Woodlands you can take a look.

Houstonredrider · 06-15-2020, 11:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TXTOM

Cool. Did that level you out with the MG kit up front?

That will depend on the front springs, engine and overall weight of your rig.

Mine is an E350 EB with 5.4 l. I had cc880 spring with a 2.5" block in the rear and was quite leveled. Now I have CC860s springs and the shackle flip with no blocks. The rear sit 0.5" lower than the front that I hope will level as the front springs set.

TXTOM · 06-15-2020, 11:18 AM

Ok. I have a V10. Mine is a heavy camper van. I guess I will see once I have everything together. Thanks for the additional info.

TXTOM · 06-15-2020, 05:52 PM

For those of you that swapped in a rear Super Duty axle. What e-brake cables are you using? My rear axle is from a 2010 F350 SRW. My van is a 1998 E350.

winnievan · 06-21-2020, 06:08 PM

Hey everyone -- this post is re: rear ABS on a 2000 7.3L van.

As most of us know - the rear ABS on a E350 of my vintage is measured using a 120 tooth tone ring and passive sensor in the rear differential. I'm upgrading to a 2016 10.5 sterling axle -- which doesn't have this tone ring since later Ford vehicles have true 4 wheel ABS (i.e. an active sensor/tone ring on each wheel).

I'm planning to solve this ABS problem using a tone ring/sensor on the output shaft of my transfer case... but after some tinkering I have some questions/insights that may be useful to share and get feedback on:

So as it stands, I get 120 pulses per rear tire/carrier revolution from the rear end ABS sensor – this variable reluctance sensor creates ac voltage based on these magnetic pulses that are then translated into wheel speed by the PCM/ABS module. Given my conversion to 4.30 gears – I need to create something that makes 27.906 pulses per driveshaft revolution to get the same 120 pulses per tire revolution. Obviously I can’t have a 27.9 tooth tone ring – so it seems a 28 tooth tone ring would get me close. I have a 40 tooth one on hand that I could modify to have 28 teeth—which seems promising.

So – I spun the 40 tooth tone ring in the lathe and determined I can get AC voltage from the sensor by placing it very close to the tone ring as it spins… YAY, the sensor works! However – depending on the clearance between the sensor and the tone ring, I can affect the voltage to range between approx. 3V to 9V. I don’t have the RPM of the lathe – but it is going pretty fast.

So based on this tinkering – one idea I have is to simply install the sensor in the transfer case and then monitor the rear wheel speed sensor data vs the front wheel speed sensors on OBD-II and adjust the clearance of the sensor/tone ring with shims to dial it in. This obviously assumes this clearance transformation is some linear function – so by setting the depth I’m basically doing a mechanical “pulse” adjustment, however I’m not sure if this logic is totally correct.

Another way seems to simply set a fixed clearance and using another Abbott ERA to adjust the wheel speed sensor data to match the two front sensors (or VSS).

I was hoping to be able to pull this off without an Abbott ERA (or other similar device)… not so much to save money – but to make this a mechanical relationship so my brakes aren’t at the mercy of a third-party converter.

So, I’m curious how you others ended up solving this problem? Did you rely on the OBD-II data and try and match the wheel speed sensors or did you figure out the math of pulses per driveshaft rev to pulses per tire rev? Did you adjust via an electronic box or by adjusting clearance/magnetic properties of the tone ring? I thought I could simply transform the number of pulses per tire rev (120) into the required number of pulses per driveshaft rev (120/4.3 = ~28) but that doesn’t really take into account any of the clearance or magnetic properties of tone ring/clearance as per my lathe experiment.

Maybe this is much ado about nothing -- but I imagine some of you have been down this road and might have some suggestions or some recollection of how you did this in the past.

It's definitely a bit of a hiccup for the vans with a single rear abs sensor and the new Sterling axles -- but I know MG has solved this problem for a customer in the past using a tone ring on the output shaft -- but I'm not sure how he "dialed" it in electronically.

Once I figure this out -- I'll do a detailed write-up so others with this vintage van can follow suit!!

TXTOM · 06-21-2020, 07:45 PM

This is what I use on my 2002 F-350 for tire/speedo calibration. https://www.summitracing.com/parts/dak-sgi-100bt Not sure if that is cheaper than the Abbott ERA or not, but it will adjust your pulses however you want. If you end up having to use an additional device, this is a good one.