tdaye Posted June 2, 2006 Report Share Posted June 2, 2006 if anyone is looking for a stiff springs I have 2 x 300s and one 250 i'd sell off for cheap if you pay the shipping. The 300 would give you 1/4" to 1/2" drop and the 250 a little more...but as I said they are pretty stiff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GnatGoSplat Posted June 2, 2006 Report Share Posted June 2, 2006 What you gonna do with that 200? I might be interested in it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdaye Posted June 2, 2006 Report Share Posted June 2, 2006 well I was going to hold on to that one as a back up...never know what can happen. NO luck with George yet?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GnatGoSplat Posted June 2, 2006 Report Share Posted June 2, 2006 No, I got tired of trying to call him so I sent him an email explaining everything and he did reply, but all he said was, "yea,sorry for the inconvenien's : george" Ugh. What a weird guy. I'll try pestering him again next week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdaye Posted June 2, 2006 Report Share Posted June 2, 2006 a 250 spring would give you at least what you have now for a drop, and be a much better ride then the steel one you have now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GnatGoSplat Posted June 2, 2006 Report Share Posted June 2, 2006 Me? No, I have a FAF fiberglass one, remember? Must be a 300 because I got it awhile back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdaye Posted June 2, 2006 Report Share Posted June 2, 2006 oh yea...well if you can't get anything off George let me know and I'll give you the 250 cheap to try, and if you were to get some solid monoleaf pads like I have and shave/cut then down to 1/2 the thinkness you should get another 1/4" lower...i'm going to try this next week. I haven't measured the thinkness of the pads yet, but I would think they are 1/2"+ in thinkness. I have pics of them but i'm not sure how to post them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luminal67 Posted June 4, 2006 Report Share Posted June 4, 2006 about shaving the two upper pads to lower the car a little more, I did that to a set of pads that i had. It seemed that the pads were sliding out of their perches, over to one side. It worried me to the point where when I was switching to a different spring, I put the normal ones back in. Also, i noticed that as i took the old ones out, the notches on the ends where the bolt goes in between, pretty much fell off. they looked like they were dry rotted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdaye Posted July 14, 2006 Report Share Posted July 14, 2006 Does anyone have any news on this topic? Has anyone ordered a spring from FAF lately? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GnatGoSplat Posted August 1, 2006 Report Share Posted August 1, 2006 Woohoo! After persistently bugging him in email, George sent me a 185 spring. I can't wait to get it installed, although I'm a little concerned about whether it might sit lop-sided because the spring is visibly thicker on one side than the other. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdaye Posted August 1, 2006 Report Share Posted August 1, 2006 mine appeared to be lopsided also but it sits perfect. good for you! let me know the results! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GnatGoSplat Posted August 4, 2006 Report Share Posted August 4, 2006 I put in the new spring last night. Nice thing about FAF springs is they have so little arch to them, they can be installed without a compressor. The bad thing about them, is it's difficult to make the mounting screws align. It just seems there's too much arch in the center part so the bottom of the rubber inner blocks seems too close together. I managed to make it work by setting the car on the ground and tugging & pulling while tightening the mounting bolts. If it weren't for that part, it would have only taken me 15-30 minutes total to swap the spring, but it ended up taking me an hour. Anyway, after driving it around the block, I measured an immediate 5/16" drop from the old 300# spring. I drove it 12-miles to work, and on the level parking lot, it looks almost perfect! There is a slight rake which might disappear as the spring breaks in, but even if it never did, it's very slight and still looks good. I'll remeasure the drop when I get home, but it's a very, very close match to the ST front springs. Best part is, the ride has improved considerably. Apparently, a lot of the rough, bumpy, overly firm ride was caused by the old 300# rear spring. Now it soaks up the small bumps significantly better with no noticeable change in handling or body lean. I think we have a winner! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Intlcutlass Posted August 4, 2006 Report Share Posted August 4, 2006 pics? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdaye Posted August 4, 2006 Report Share Posted August 4, 2006 good stuff! after having mine in for 2 months now it has settled down 1/4". I knew you would like the ride much more then the 300 spring. My car rode like a tank with the 350 and 300 spring in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GnatGoSplat Posted August 4, 2006 Report Share Posted August 4, 2006 If it settles down 1/4", that would probably make it an exact match to the front. I'll try to wash it this weekend and take pics at a level parking lot. Just in case I don't get around to it, I'll take a camera phone pic of it after work today (don't have the real camera with me). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdaye Posted August 4, 2006 Report Share Posted August 4, 2006 sweet, i'm glad it worked out for you...finally Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff M Posted August 4, 2006 Report Share Posted August 4, 2006 Ohh sweeeet , thanks so much guys for the investment, effort, insight and feedback !! That is a ton of work and I say hats off to you guys !!!! This is some great news, should open the flood gates for our needs and the sellers wears! It might be too late for this seller to be as receptive and I can understand this but did anyone give him a benefit of the doubt/innocent until proven guilty approach to concerns found with the product?, small businesses/single owner sellers can some times be touchy and easily setoff. What I mean is there might be reasons for these conditions or challenges limiting the end results and if the seller is given a chance to explain before being made out the bad guy, the issues might be understandable and not so much of a concern for anyone buying these (no I don’t know/never heard of this guy until now!). If he is approached this way I can guarantee that if he is interested in taking care of the customer as any business should be, he will be more likely to make the effort to explain those concerns and make everyone happy, and also make things right if needed, if not then we have given him time to prove the respect is no longer warranted . I am sure anyone here would be more than willing to reply to questions if asked respectfully and first given a chance, like not just emailing him with only the complaints and setting the tone of the conversation to be a negative, followed by……him blowing you off, I don’t know and am checking , maybe people have come to him with an open approach and he is just easily ticked off or not interested in after-the-sale, just checking so before anyone gets panties in a bind , I am just looking to ease the concerns buyers might have by offering another perception of a buyer/seller relationship, one thing I do know is there are a lot of owners here that WANT to know all these final details on this setup . Ok, no more heavy thinking, time to easy up and lower it down a few inches . I wonder if the troublesome extra amount of arch in the center as Shawn states is to make up for the rest of the spring being straighter and softer/the part that lowers our cars, allowing the drop to happen but still having things ready to stiffen up when the compression is more as in a progressive rate spring being compressed further and further. If we pass-on this find to the seller maybe he has some tips, or can make up some different mounting hardware for this spring, he needs to know the results in-the-field to know what else he might need to offer, doubt he owns as many W-bodys test-beds as this board hosts . Shawn I really like your find on the KYBs being different than stock, and maybe different than other aftermarket struts as in lifting up the car so much once install. I installed KYB GR2s in my TGP 6 years ago and the back end is still holding my ass-end up like an off road truck, front nearly as bad too. I am saying this to relieve concerns for the next line of thinking that will happen here, that the drop with these springs won’t get excessive later once the strut might wear/get older, since after 6 years my KYBs still have not let me down at all . Shawn, those drop figures and visual observations on the final results sound great, thanks, a slight rake or a nearly level car would look perfect, FAF with the ST Springs sounds (maybe the Intrax too???) like the final word, wonder how long owners here have been waiting to hear all this. tdaye, I am like you, keep plugging away at it, I too have many extra parts in an attempt to find the one that is best, thank you very much for spending all that time and money working out the details . Any chance the FAQ might get an overview of this and install tips sometime in the future? Jeff M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GnatGoSplat Posted August 4, 2006 Report Share Posted August 4, 2006 Jeff, I think I know what you're saying, and the only thing I can really fault George on is his lack of Internet skills! I do believe Terry said George is very receptive to work with, over the phone, but he tends to ignore emails. For me that's just extra frustrating, because I'm an internet savvy kind of guy, I'm much more comfortable typing out what I have to say and have little patience for playing phone tag. I don't think I ticked him off initially, because every time I've emailed him, I've been very calm, polite, and professional. I think it just comes down to, George sucks when it comes to email and maybe the internet in general! He just might be an older guy who is very customer-oriented, but has no interest in computers. Or perhaps he's just too busy to sit down and type out a reply (when he does reply, it's usually 5-words or less, and not a complete sentence, even if you've written him 3 paragraphs worth). Anyway, it does seem that George is very interested in getting our business, because he DID make me a new spring after all, for no charge, not even shipping, AND 2-years had passed since I bought the first one from him! I'll get the camera phone pics up tonight, and if anyone decides to order a spring from George (best done over the phone if you want speedy results ), please be sure to mention Shawn from w-body.com sent you. I promised him I'd refer people for doing me the favor of sending a new spring. Oh yeah, and you'll want the 185# spring. Be sure to mention that. I'm almost tempted to lower the convertible too, but I wonder if it will need a slightly higher spring rate for all the extra weight back there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdaye Posted August 4, 2006 Report Share Posted August 4, 2006 I've update george at FAF to all my findings with his springs along my journey. Just to comment of a couple things: I didn't seem to have a hard time with installing either of the 4 FAF springs, by this I mean the problem Shawn had with the center arch...mine seemed to all fit in just right. Also on the topic of KYB GR2s which are what i installed with my first FAF spring. I found that it was east to compress them with one hand when i first took them out of the box and I don't feel like they are supporting any weight at all on the rear of my car and once again if anyone is looking for a stiffer rear end let me know, I have 3 FAF springs I will part with for cheap as well as a stock spring. P.S Shawn I hope you told George that I gave you all the different spring rates to order by (185) because I told him i would put in a good word for him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GnatGoSplat Posted August 4, 2006 Report Share Posted August 4, 2006 On the center arch thing, I had a problem because the clamps have a keyed hole and they fit completely vertical 0-degrees up into the rear axle. However, with the new spring, although the upper part of the rubber blocks fit right into the axle, the lower parts were inset too much because they're angled inwards a bit. It was easy to thread the bolts, but I had to pull them outwards quite a bit for the tab on the axle to fit into the hole on the clamps. Not sure if that makes sense, but I'll post an illustration later. My GR2's are also 6yrs old like Jeff's and they had (and probably still have) a pretty strong gas charge. I could compress them with one hand only if I set the bottom on the floor and pushed down on the shaft with my weight. I wouldn't be able to compress them if I held the shaft with one hand, body with the other, and tried to push them together. It could be they've reduced the gas charge on the newer ones, hard to say. P.S Shawn I hope you told George that I gave you all the different spring rates to order by (185) because I told him i would put in a good word for him. Yup, I did tell George that you referred me to the new spring rates. I made sure to give credit where credit is due. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff M Posted August 4, 2006 Report Share Posted August 4, 2006 Jeff, I think I know what you're saying, and the only thing I can really fault George on is his lack of Internet skills! I do believe Taylor said George is very receptive to work with, over the phone, but he tends to ignore emails. For me that's just extra frustrating, because I'm an internet savvy kind of guy, I'm much more comfortable typing out what I have to say and have little patience for playing phone tag. I don't think I ticked him off initially, because every time I've emailed him, I've been very calm, polite, and professional. I think it just comes down to, George sucks when it comes to email and maybe the internet in general! He just might be an older guy who is very customer-oriented, but has no interest in computers. Or perhaps he's just too busy to sit down and type out a reply (when he does reply, it's usually 5-words or less, and not a complete sentence, even if you've written him 3 paragraphs worth). Anyway, it does seem that George is very interested in getting our business, because he DID make me a new spring after all, for no charge, not even shipping, AND 2-years had passed since I bought the first one from him! Very informative and thorough observation, I bet you are right-on with your perception of him Older people do find it frustrating to use the internet and emails, and his infrequent and short replies also show he is not one to feel its an easy form of communication as others have come to find out. I TOO like emails/typed communication as you do get things done better, AND have a track record of what was said and all, emails are perfect for those important aspects! I'll get the camera phone pics up tonight, and if anyone decides to order a spring from George (best done over the phone if you want speedy results ), please be sure to mention Shawn from w-body.com sent you. I promised him I'd refer people for doing me the favor of sending a new spring. Oh yeah, and you'll want the 185# spring. Be sure to mention that. Absolutely , I will be sure to let him know the referral I bet the more that come his way from you 2 working on this together and Taylor the better his support will be Jeff M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdaye Posted August 4, 2006 Report Share Posted August 4, 2006 thanks man. i hope all the work I had to deal with changing my spring a total of 4 times to find the right lowering height makes it worth while for anyone else looking for a rear lowering spring from FAF. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff M Posted August 4, 2006 Report Share Posted August 4, 2006 Also on the topic of KYB GR2s which are what i installed with my first FAF spring. I found that it was east to compress them with one hand when i first took them out of the box and I don't feel like they are supporting any weight at all on the rear of my car I too at the time of my KYB install felt the same, but my car did jump up a long ways over what it sat at before I replaced the stock struts. I know it doesn't feel like much pressure with the KYBs but as with Shawn finding this and having an off-road stance , and since I have also seen over the years other TGPs on ebay and web sites that were sitting up real high and that had put in new struts recently, its starting to make me think. Maybe like Shawn said the stock struts did not have much gas pressure, or were a low-pressure version, or over the years lost their charge might be the KYBs are on the high side, there are many ranges of pressures so I don't want to say the KYBs are "high" totally but they seem to be up there, and for me I find their ride to be perfect, holds on tight when needed yet easy on the butt-bone . Jeff M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff M Posted August 4, 2006 Report Share Posted August 4, 2006 I hope all the work I had to deal with changing my spring a total of 4 times to find the right lowering height makes it worth while for anyone else looking for a rear lowering spring from FAF. Oh you have my thanks like I said, I know what such a task can entail, a lot of work, money and patience And with all these efforts many people will be pleased and at ease to spend their money, I forsee many a pic of some of the sweet w-bodys we have here getting down to the proper stance ohhyaaaaaaa. Jeff M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff M Posted August 4, 2006 Report Share Posted August 4, 2006 On the center arch thing, I had a problem because the clamps have a keyed hole and they fit completely vertical 0-degrees up into the rear axle. However, with the new spring, although the upper part of the rubber blocks fit right into the axle, the lower parts were inset too much because they're angled inwards a bit. It was easy to thread the bolts, but I had to pull them outwards quite a bit for the tab on the axle to fit into the hole on the clamps. Not sure if that makes sense, but I'll post an illustration later. I will have to pull out my book and climb under the car to help in digesting this, I want to get a good feel for it, before I say or offer anything else to those that have been there Yup, I did tell George that you referred me to the new spring rates. I made sure to give credit where credit is due. As will I, both contributors will have their mention as they should, this should also make the seller more receptive to our needs so this is working out well all over the place. Maybe some feedback to the seller on the install challenge that Shawn had or a take on it from Taylor as there might be something he did different, not sure since I am only now looking at doing this thanks to you guys Jeff M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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