Duplex Cantilever leaf spring accessory. What is your experience?

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Matt in California
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Duplex Cantilever leaf spring accessory. What is your experience?

Post by Matt in California » Sun Mar 16, 2025 11:18 pm

I picked these up at a swap meet. I was hoping to use them because my car tends to get overweight with camping stuff :-)
IMG_2204.jpeg
I looked up forum post and found the following
https://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/1 ... 1292024995
I see that I’m missing the perch that would be necessary.
IMG_2230.jpeg
So I won’t be able to test these out unless I find that. So when you say lying spelled, the same What is the experience you have using these?

Do they really “work as good as they look?”

Or does someone just happen to have a few of these special perches lying around :-)

Matt
Last edited by Matt in California on Sun Mar 16, 2025 11:27 pm, edited 1 time in total.


OilyBill
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Re: Duplex Cantilever leaf spring accessory. What is your experience?

Post by OilyBill » Sun Mar 16, 2025 11:26 pm

In looking at it, it appears that the perch you mention is not used on this set you have. It appears one mounting spot is inboard on the main spring, (which you seem to have intact on your examples) and then the outer connection is made from the original Ford Spring shackles, hooked up to the end where you say your perch is missing. It appears you actually have the perch, and all you need to do is connect up the Ford Spring shackles on the end of the Ford spring, and off you go!


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Re: Duplex Cantilever leaf spring accessory. What is your experience?

Post by Allan » Mon Mar 17, 2025 5:43 am

The perch on the outer end is a part of the accessory, and is reversed so that the additional piece is hinged outboard of the usual standard perch. The standard perch is not used.

I would not use them without replacing the inner linkage with more substantial links than the flat steel items shown in the advertisement. The holes are easily elongated in use because the load is taken on a rather inadequate tin linkage.

In my experience there are better examples which do make a difference.

Allan from down under.


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Re: Duplex Cantilever leaf spring accessory. What is your experience?

Post by Dan Hatch » Mon Mar 17, 2025 1:14 pm


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George House
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Re: Duplex Cantilever leaf spring accessory. What is your experience?

Post by George House » Mon Mar 17, 2025 2:46 pm

I like them on my centerdoor. It’s top heavy and I think they minimize swaying. Can’t imagine any utility value on a roadster..You’ll have to reverse Ford front spring perches and there’s a single ball bearing under both the inboard accessory bottom leaf spring-in grease-rolling on top of the Ford front leaf…But you Will use the Ford front perches.
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Craig Leach
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Re: Duplex Cantilever leaf spring accessory. What is your experience?

Post by Craig Leach » Mon Mar 17, 2025 10:52 pm

Hi Matt,
Aren't these intended to counter act the stock spring to dampen the spring travel rather than act as a booster spring? If load handling capacity
is the issue on my firetruck I added extra leaves in the rear spring & that seems to work well, I sometimes have a dozen kids or even 8 adults in
the back & it still rides good with no one in the back . It does weight 2000 lbs. empty.
Craig.

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Matt in California
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Re: Duplex Cantilever leaf spring accessory. What is your experience?

Post by Matt in California » Thu Mar 20, 2025 11:58 pm

Dan, thanks for sharing your experience. It sounds like they work as advertised for damping.

Craig, I believe you are correct these as not intended for heavy loads.
IMG_2256.jpeg
I do need the special perch to use this rear set. Maybe someone has it in their stack of rear axles!

Matt


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Re: Duplex Cantilever leaf spring accessory. What is your experience?

Post by Dan Hatch » Fri Mar 21, 2025 7:22 am

I posted link to that set for sale. Maybe he would part the springs out.

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Henry K. Lee
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Re: Duplex Cantilever leaf spring accessory. What is your experience?

Post by Henry K. Lee » Fri Mar 21, 2025 8:03 am

You will have to fabricate your own such as I have posted in the past for Hassler Shocks for big drum rear axles. Would offer but past experiences with grown men complaining about price and shipping costs has turned off those services.

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Matt in California
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Re: Duplex Cantilever leaf spring accessory. What is your experience?

Post by Matt in California » Sat Mar 22, 2025 1:51 pm

Dan,
You have a point, these accessories can be removed and all that would be missing would be would be the original perches.

Henry,
I can only imagine how much it would cost to make it worth your time. It seems like it would probably be cheaper to find someone willing to sell a whole set like Dan mentioned. But if someone is just scratching their head because they have a scrap pile with two of these aftermarket perches …. I have a home for them or vice versa.

Matt


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Re: Duplex Cantilever leaf spring accessory. What is your experience?

Post by kmatt2 » Sat Mar 22, 2025 4:01 pm

Matt , I don’t know which of your cars you are going camping in, but that type of auxiliary spring won’t work with a 1926-27 large drum rear axle. I at one time had a 1926 roadster pickup that had a 1925 small drum rear axle in it and a similar, but a little different , auxiliary springs. They worked ok but I ended up going to rear wheel brakes for better stopping and the auxiliary springs went to a new home. If your camping car is your 1926 touring car you can try switching to the 10 leaf spring out of a 4 door and see if that helps some with the over load.

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