Well, a few of you have known for a while now that I've been looking for new springs to fix the sagging of my front end, due to the large amount of weight I carry on the front rack, and bring back some of the lost ground clearance. I haven't been able to find anything as far as aftermarket springs for the 'Cat go, and tried some new AC springs to see if mine were just worn out, but that didn't work either.

Many thanks go out to Trailboss for suggesting I try adding spacers under the spring itself. I finally got around to making a set of both 3/8" and 1/2" spacers out of a set of 1 1/2"x7/8" shaft collars. If I were to do it over again, I would suggest having a steel shop cut you a set out of aluminum tubing, but since they were closed when I did this, I had to improvise. Here's the results:

After installing the 3/8" spacers to the front springs, I let the 'Cat down out of tree she was winched up in. After taking a set of measurements, I found a total of 1 1/2" gain at the rack level, and 1 1/4" gain at the skid plate. This is pretty significant gains for a 3/8" spacer addition, but was due to the further compression of the spring, making it that much stiffer, able to hold the weight of the machine easier.

The 'Cat looks more level now, doesn't drop in the front near like it used to. It still sets about an inch lower than my Dad's stock machine, but is a huge improvement over the stock setup I had before.

As for the ride, it was interesting to say the least. I figured it would be much more stiff riding, but I was way wrong on that one. The 'Cat actually feels a lot more stable than it did before. I can't tell any increased stiffness going over logs, rocks, deep ruts, etc. Still very smooth riding. The difference I found was in the cornering. The 'Cat holds it's weight much better now while breaking through hard corners, or taking corners at higher speeds. Before, it used to duck a little towards the outside, or "roll" a hair, but now, it maintains it's normal stance, and just powers on through. Much more stability than without the spacers.

I put 73 miles on the 'Cat with the spacers in, across everything I could think of. Crossing large logs, rocks, deep mud holes, very steep hill climbs, and even sidehills. The machine seemed to be more stable across the board for every condition available. I ended up getting in trouble once, by sidehilling up a very steep elk trail, of which I would not have attempted before. My rear end slipped over the ledge, and nearly resulted in rollover. My buddy was able to hold the front end on the ground, while I throttled it back up and on, all the way to the top, so everything turned out OK in the end.

Overall, I'm very happy with the improvement made by the 3/8" spacers. I will swap out the 3/8" for the 1/2" sometime in the next few weeks, just to see what the difference is there, and if I gain any more clearance. If this is the case, I'll put the 1/2" in front, and the 3/8" in the rear, to keep it level. I doubt I'll need to do this, but would like to try just to see what it does.

Overall, I would recommend anybody who carries a lot of weight up front, or has a sagging front end to install a set themselves. I was able to gain back most of the valuable lost clearance, and maintain the same smooth ride in the process. Very simple modification that increases clearance, while maintaining and slightly increasing shock travel, without the negative effects of an actual lift kit.

Hope that helps somebody out there, or at least gives another option to think about.

Mike

 

Hey Cowboy, did it mess with the alinement of your front tires? And where exactly did you put the spacers?

 

i did the same to my 99 cat only i used the fiber shim thats inside the spring to center the shock i just put it under the washer its 3/4 in.thick which works real nice for the rear shocks but is a little stiff for the front a 1/2 inch in the front would be better.i didnt have to mess with the alinement afterwards and i gained almost 2 in. in ground clearance

 

An easier and simpler way (if you don't have access to a machine shop) is to stack more of the washers that are already used on the shock. Easy to get a hold of, dealer pn# or measure them and get them from a hardware supplier. I done this quite awhile ago, I was going to make some out of alum also, but this took less time. Either way it does raise the ground clearance.

 

Irichard:
I took the top retainer piece out that holds the shock and spring together, then slipped off the spring itself, the plastic spacer between the shock and the spring, and then the bottom steel plate that holds the spring in place. Beneath that is a small platform that is the base for the assembly. I put my 3/8" spacer there, then re-assembled the set-up.

I would recommend the use of a spring compressor though. I used brute force to compress the spring, while my buddy pulled the clip out. We did this up in the mountains, on the ground, so it wasn't the best of places to do it. A vice and spring compressor would make the process much easier.

I wouldn't advise anybody do this who doesn't normally run with weight on the front, as I think it might be a little rough. However, for those who run with loads on the front rack most of the time, it is a great way to gain back the lost ground clearance, and remove that sagging of the front end. The cost is cheap in comparison to lift kits (my shaft collars cost $4.25 total for the pair, of which I cut into two 3/8" and two 1/2" pieces) and doesn't put the stress on the CV joints that the lift kit does.

As for the alignment, I didn't notice any difference here at all. It still tracks the same as before, though I guess the only way to really tell if there is a difference would be to measure before and after between the tires. The ride itself feels much more stable than before, as the 'Cat now carries the weight better, and holds itself upright, rather than sagging. This results in more "sure-footedness" I guess you could say, and also allows for higher speeds going into corners, as it won't squat to the outside anymore.

I ordered the 'Claws from H.L. this morning and am hoping to have them here by friday. If they come in in time, I'll have them mounted before deer season opens on saturday morning, and may switch out the 3/8" for the 1/2" then, during hunting times of course. If you have any other questions, let me know, I'll do what I can.

Mike

 

The only problem I have with this is that it stiffens the suspension. This stiffening takes away the effect of the rear suspension.

Take a look at my new pictures. It shows how flexible my suspension is. Might be more flexible than most cause of all the jumping and miles on my Cat.

My pictures can be found IN my OPhoto Point album and Page 3 of The Deep End's Group Pics.