Manx Club

Any body ever use the drop spindles to lower their buggy. I am wanting to lower mine i am going to add a adjustment to the beam but i also wondered about using dropped spindles will you need to use normal ball joints with these or can do you have to use ones that are made for lowering.

Gary, I've had 2'' (inch) dropped spindles on my buggy for many years and IMO its a better way to go than taking it down on torsion spring adjusters alone. I spent a while trying to get it how I wanted, because when first fitted the tires would rub on the fenders whilst cornering hard since it already had beam adjusters fitted and reduced torsion springing to give a softer front. To overcome the fender rubbing I had to adjust the torsion bar adjusters to their highest setting,, the outcome was with a bit of fine adjusting she will still go off road and I don't have to slow down for anti-speed ramps. Many guys in UK love the Low Life, so dropped spindles are popular here,, but some don't like to see much daylight between the tire & fender and seem happy to either scrub the tires over every bump or put up with a rock hard ride,,, guess you cant have it all ways. I think there is a front shot of my buggy on the veep thread which will give ya an idea of how high I had to take it so as not to get any fender rubbing with two heavy guys on board.

Here it is behind the Jeep grill...

I used drop spindles on my Manx SR. They work fine but a couple points to consider. They generally add an inch or so to the width of the car. They are not adjustable, so unless you have an adjustable beam, you are stuck with the drop, which may be too much in a Manx. Also, be sure to put in at least one set of camber wedges or it will be squirrelly . [QUOTE=gary1719;14655]Any body ever use the drop spindles to lower their buggy. I am wanting to lower mine i am going to add a adjustment to the beam but i also wondered about using dropped spindles will you need to use normal ball joints with these or can do you have to use ones that are made for lowering.[/QUOTE]

Thanks Don and Mel. i am trying to figure out what i want to do. i want to remove some of the leaves to soften the front end. i am going to add adjusters to the beam. i want a disc brake conversion which adds width this is why i was thinking about narrowing the beam. good idea or not.

Before you narrow the beam, how much room do you have between the shock towers & the body? Most buggies I have looked at, have very little room there, so the beam cannot be narrowed. Playing with the front wheel back spacing is usually the only option. Tom

You could also go drum brakes front and disc in the rear,,,On a buggy,You want more rear stopping power...

Each to their own but I kinda like my 'standard' height Buggy with sticking out wheels...lol...

Thanks for the input guys. Tom that is what i want to know.you have run across this so i was wanting input.This is stuff i am trying to find out.i have seen some porsche rims on buggies that tuck the tires in. Tom did you use the spindles on your or kathleen's buggy? Manx david what year are your tail light housing? I like the chrome.

Taillights are from a '67 or earlier Bug, I got them chrome plated locally. I got a '66 numberplate light plated too which were also fitted to a lot of Bugs 'back in the day' but prefer the look of the Bugpack one mounted a little higher than most.

I have some that came on my body not sure of the year. They do not have the orange turn signal which i like. Can't i just replace the lens? Are the housings metal so they can be chromed. I also think tom was talking about the shock mounts at the top hitting the top of the tub sort of squeezing it if you narrow the beam. i thought the ball joint had a little more width than the link between the shock mounts. Gary

I bought a set of tail light assemblies of the same vintage as Manxdavid's. The housings are metal and the lenses are dual colored red/amber. I'm sure you can get the lenses separately. The ball joint beam is wider than the link pin. The manx body has a couple bumps to clear the beam that are hidden when the hood is attached. I'm not sure what accomodations the Manxter has for using either beam.

If you have troube getting red/ amber lenses I can send you some from England if you like, they were standard fittment in Europe.

Gary - we have dropped spindles and ajustable beams on both of our cars. Kathleen's is the CB Performance version ( 2 1/2" ). Mine is a custom set up ( 3" ) because I have 911 brakes front & rear. My spindles have VW ball joint parts inboard, and 911 parts for the bearings & hubs. I have 6 X 16 Fuchs with a lot of back spacing, so they fit under the slightly widened fenders on my car. We have very little room between the ball joint shock towers on both cars. Tom

Tom would you recommend the spindles to drop the front. I seen your or kathleen's at effingham last year nice job!