Traction/Ladder bars

[Angelo Voltura]

Anyone running any traction device on their trucks? The price for Lakewood slapper bars is attractive, but I have been looking at L&L ladder bars as well. Only concern with those is clearance issues, but from what I see I should be ok.

[FuzzFace2]

Just be warned if you are going to be using slapper bars make sure the rubber snubber hits under the front spring eye bolt or you could end up bending the main spring.
This is hard to find depending on how long the springs are from center to the front eye bolt.

Any traction bar you add will hang lower unless you can find or make something to come off the top of the axle housing to the front spring bolt.

You also have to watch out for the front of the slapper bars dropping down and digging into the ground when letting off the throttle.
Some bars have a "U bolt" type deal the goes over the spring to the front with about 1" gap between spring and U bolt, and bolts to the slapper bar to keep it from dropping down to low and digging in.
Rules for drag racing say you must run this limit on slapper bars.

Now you did not say what you want them for?
Is it to stop wheel hop when on the street or are you racing the truck as in drag racing?
If drag racing you running brackets so the number has to be vary close for each run in order to keep racing?
Do you want something that you can adjust for when the track traction changes?
If so look into Cal-trac traction bars https://www.calvertracing.com/caltracs.html
I have them on my drag car running M/T 9" slick and they work great.
I was at 1 track that was vary greasy and could feel it in my 13 sec car even shifting into 2nd gear (auto) and heard others in much faster cars say the same thing and may not run it was so bad.
I made a little change, they made big changes, and the traction came right back.
They don't hang that low so if I wanted to I could drive on the street with them but being a drag only car that will not happen.
Sorry I don't have a good picture of them on the car, 2 different tracks.



Dave ----

[old55pete]

I don't really know if you want to put a set of slapper ladder bars on your pickup. Had some on my 62 F100. Seemed like every time I would back out of the foot feed after being on it hard, they would drag the ground. Had them catch in seam between the concrete slabs and break the u bolts one time. I know I am dating my self as there are not many slab road out there any more.

Dave, I love your AMC AMX, had a friend in high school that had one in the early 70's. It was a quick beast back in the day.

[FuzzFace2]

old55pete wrote

I don't really know if you want to put a set of slapper ladder bars on your pickup. Had some on my 62 F100. Seemed like every time I would back out of the foot feed after being on it hard, they would drag the ground. Had them catch in seam between the concrete slabs and break the u bolts one time. I know I am dating my self as there are not many slab road out there any more.

Dave, I love your AMC AMX, had a friend in high school that had one in the early 70's. It was a quick beast back in the day.

On the slapper bars is why I said he had to add the retainer over the spring to keep them from doing that.

Thanks on the AMC Javelin the 12" longer brother to the AMX
One day I will get it running again now that I live closer to a track.
Dave ----