dropped spindles on a stock ball joint beam??

[beetletom]

is it worth it?
as i don't want to cut the beam for adjusters

will be on 4.5 bbt sprintstars, or will it push the wheels out too much?

[Jim Ratto]

I ran J Tech Forge "welded" drop spindles way back in 1988, with stock adjustable b.j. beam with 5.5" Mangel "chromie" wheels, and the wheels were pushed beyond the fenders, fouling up the tire clearance. I wasn't aware of beam narrowing back then. I went back to stock VW spindles at that point.

[Zach Gomulka]

I've got only drop spindles on my stock ball joint beam under the GTV. It has original EMPI 4 bolt 4.5" Sprint Stars with 145's. I like the look, not too narrow, but not buldging out of the fenders, either. I had to resort to a 3/4" sway bar to keep the tires from rubbing, though. If the BBT Sprints have the same offset as the originals, it wont work. The wide 5 Sprints have more positive offset than the 4 lug. A 2" beam will get the wheels back to where they need to be. What brakes are you using?

[Lids]

running dropped spindles with discs, 4.5 sprintstar wheel is perfect.  I can't remember what make, think they are CB, but i know i got them from machine 7 about 8 yrs ago!

[Rennsurfer]

I must be extremely lucky... I constantly hear horror stories and advice to not run the drop spindles. I used the C.B. 2½" forged ones with the drum brakes on my current '67 with zero problems. The shocks are nothing fancy... but they ride great; silver KYB all around. I've had the stock '66-'67 factory wheels, Flat Four BRM wheels, and the 4½" 356 ones on the front. No rubbing... even in during high speed turns and it doesn't matter how many people are in my car. I've had four people and the front wheels/tires never give me drama. By the way, the tires on this car have been either 135 or 145. And like every air cooled VW I've owned... the front sway bar stays intact.

I guess it's due to getting lucky with the offset (or lack thereof) with the choice of wheels I've had. If I ever get enough money to switch to front discs, I might be in for different results. Cross that bridge when I get there. In the meantime, I dig the way my car rides and handles. WAY nicer than my first Cal Looker 30 years ago.

[bugnut68]

I've got discs and the CB spindles... couldn't run OG 914 2.0 liters due to bottom ball joint clearance problems.  Right now the car has a set of stock steelies on there, will eventually go with 4.5 inch chromies.  Don't feel like redoing my entire front suspension for the sake of getting different wheels, plus I hate the ride of an adjustable beam.

[neil68]

Stock front beam (drum brakes) with CB dropped spindles and 4.5" EMPI Sprintstars with 145R15 rubber:

[beetletom]

cool thanks!

i'll give it a go and find out.

but still thinking about a cb 2" beam, but i've heard they are total crap??
but then again, wouldn't want to take the original beam off...

[Neil Davies]

They're not as good as a genuine German beam, but they're no worse than any other aftermarket item. With the 2" CB linkpin beam I've got for the '51 I will seam weld the towers, just for peace of mind, but I certainly wouldn't call it total crap.

[Bryan67]

I owned and installed a couple of each (Ball joint and link pin) of the CB beams and have had no problems at all with them. No need to weld them unless you are building a narrowed baja bug maybe? Besides the new beams they sell now are a new design and made here in California.

[ESH]

... but still thinking about a cb 2" beam, but i've heard they are total crap ...

Crap's not a word I'd use, you'd probably want to switch the adjusters and get a little welding done but that's about it and not strictly necessary. There's nothing like original parts but it's not a bad alternative.

[beetletom]

ok thanks!