----- Official Juicin it Frequently Ask Questions FAQ'S Thread ------

[Dragginbody]

We are putting together a ultimate s-series FAQ list. this will cover about every section of the forum. there are many faq's here in the juicin it section.

i am gonna need some input from all the moderators and members who frequent this section.

this is not going to be a discussion thread.

if you have something to add, just post the question and answer. it may be used in the final faq list, may not be.


thanks for any help, Kris

[eacyde]

Q: What Size Cylinders should I use in the front of My S-10?

A: 6" or 8" Cylinders are best.

Q: Should I buy Ball joints from a Hydraulic supplier?

A: No - Napa Sells "Unbreakable" ball joints, they are guaranteed for ever against breakage.

[NastyRedz]

Q. The motor spins but the truck doesn't go up.
A. The oil level in the tank may be too low. You might have a broken key. There may be a bad check valve or dump valve. The motor could be spinning the wrong direction. The pump head could be blown, broken or have a leaky or cracked seal. The pump head seal to block could be leaking or the pump head is not tight enough on the block. If you have a pressure relief valve it could be set for too low of a pressure.



Q. The truck goes up but will not come back down.
A. Make sure the slow down valves are not closed all the way. The dumps may be pressure locked - relieve the pressure by temporarily loosening the hose fitting and then, next time, don't lay on the switch so long or buy some high qaulity dumps to prevent future pressure locks.


Q. One side of the truck goes up slower than the other.
A. Check your fluid levels and bleed the hoses. It's also possible a bent cylinder or something else is causing more resistance. If your pumps are hooked to separate banks of batteries, check that all batteries are fully charged.


Q. How do you bleed the hoses?
A. First raise the truck so there is pressure in all your hoses. You bleed one hose at a time and can start with any cylinder, it doesnt matter. Get a rag and cup it around the cylinder so oil wont get every where. With a wrench, SLOWLY start to unloosen the hose where it connects to the cylinder fitting. When fluid starts to come out, let it bleed until you see no more air bubbles in it or the milky color is gone. Then tighten it back up. Repeat at each cylinder.


Q. A solenoid sticks open and the motor keeps running or burns out.
A. Low batteries! Improperly grounded solenoids. Too many or not enough solenoids (a good rule of thumb is 3 high quality 12v solenoids per pump). Motor armature could be shorting internally, brush plate insulators could be burned up and melted, the commutor could be wrapped around shorting the motor and drawing excessive amps causing the solenoids to burn out prematurely.


Q. I hear a grinding noise while the truck is lifting.
A. Low oil level. With the truck fully dumped, fill the tank so the oil level is 1" below the filler hole.


Q. What type of oil should I use in my pumps?
A. Hydraulic Oil 68 r+0 Aw 32 ,45 tractor fluid or 10W30 non-detergent motor oil. ATF (automatic transmission fluid) is not recommended but can be used to speed things up, however, be prepared for more leaks and bad seals in the future.


Q. What's a frame wrap and how is it done?
A. The short and sweet answer is steel (usually 3/16" or 1/4" thick) simply welded along some or all sides of the vehicles frame. Either the entire frame is wrapped or just some of the problem areas, such as the cross member and the rear humps over the axle. It is done with an experienced welder that knows what he is doing!
Q. How do you three wheel and why can't I get it to?
A. Fully raise all four cylinders and then dump a rear corner. If the truck is capable of a three wheel, then the front corner opposite of the dumped rear corner will come off the ground. The more weight in the dumped corner, the better. This is one reason you'll usually see the batteries stored in the rear corners of the trunk. If you can't do a standing three, you may be able to do a rolling three: While driving (in a safe, legal and off-road area, of course) and with the truck fully raised drop a rear corner and at the same time do a sharp turn to the opposite direction of the corner you dropped. For example, start turning to the left and drop the right rear corner - the front left wheel should come off the ground. If you've tried all this and you still can't three wheel, you'll probably need taller rear cylinders, more weight, chain bridge. A chain bridge is a bridge constructed out of either c-channel or box tubing. I't connects the rear frame rails together over the rear axle. Chains rated at 2650-lbs weight load, positioned 10 inches apart from the center of the bridge hand down from the bridge and are bolted to brackets welded onto the bridge and either side of the differential. chain length is determined by limiting the cylinders by 2 inches. use grade 8 bolts to connect chains.

[NastyRedz]

The following diagrams are from the book "How To Build A Lowrider"


A-ARM SUSPENSIONS (I-beam suspensions can also be set up using this method, only there's no upper arm to deal with): This illustration shows a typical A-arm installation with the cylinder atop the coil spring.

TRADITIONAL LEAF SPRING CYLINDER MOUNTING (this information also applies to straight axles) - If the vehicle is equipped with leaf springs, but universal mount cylinders are not used, a different mounting technique must be used. The cylinder mounts onto a leaf spring using a leaf spring bracket and frame mount. Here, the cylinder is shown mounted through the frame mount with the top edge of the cap pushing against the bottom edge of the frame ount. The cylinder's piston pushes down on a cap that rests atop the coil spring and at the bottom of the coil spring is a special leaf spring mounting that clamps onto the leaf spring.

SOLID AXLE SUSPENSION - Chevy Impalas, Monte Carlos, Buick Regals and others have coil spring rear suspensions. Cylinders are mounted atop a low profile coil spring in these type vehicles. A washer is used atop the cylinder sleeve which pushes against the frame in an upward thrust when the cylinder fills with oil. The trunk sheet metal must be cut to allow passage of the cylinders.

TORSION BAR SUSPENSION - Torsion bar suspensions feature a helically mounted cylinder/coil spring set-up. The piston rod comes pre-drilled for easy installation, and the donut is sandwiched between the upper edge of the cylinder's cap and a 3-inch coil spring that rises into the shock tower. Installers must reinforce the shock mount bracket (arrow A) to facilitate cylinder mounting.

[NastyRedz]

Q. My dump does not click or do anything, but I have power going to the dump from the switch what‘s going on?

A: The most common problem is not the dump. The dump may be getting power, but it doesn’t have a good ground. When grounding a dump, a good ground would be a metal area like your battery rack or any metal that goes to your rack.

Q. How do I know which solenoid is out on my car so that I don’t have to change them all?

A: The first thing to do is remove the cable going from the solenoid to your motor. Now, connect the ground and use a voltmeter. Place the negative of the voltmeter to ground (metal) and positive to the stud on the solenoid. Hit the switch. Power should read on the volt meter all the way through on each stud of each solenoid. If one doesn’t, that is the solenoid that’s bad. Even though you might only have one bad solenoid in a batch it is better to replace them all so that you don’t have one brand new one and several old solenoids.

Q. What type of oil do I use? Is transmission fluid okay?

A: Transmission fluid is not the recommended oil for hydraulic pumps, although it was used in the past. What is recommended is 10-30 to 20-50 motor oil. Do not use regular hydraulic oil neither it is to thin. When oil heats up it thins out that is why it is best to use 30wt. or more.

Q. I have four batteries, two pumps and two solenoids. Why do I need to keep replacing my solenoids?

A: Improper grounding could be the problem. To keep the solenoids from burning out, you need to make sure that you are grounding the blocks or individual solenoids to metal, such as the frame or the battery rack. It is always good to have a battery tester on hand as well. Bad battery’s such as a dead cell or low water level will effect the performance of your hydraulic system. If you have anodized parts you want to make sure to grind the anodize off the bottom of your block. If not your pumps will "arc out" and cause permanent damage to your system.

Q. Can I get standing three-wheel with your two pump kit?

A: you either need a three or four pump kit with coil over in the rear. (But you can get a rolling three-wheel with a two pump kit.)

Q. Should I buy a kit or individual components?

A: It is better to buy a full kit instead of individual parts at different times because of kit pricing. Individual parts could eventually bring the total cost of your set-up to a price between $1,300 - $1,500. Still some people chose to part their kits together. If you decide to piece your kit together try to stick with same brand of components. Some manufacturers make their parts different and will not interchange with others.
Q. What type of kit do I need for 3-wheel?

A: With a 2 pump 10 switch kit you can do 3-wheel around a corner on most vehicles with enough weight in the back. To do standing 3-wheel you need a three or four pump kit. This is something that you may want to talk to your installer about. There is always more than one method to do an install and each installer has their own method.

Q. Can I use my factory springs with my hydraulics?

A: You can use your factory springs with your hydraulics but you will not get the performance that we are sure you looking for. Most GM factory springs will not work. If your looking for performance, you should be consider hopping coils. If you are looking for a soft ride and not performance than consider using accumulators. It is also recommended to change out your rear coils no matter what the circumstances to accommodate your new weight and suspension change.

Q. What are accumulators?

A: Accumulators are actually manufactured for strut cars but also work rather well on coil spring cars. Your accumulator acts as shock absorber for your hydraulics. The accumulator is about 10 centimeters in diameter (softball size). They are pre-charged with 300 psi of nitrogen. In strut cars you no longer need a spring because the accumulator is absorbing the pressure. This makes for an easy install on a strut car because you no longer need to completely rebuild your struts. These accumulators mount between your dump and the hose running to your cylinders.

Q. How many turns should I leave in my spring?

A: If you want performance with your hydraulics, leaving as many turns as possible while leaving some space for travel will give best results for hopping. If you are more interested in just lifting and lowering your car while having a lower look, than you should go with as few turns as possible (somewhere between 3 ½ and 5 ½ turns depending on your vehicle). If you are not really sure which you want then we would recommend starting with as many turns as possible while still leaving travel room and cutting one turn off at a time until you find where you want your performance and ride height. The coils will break in as well as much as an inch once you start hopping so keep that in mind.

Q. What will a chain bridge do for me?

A: The chain bridge is used for on the rear of some vehicles to help the vehicle do a standing three wheel. A three pump or four pump set-up is required for this to work properly. While using a chain bridge it is necessary to use at least one pump running to the front two cylinders and two pumps to the back working with a chain bridge to give you a power 3-wheel. One pump in the back will work to pull one cylinder down while the other pump works to push the opposite cylinder up. The chains reinforce the response of the pumps and cylinders pulling from corner to corner. This is also a good method to use on the coil over suspension.

Q. What is a coil over suspension?

A: A coil over suspension is where the coil is installed around the cylinder with special coil over cups instead of the traditional way. The traditional way would be using the regular cups and donuts while putting the coil under the cylinder. The coil over suspension is beneficial by helping the rear springs from falling out of the vehicle when 3-wheeling. Coil over suspension also allows use of a bigger cylinder to give you a higher 3-wheeling.

Q. Why should I buy Unbreakable ball joints?

A: You will have a much less chance of breaking the factory ball joints but in most cases after market or even the factory ball joints will give out and break. This could possible damage your rims, brake line and you’re newly powder coated or chromes undercarriage.

Q. When I hit my switch up and then try to dump , it wont go down. Why?

A. Sometimes this a result of "pressure locking the dump" or "over locking the dump". To solve this problem you need to release oil from one of either the front or rear hose depending which part of the car wont go down. It is not nessasary to release all of the oil just enough to take the pressure off the dump cartridge. Now try dumping it.

Q. How do you bleed hoses?

A. There are a bunch of ways to bleed your lines but here is the most common.
We will use the front driver side cylinder for an example.

1. Raise up to its fully locked position.

2. Take a wrench and "slowly" loosen the fitting connecting the hose to the cylinder.

3. Catch the escaping fluid with an old rag.

4. Watch the fluid until it doesnt look "foamy".

5. Tighten your fitting and repeat for each cylinder.

6. Don't forget to refill your tanks after you bleed your lines!!

Q. Can I hop with accumulators?

A. If you are running springs with your accumulators then the answer is YES. You will need to install a shut off valve (i.e., slow down) in between the "T" fitting and the accumulator. You will close the valve to cut off the connection of the accumulator when you want to hop.

Also you will not want to use "street" slow downs as the valve because they are brass and are only intended for the low pressure side (return side).
If you are running a set up with accumulators but you do not have springs like a lot of strut set ups are, then it will not be a good idea to try and hop your vehicle.

Q. What are hydraulics and what do they do?

A. Hydraulics are used to raise and lower your vehicle's height.
Most setups consist of hydraulic pumps, cylinders, hoses, switches and batteries. There is more involved but those are the basics.

You hit a switch and that activates your hydraulic pump. It then pushes hydraulic fluid through the hoses and fills the cylinder, wich in turn raises your vehicle.
You then hit that same switch, but in the opposite direction and it activates the "dump". The dump opens up and allows the fluid to return back to the pump, lowering your ride.



Q. Im pretty ugly, will hydraulics help me get laid?

A. Depends on how ugly you are, with hydraulics at least you'll get the girls to look in your direction.

Q. Can I lay frame on my car and still hop?

Its possible to have both, you wont be able to hop as high when the vehicle is capable of laying frame(unless you do serious mods) becouse you won't have as many turns on the coils. Also you need to be good on the switch or you will "case" it alot. I've had vehicles that layed frame and could bunny hop all fours and do decent front hops too. It mostly depends on your skill level, not only on the switches but what type of setup you run and how its all setup/installed.

Q. What exactly is a lowrider?

A lowrider is a vehcle that is customized by its owner to express his/hers artistic expression. This includes but is not limited to altering the stock suspension. In other words, lowriders are often "slammed", "dropped", or "juiced". Hydraulics are often found in lowriders, as well as spoked wire-wheels. Custom paint jobs with murals, pin-strip, metal-flake are often found on these cars to show the owners own motorized peices of art. Custom plating with gold or chrome are often found. Many of the more "customized" lowriders often have modifactions to the body, such as "suicide" doors/hood/trunk or tilt front ends

[Dragginbody]

lol. nice. any and all input is needed.

[NastyRedz]

Yes you can charge off the alternator

[Dragginbody]

its too small to read

[NastyRedz]

Ill e mail it to you , cause it needs to be in bitmap form to read it.Maybe you can post a link to it after i mail it to you.

[Dragginbody]

k. krisdye007@aol.com

[NastyRedz]

Quote: Originally Posted by dragginbody

k. krisdye007@aol.com

I sent you the pic.

[Dragginbody]

never got it .

[NastyRedz]

ok i think i modified a better picture LOL. sorry it took so long

[Dragginbody]

Quote: Originally Posted by NastyRedz

ok i think i modified a better picture LOL. sorry it took so long

i have no idea what is goin on in that pic.

[skinnyg]

ahh, still cant read the pic. Is it somehow to make a streetcharger? I mean all it does it taks 12v and up it to 39, 48 or whatever. Anyways where do you guys mount your chain/chains? 1 in the center or one on each side of the diff? or what?

[skinnyg]

What about wire size? I always used 2 gauge from Napa (which ended up like 4awg from everyone else) but I see alot of people using 1awg or larger. Why wouldnt standard 4awg be ok? I mean the length between the batts and pumps is around a foot usually

[Long Roof]

Quote: Originally Posted by NastyRedz

Q. Can I get standing three-wheel with your two pump kit?

A: you either need a three or four pump kit with coil over in the rear. (But you can get a rolling three-wheel with a two pump kit.)

You can stand three on 2 pumps...
=2 pumps, My old car.