i hate being ignorant :/

i'm redoing the suspension on my '78 front and rear

on the front i'm thinking about going with the Edelbrock IAS shocks, Eibach 1" drop springs and i'm trying to find a fatter swaybar

now on the rear is where my :?: question :?: is if i get air lift 1000's with my eibach springs do i still need shocks and if yes can i just stick something cheap in there?

Yes you will still need shocks. Using cheap shocks is up to you, but don't expect the results to be the same, on the other hand if your current shocks are worn out, anything is bound to be an improvement.

Air bags do not provide damping so you will most definately need shocks. Since your going to install air bags inside the springs you will have the opportunity to install better quality shocks than the stock air shocks and if your going through the effort to upgrade the rest of the suspension I don't know why you wouldn't want to upgrade your ride quality though better shocks...but that's just me. I did the same with my 87, used 1" drop Eibach springs which is who makes them for Edelbrock and some heavy duty Bilstein shocks with Firestone air bags, which are pretty much the same thing. I would recommend purchasing before hand new rubbers to go on top of the front springs and pads to go on top of the rear springs, they are cheap and are most likely warn or missing in an older elk. It's a good idea to drop in some new ball joints at the same time as well, they are pretty cheap. Good luck.

I have a '79 with lowering springs, Edelbrock IAS shocks and Air Lift bags. The handling improved dramatically over the OEM components. The price difference between cheap shocks and good high performance shocks is not great enough to forgo the improved ride/handling of good shocks. Also add a rear antisway bar.

Nothing is going to beat a good performance shock. Edelbrock, Kyb or Bilsteins.

right on, thanks again... you folks are proving invaluable, now just to crack
open ye olde plastic currency...

oh while i'm bugging you about this :)
should i get myself some aftermarket swaybars or would there be a better alternative?

The stock swaybars off a MC SS & the like will work great. Time to do some junkyard hunting.

junkyards are cool... they sorta resemble my bedroom when i was a bit younger except they crush cars :p

I like my KYB's and new ball joints are always a plu and aren't pricey unless you buy Moog parts through Global West...ouch...but the thing handles real good with the stock air shocks in the back.

yeah i'm totally redoin the front suspension on it atm getting the control arms cleaned up and painted new ball joints, shocks, springs, sway bar (which wasn't even connected when i bought it), new brakes and of course poly bushings all around

it would already be done if i had more money :p
springs = moog #5662 (1" drop) carparts.com has em for just over $50 a pair
shocks = havn't decided tween eibach, kyb or bilstein
sway bars = per tommy's suggestion i'm gonna try to find a MC SS at one of the many local scrapyards
brakes = trying to find a good price on ported rotors that fit
:)

all this of course when i have the money so it's gonna take me some time to get it all together
wish i could win the lottery that would solve many of my problems, heh

Get the biggest rotor and pad/caliper combo you can find and afford, I do not know if an after market company makes a larger rotor/caliper combo for a 5th gen.

However, I have been told that police Impala's and impala's with the towing package are supposed a larger rotor'caliper combo but have a different bolt circle.

Can somebody shed some light on this stuff?

There are 11" front brake kits readily available through many retailers. I was speaking with a gentleman from Turner Motorsports recently when I ordered my new shocks and springs about upgrading my brakes in the near future. He has a connection to a supplier that custom makes spindles to fit the (cant remember what year and/or specific model) Camaro that came with 12" front brake calipers and rotors. Therefore you would purchase and install these new spindles and then just buy the calipers and rotors to fit that specific Camaro from any parts store and whala you have 12" front brakes on your elcamino. You have to run oversized wheels of course, but I believe that even 15's will work. The whole set up was cheap in my mind, like 5 or 600 bucks. I'll try to get a hold of him again if youd like and get more information for you. I have his number somewhere so that I can call him when I'm ready if that is what I decide to do. Let me know if I should put any effort into it or not.

How does he make the spindles?

I would love to get some more stopping power. My father would also be interested in this upgrade. If you can get a some info and his number that would be a great help.

I will try to contact him today for more information. He doesn't make them, he has a company make them for him. Also I looked into brakes a little bit last night and want to correct myself. I was able to find a couple manufacturers that sell 12" brake kits, OPGI sells one in fact, but they run between $1100 and $1200. The stock ElCamino brakes are 10.5" not 10 like I had mentioned. So this guys 12" brake set up although it isn't the only 12" kit available, does run significantly cheaper than any others on the market. I post more info as I come across it.