leaf spring friction

[RocKrawler]

We have the teflon spring pads at work, and the springs we sell have the holes already in the leaf ends that the pads have a snap to locate into - but drilling onto spring steel is a tough job at best, so if you dont already have the holes it would be quite a job to do. Several years ago a friend and I tested the theroy of reducing the friction by also adding small shims between the leafs at the centerpin as well - this produced a nice, small gap along the entire length of the spring out to the pads at the end - it rode and flexed noticably smoother than the stock used leaf and eliminated all squeaks, and no grit could wear anything away like a tape style solution discussed earlier. The byproduct is the extra lift gained from the thickness of all the shims added to the pack making it thicker, which on a spring over vehicle raises the trucks overall height .

 

[Josh]

I've done the 5mil UHMW tape on my leaves. It was a lot of work and I don't have any illusions about it lasting once grit is introduced. That said, they really do ride nicer... much nicer! On rough roads my SIIA is a much smoother ride than any of our "modern" vehicles.

Kind regards, Josh

 

[cumminscruiser]

spring pack

Does anyone sell a kit for rebuilding the spring pack? Spacers, shims etc.

 

[ntsqd]

snippage......
- but drilling onto spring steel is a tough job at best, so if you dont already have the holes it would be quite a job to do.

A friend of mine stumbled onto what he says (I haven't had reason to try it) is the solution to drilling leaf spring leaves. A hammer drill. Was all that he had so he used it with the normal bit that you'd use in a hammer drill. He claimed that it went through the leaves like they were soft steel.
HTH

 

[cruiseroutfit]

I've done my share of drilling, we used to do quite a few "spring flips" with FJ40 springs and we would re-drill the second leaf so that the military wrap stayed at the fixed end. In the end the best practice we found was the iron-workers punch. Sadly the went with the old owner and I've never found quite the need for the investment again.

 

[2talltary]

Teflon and UHMW

I've been using teflon and UHMW on my leaf springs and it rides a lot smoother than before. I picked up some remnant pieces from http://hightechplastics.com/ and gave it a try and it rides great.

 

[StumpXJ]

Motorcyclechainlube. Jack up truck on frame, spray, done. But one got to do this pretty often.

I do this every three months or so. Hit the leaf packs with a pressure washer to get the grit out, and spray the crap out of em. I use Honda White Lithium Grease, works like a champ, and has so far maintained the pads that came on my leaf pack quite well.

Old thread, but wanted to add my two cents.

~ Stump

 

[greasyfingers]

Check out a graphite paint called EZ slide, It's often used on farm equipment. I plan on ordering some soon for my new lift springs.

 

[78Bronco]

Coils springs?:ylsmoke: