91 F-250 rear leaf spring pack swap

[wvlogger]

I am wanting to do heavyer springs on my F-250. i need more hauling ability on scrap. right now 1 ton put it on the stops. My guess is she had a long life of heavy haul. Will springs out of a 1 ton from the same time frame bolt up? I really could care less about roughness i run dozer quite often. So lets hear it.

 

[treemandan]

1. look online for pertaining info. A factory parts list for both trucks would be key but there are many Ford Truck Forums where this question might be instantaneously answered.
2. call the junkyards and see what they say.
3. locate donor vehicle and measure for yourself

 

[audible fart]

As someone that has removed leaf springs from 20+ year old trucks, the best advice I have is in the days&preferably weeks before you try to remove your stock springs, DRENCH them in aero kroil or liquid wrench penetrant. DRENCH every bolt&nut you'll have to remove, hit it w/ a wire brush if possible, then drench it again and just let it soak. Also, plan on possibly having to cut U bolts anyway. Sometimes 20+ years worth of weather just makes them impossible to re-use. Not a big deal, just something to consider before you encounter a problem. I've been there. Also whenever you find out what's compatable, if you get a junkyard set of heavier springs, get new rubber bushings before installing them. Ford dealers likely have them& the few extra $ are well worth it. Used bushing can look ok to the naked eye and be garbage once you've put all the labor into installing the springs. I really can't emphasize soaking the suspension bolts repeatedly over a course of several days in advance of removal enough.

 

[dellwas]

Sage advice, but Ford is not the only place to get bushings, etc.

These guys are good to deal with and they know their truck suspensions:

www.stengelbros.com

As someone that has removed leaf springs from 20+ year old trucks, the best advice I have is in the days&preferably weeks before you try to remove your stock springs, DRENCH them in aero kroil or liquid wrench penetrant. DRENCH every bolt&nut you'll have to remove, hit it w/ a wire brush if possible, then drench it again and just let it soak. Also, plan on possibly having to cut U bolts anyway. Sometimes 20+ years worth of weather just makes them impossible to re-use. Not a big deal, just something to consider before you encounter a problem. I've been there. Also whenever you find out what's compatable, if you get a junkyard set of heavier springs, get new rubber bushings before installing them. Ford dealers likely have them& the few extra $ are well worth it. Used bushing can look ok to the naked eye and be garbage once you've put all the labor into installing the springs. I really can't emphasize soaking the suspension bolts repeatedly over a course of several days in advance of removal enough.

 

[BlueRidgeMark]

I am wanting to do heavyer springs on my F-250. i need more hauling ability on scrap. right now 1 ton put it on the stops. My guess is she had a long life of heavy haul.

Yeah, a lot more that one ton! While it's a 3/4 ton truck, an extra 250 pounds shouldn't put you on the stops.


Or maybe you're underestimating the weight? It's easy to so. A while back I did some calculations of the weight of I sometimes carry, and realized I've been guilty of putting more than a ton on my Nissan. Yeah, a half ton truck!

 

[wvlogger]

Yeah, a lot more that one ton! While it's a 3/4 ton truck, an extra 250 pounds shouldn't put you on the stops.


Or maybe you're underestimating the weight? It's easy to so. A while back I did some calculations of the weight of I sometimes carry, and realized I've been guilty of putting more than a ton on my Nissan. Yeah, a half ton truck!

I could be doing this but i took in 1 ton of scrap and she was bottomed out. This truck has almost 300,000 on the clock and keeps on going. Do leaf springs "wear out"?

 

[dellwas]

Nope, but they do get weak...

I could be doing this but i took in 1 ton of scrap and she was bottomed out. This truck has almost 300,000 on the clock and keeps on going. Do leaf springs "wear out"?

 

[wvlogger]

Nope, but they do get weak...

I am thinking tahts what has happened

 

[BlueRidgeMark]

Probably so.


It comes from putting a ton and a half on a 3/4 ton truck one too many times!

 

[MS260 Fan]

The F250 and 350 of the same year should have similar fit springs. You can get into some trouble swapping in the F150. There are short wheel base and long wheelbase versions of springs. You shouldn't have this issue going from F250 to F350.

Some basic measurements will tell you a lot. Front eye to center bolt nut and rear eye to centerbolt nut should be about the same distance for both springs you're looking at. The shackle will take up any length difference in the rear

Watch the u-bolts too. If you're putting a spring on with a thicker pack thickess you may run out of threads on the old u-bolts. I'd assume you'll have to replace them anyway as they'll probably be pretty corroded. That's the way it is in Canada anyway.

Stay away from any F350 springs that have the helper on top of the main leaf spring pack. You won't have the bumpers on your frame to get any use out of them.

Not sure but there may be some 3" wide Econoline springs out that that are a close fit. If you have access to look at a set at a junker or something it would be worth measuring.

Best of luck!

 

[MS260 Fan]

I am thinking tahts what has happened

Oh yeah, there should be rubber jounce bumpers on the frame that hit the axle to protect the springs when overloaded. Sometimes they don't last long. If they're gone on your truck your springs will overload and take a set. No getting that back. Your rear end will sit a little lower unloaded.

If you doubt the amount your current springs can carry I'd look closely at the springs for cracked leaves. 1T on a 3/4T truck is not crazy. I did springs for a Dodge Dakota. It would hold 1500 lbs without complaining.

 

[BlueRidgeMark]

Oh yeah, there should be rubber jounce bumpers on the frame that hit the axle to protect the springs when overloaded. Sometimes they don't last long. If they're gone on your truck your springs will overload and take a set. No getting that back. Your rear end will sit a little lower unloaded.

Good point. It's one thing to overload a spring. It's another thing to bend it too far.

If you doubt the amount your current springs can carry I'd look closely at the springs for cracked leaves. 1T on a 3/4T truck is not crazy. I did springs for a Dodge Dakota. It would hold 1500 lbs without complaining.

Did you mean 2500? 1500 is 3/4 ton.

 

[MS260 Fan]

Did you mean 2500? 1500 is 3/4 ton.[/QUOTE]

Nope I meant 3/4T. The dakota is a smaller truck than the Ram. Most people call the Ram 1500 a 1/2 ton around here. Just saying that you can get a lot on even a so called 'small truck'.