Leaf Springs are giving me grief

[bad_religion_au]

i got a 40, which was lifted by resetting the standard front springs 2 inches, and resetting a pair of 55 series rears in the rear to match that height (3 inches i believe).

my problem is, after a few weeks my 40 leans 4 inches lower on the drivers side (and the front drivers is slightly lower than the rear drivers). when i pull the springs out, they are all the same arc side to side, so they haven't physically sagged.

i swapped them side to side, which actually caused the lean to become worse.

any ideas?

[pcman]

mine had dropped badly after removing leaves from the pack

if you have some sets of springs lying about get some new center bolts and add a extra leaf into the packs

im runing a aftermarket set of springs in my 40 no idea on brand but ive removed 1 spring from each front one and added it to the rear after letting them sag for 3 months with 1 removed lol

rides nicely now and well didnt lift a wheel near as much as some on the trip away

i hear scotto has some spare springs in his shed too

[bad_religion_au]

i got a spare set lying round here.

did you have bad leaning side to side? or front to rear casey?

i recon my rears are too soft, but it still doesn't explain to me the side to side stuff... the rears are coming out soon (once i get more than an hour free) and getting 1 or 2 springs added...

[pcman]

yeah i had bad side to side at the back like 3" difference

front was fine and still is fine with 1 less than stock in it

[bad_religion_au]

so spring rate fixed that up then eh... interwesting.

my plan of attack (provided i don't part it out or sell it) will be pull the rears, stiffen them, and maybe get an additional 1-2 inches put in the drivers front

case (or any other 40 boys) have you had your front springs out recently? if so, did the drivers side have more arch than the passenger side... thinking back, mine did before resetting. perhaps there could be some trouble.

[pcman]

mine definatly where differently arched when i pulled them but i was really thinking i would have to replace them but after adding the extra spring in its all good now

i recon they sag from factory due to the petrol tank being on the drivers side i dont have to worry about that anymore due to having lpg only

same as my cortina they sag to the drivers side cause the fuel tank is right up against that side fords solution is a 15mm spacer to lift that side up after a few years of driving lol

[luxinator]

resetting springs they wont last long at all they stell is so weakened it cannot handle off road use mostly pppl do it to improve the look of the vehicle before selling it so the springs look good better off buying new ones or gettin them made from custom stell done some work at dumbrell springs and forging in newcastle see this alot

[GOT MUD]

resetting springs they wont last long at all they stell is so weakened it cannot handle off road use mostly pppl do it to improve the look of the vehicle before selling it so the springs look good better off buying new ones or gettin them made from custom stell done some work at dumbrell springs and forging in newcastle see this alot

this is a good point but resetting willlast longer than a few weeks we had our 2wd rodeo work ute rear leafs reset and is only just starting to notice sag after 3.5 years it has a genuine 1ton in it all the time and is on the road up to six days a week

[bad_religion_au]

resetting springs they wont last long at all they stell is so weakened it cannot handle off road use mostly pppl do it to improve the look of the vehicle before selling it so the springs look good better off buying new ones or gettin them made from custom stell done some work at dumbrell springs and forging in newcastle see this alot

i don't see this as a resetting issue, as i said it is 3 weeks old, new (custom) main and military rap leaf, the other ones were reused. the place that does them is good, a friends 75 series has had them for 2+ years with minimal sag, and that thing is pounded with a load 7 days a week. i know reset is a temp solution, but it helps keep my wheels out of my guards for a year while i can save for a permanent solution.

also it isn't 1 particular leaf pack that is buggered. swapping leafs side to side did not change the lean.

i seem to have regained an inch or maybe2 in the front, as i jacked up the sagging side, and noticed that the 3rd leaf was splayed out sideways in the front. belted that back into place and it sits a little more level.

one theory of mine is that from factory the front drivers side spring pack is 2 inches more arched to compensate for something, fuel tank/ driver/ maybe spring perch height (drivers side is dealing with the pumpkin remember and is on a fatter part of the axle tube)

anyone want to refute it (cause i am running out of ideas).

[GOT MUD]

its right that you have a drivers side and pass side spring but ive never heard of them being 2 inch different the fronts i put in my patrol had driver and pass ones but the differance was bugger all like ten mill have you checked the mounts and hangers and diff is sitting correctly i know that may sound siilly but when put the front back together on mine instead of the pack bolt seating in the centre of the diff mount it went slightly foward me not paying attenion and it made the diff sit back about 25 mill or buy any chance did they give you all the right springs back

[bad_religion_au]

yes correct springs, it did sit fairly level before i drove it for the first time. spring mounts and all that jazz line up, i'm 99.9% sure it's due to one spring "flattening out" more than the other, as the shackle angle is larger for the drivers side compared to the passenger side (hence the shackle end of the spring being pushed forward due to the spring "flattening" under load.

the thing that is pointing me towards more arch in one spring than the other is the fact that it was level before the reset, even though one spring was 2 inches "taller" than the other when removed from the vehicle.

i'm tempted to add a leaf or 2 to the rears (heaps softer than 40 rears) and get the drivers front reset + 1.5-2 inches higher again... and hopefully level it... but anyone else got a better idea, shout out now.

[toyotroop]

Ive heard of this before.. you have to get a spacer plate to go between the springs and the diff, so if you have a 1 inch droop on the left rear you would put a 1 inch spacer plate there... you may need to install longer u bolts on it as well.. its a problem that even toyota have never been able to explain...

[Tojo]

can you post up the number of leaves you are running in the front and rear? Also is there a big gap in lengths from the second leaf to the third? It sounds to me like you don't have enough load carrying capacity. If you have recently purchased the custom main and second leaf i'd suggest going to where you purchased them from and discussing it with them.

[bad_religion_au]

problem with going back there is i moved interstate a week after i bought them (doh)

when i say standard, it's standard number/ length of springs but have been reset. the military rap leaf is standard (reset) not custom, i got confused but was set straight when i got home.

in the front i am running a standard 1976 40 series pack (8 leafs is it? i'll check tonight) the leafs are all pretty evenly spaced

in the rear it's a standard 55 series rear pack WITHOUT the flat overload spring (which i was told shouldn't come into it untill the spring wanted to uptravel past flat) the 55 rear pack feels softer, and all 8(or 7 again i'll check) seem to be long springs. none of them are the little short ones like found on the bottom of a 40 series pack.

on a side note, how does the length of spring affect spring rate. i.e. if i add an extra leaf, if i add a longish one (top couple from a standard pack) is that stiffer or softer than adding one of the little short leafs (not overloads) from the bottom of a standard pack?