Posted by Paul Cook on Saturday, February 09, 2002 at 0:36AM :
In Reply to: spring's posted by STROLLER on Friday, February 08, 2002 at 11:49PM :
I've gone through my civilian service and Army Technical Manuals and can't find any measurements for the amount of arch in a set of new springs. I guess Dodge left that up to the spring professionals.
You can "eyeball" the springs to see if the top leaf is bent so that the eye is lower than the natural line of the arch. You should also inspect the springs to see if any of the leaves are broken. I can show you spring sets I replaced on each corner of the same Power Wagon that had over half the leaves broken and several leaves with more than one break.
If the springs are not bent or broken, the only indicator I know for "sacked" springs is that the Shackle or Link should be just slightly past the vertical line from the spring eye to the pivot point on the frame. This means the front spring eye is slightly forward and the rear spring eye is slightly rearward.
Your best bet may be taking your truck to a regular spring shop. If the "spring" is still in your springs, they can be re-arched. The metallurgy may not have endured and you may have to buy replacement springs.
Because I do not plan to place any great load in my trucks, I will go to fewer leaves with an increased arch if I have to replace any springs. Going to fewer leaves does not necessarily reduce the load capacity - but it does let the springs flex more readily. Reducing the load rating makes the ride more comfortable. It also lets the suspension deflect more in uneven terrain. And the suspension can go to maximum deflection before flexing the frame. Increasing the arch in the springs gives more ground clearance and allows the suspension to deflect more before the axles contact the frame stops.