Email sent.

 

well i got the new springs up in the truck, im still missing the front hangers, i got the wrong ones initially and the right ones are supposed to be delivered today. i am able to re use my old ubolts, the new springs are about a half inch thicker but there is enough thread left to get the ubolts to hold properly. Hopefully shes running tonight. also i love Anti Seize.

 

That's some good stuff for sure. Also I didn't think you were supposed to re-use U-bolts.

 

Ford said it was ok long as,they don't appear stretched or damaged

 

"Technically" you aren't suppose to reuse ubolts. I bought new ones for mine when I did new springs. However I've taken off and reused a crapton of ubolts, stretched and not stretched, and never broke one. Not on this truck, but my 76 for example I have and beat the daylights out of it through fields with them and never had a problem.

I sure wouldn't use a stretched ubolt on a tow rig/daily driver, but a used one that looks ok I wouldn't be too afraid of.

 

I do NOT resuse u-bolts, EVER

 

^^^^^What he said. Once they are torqued and then re torqued they are stretched. Don't want to run the chance of not having them tighten enough and break a spring or worse.



-Junior

 

So far so good, if I had someone in town I knew could make them I would have just went new but this project blew up real quick and I needed the truck back and my other truck gets even worse mileage than this one so driving to the city for um wasn't reasonable when they don't look bad. I torqued them in steps up to 200 ft lbs, that's what I had read was a good torque for um so feel free to correct me if I'm wrong

 

Per the Ford shop manual I have…

83-113 ft/lbs for the F250 U-bolt
85-120 ft/lbs for the F350 U-bolt

But the part number listed for both are the same.

 

I was going to say that is silly since they are the same diameter bolts

But NOT the same bolt

 

Well they are defiantly tighter than that... Damn now when I take them off again I'll have to replace them for sure.

 

I don't know how the part numbers in the manual translate to the part numbers specific to each type of vehicle.

But 100 to 110 ft/lbs is within the range of both and what I used.

When I bought U bolts for the rear from Ford, the parts counter guru said there were about 6 different part numbers for the "1996 F350 4x4" depending on wheelbase and other variables. I didn't look but I suspect these are all the 'same part number' in the shop manual too.

If I was the inventory executive at Ford I'd call that silly too.

 

Leo hit me with a email Tuesday A.M. I got that rear shackle cut off an is rolling around the bed of the trick I'm off doing army stuff right now though.


On another note I passed my P.T. test with flying colors so I get my reenlistment bonus and am eligible for promotion haha

 

You know. F250s use 2" blocks so the u-bolts are automatically 2" shorter the a F350 that uses a 4" block. The each truck had the option of the overload spring, which changed the bolt length again

 

Email sent, will send another Tuesday AM.

I got my RSK installed this weekend. I need to get the track bar installed and and adjust the steering link as the additional lift made the steering wheel crooked.

If you are reenlisting, many thanks for your service!!