hey folks! well i just got done taking off and apart the passenger side rear leaf spring assembly. it is rusty, pitted and some of the leafs look warped. The 2 small leafs seem to not have an arch to them I'm not sure if they are suppose to. I assume I should clean them all up and look for damage. So far I see none, except for where a spring would dig into the one next to it. however this side was sagging 13/16ths of an inch. The Stud or Pin that holds the springs into the hanger is also an issue of course. On one of them it is rusted where the grease hole is and shiny on the other side of it. The other Pin has the opposite sides worn. Any advice for looking for damage on the springs or if i should scrap them or what ???? thanks

 

7 leafs on each side on the rear of my truck.

 

I would take them to a local spring shop, tell them you want them to look them over for you, and reassemble with whatever changes you want.

 

in the case of my 53 it has become very obvious it is wiser to just replace instead of repair . they seemed fine till i got them apart including the extra sets i have , and found out for sure that i and the previous owner did what this old girl was designed for ..... worked the snot out of it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! only 7 leaves ????????? what did the 56's start to go soft ???? my rear leaf packs have 8 , so do the fronts , and the factory overload packs have got another 8 . let me tell you i have had late model 1 tons that couldn't carry the weight this ol' girl can !!! i have had enough in it to break all the overloads on the left side . took a beating and kept coming back for more ! did i mention how much i love this old ford ??????????

 

did u have to replace the hangers too? or is it just the bushings in the eye that wear?? i would really like a new pair of leafs but then i would also have to get them arched to the heigth that I'm at now. I don't know what to do! I also do not haul anything, just for cruising so I want a comfortable ride as I can. Right now I have the axle on top of the springs with c notch. Im really getting excited to put it back together which ever way I go im sure it will drive so much better! any thoughts or ideas???

 

Not the most knowledgeable here, but I just finished mine, so I'll put in my 2 cents.
Good advice above, take both sides to a spring shop. They can re-arch to match, and will identify any bad leafs. Here they charged me $50 for each side, and that included reversing the spring eyes to lower it about 1 1/2 inches, while retaining full strength and travel. They also put in new center pins.
Replace all 6 bushings, got mine from mid 50. check the pins, probably need new ones, but the hangars are generally OK.
About the ride. Mine is stiff as hell. One of these days I'm going to pull it down and take out a leaf or three. Took 3 out of the front and it rides a lot better. I intend to replace the leafs with center pads to keep my current height.
Pretty simple job, just takes a lot of grunt to handle that spring pack.