I'm doing a hybrid, using the top leaf from my '95 f150 and using the bottom four off of an f250. The problem is I don't know what to do with that c-clip bracket thingy that holds the bottom 3-4 springs together. I suppose I can grind it off of the pack on the f150, but then what do I use as an alternative to hold those bottom ones together once I have the hybrid pack put together?

 

Why in the world would you want to do this?

 

That way I don't have to mess with the front and rear shackles/hangers/rusty bolts, etc (by leaving the top leaf intact).

 

I don't necessarily agree with what you're doing, but those "C" pieces bend pretty easily after heating them up with a torch.

 

I'm honestly surprised that I have to explain this, but the question was, "Why in the world would you want to make your own leaf spring pack out of F-150 and F-250 spring leaves?"

 

Yes, I just realized (after playing around with them some more) that they do bend even without heat. Thank you.

Qustion: Why don't you agree with this? Is there some hazard I'm overlooking?

 

Ok, it's like this. I have a rear leaf spring pack out of a 1990 F250. My '95 F150 is sagging, and it only has the 4-pack. The F250 had the 5-pack. I don't want to replace the upper spring 'cause it's the one with the shackles/hangers on it. So, I'm just swapping the bottom four, or in essence adding one more leaf. What's wrong with that?

 

Not that you've answered my question yet, but I'll answer yours:

Springs are made to work together and to function as one piece. When you break those pieces apart and mix together leaves that aren't designed to work together, you might or might not have unexpected consequences. For example if you have really stiff leaves on the bottom and a much softer one at the top, most of the flexing is going to happen in the part of the top leaf that sits between the end of the last spring on the bottom and the shackle mount. This will fatigue the metal and that leaf might fail at some point.

I'm not saying this will happen to you if you do this. What I'm saying is that I really doubt there is a good reason that you're doing this, except maybe to save a few bucks, and trying to save a few bucks by doing this is not a smart idea.

 

did you make sure the leafs are the same width? I thought the springs on the f-250 were 1/2 wider, so you wouldn't be able to get them into the smaller shackle. Also are you sure that this would correct the sag? could you just use a shim kit?

 

F150 4x4 are the same width as F250. Adding a leaf will correct things somewhat. No question about that.

 

Thanks for your opinion. I want to do this to correct a miner sag, lift things a tad more than stock, and provide a little more hauling ability (not a lot, just a little).

I'm pretty sure all the leafs, except the bottom thicker one, are all 5/16".

 

I don't have an issue with building your own spring packs, it's just that if the current ones are sagging that badly, you can bet that the top leaf is "done".

 

No matter how many good stiff springs you put in, your strength is still as much as the old main leaf can support at the ends!!!!

 

^^^Exactly.

 

forget what I said about a shim kit, I thought you were talking about "bed sag" rather than worn out leaf springs. Wouldn't it be just as easy to simply put the entire f250 springs on the f150? that way you could also put some por 15 on the hangers while they are down and not have to worry about them for a while. Also I don't know how much lift you would get. they would definitely be stiffer with a load in the back but the stance of the rear (w/no load) would seem to be dictated more by the condition of the old main leaf, as white 97 xlt pointed out. Or you could run into the opposite issue: the f250 springs, or even the mix spring pack that you are proposing might give you too much lift. I dunno, just thinking out loud, good luck!