Well, finally got my '79 f-250 on the road after a recent crossover steering conversion. This is the roughest riding truck I have ever owned! This will be my 4th old ford along with the 15 other trucks I have owned. The previous owner double blocked the rear on top of jigga boo'n the leaf packs by adding a bunch of random leafs so it wouldn't squat when he hauled wood. Kidding not, I once counted the leafs and I believe there was around 14 random sizes on one pack.

With that being said.... The truck has a 6 inch lift. I'd like to purchase some rear lift leaf springs to keep the truck level and hopefully increase the ride quality. I'd also like to get rid of the factory block if possible as well.


For some reason I'm thinking the rear of trucks leaf springs doesn't need to be as tall as the fronts but, I can't remember. Assuming the truck has a 6 inch lift, and I want to remove all blocks, do I just need a 6 inch lift rear leaf spring? Any recommendations on where is the cheapest place to pick up a pair?

Thanks all,

Kyle

 

Anyone know?

 

If you want cheep ones that will sag in time, get a set of Pro Comps. I got mine on sale 6 years ago and I've shimmed them 2 times already but they ride good & I don't mind throwing a spacer in every now & then. If you want good ones bend over & buy Sky Jacker. I don't know about the block though, I did a shackle flip when I put them in.

 

Well, I may just need to keep the factory block. Surely it will still ride a ton better with one less block and a normal leaf pack. Although, if someone know swhat size to get with and without the factory block I'd appreciate it.

Thanks,

Kyle

 

There are amny options for this. You can purchase an all spring lift to eliminate the block and this is a spring that will be roughly just over 8 inches ov overall lift. Lots of arch and not the best alternative.
If you are lookng for the best springs, Deaver is second to none. You can find decent results from Atlas, or National springs as well, but the Deaver is going to be the best.
As an alternative, you can achieve a reasonable amount of lift as well as performance by converting from the tension style shackle to the compression style can produce decent results. Combine this with a modified front hanger and you can achieve some serious lift with serious articulation from reasonably flat springs.
I use a bone stock chebby 3500 series rear spring under my rides, and cant tell you how well it drives on the highway. Oh yeah, this is with 40 inch tires. Yes, stock springs and 40 inch tires. Hangers are stock for the chebby and the rear is converted to the shackle flip design, or compression style shackle, meaning that the shackle faces towards the ground, and not up like a stock one.
Since most spring packs and hangers are all a bit different, there are several variables that wont make for a dead on, easy upgrade, but the labor involved is not all that difficult. SInce your spring pack has been modified, there are several variables that have no answer. We have no way of knowing what leafs were stock, nor do we know what condition they are in, so we have no baseline.
Stock chebby leafs (64 inches long by the way) are narrower than the 3 inch rear springs that you have, so all of the hangers will have to be changed, but I highly recommend this upgrade.
Many have followed, and have been more than pleased with the results. JUst an example, the last guy that installed some of these recently put 3,000 lbs worth of fire wood in the bed of his truck, just because he could. Drove well with the load, and drives like a caddy when empty. Matter of fact, some use shocks with a mre aggressive valving, because the spring rides a bit on the soft side when soft valving shocks are used.
I probably only have a couple hundred bucks in m whole set up. Heak, come to think of it, I do not even have that much. This can be a cheap and easy way to obtian all sorts of advantages.

I just recently did this on a Bronco that I converted to 1 ton axles. This cost me about 20 bucks. It provided enough lift to clear 37 inch tires using a stock rear spring, and a 2 inch block. From 31 inch tires to 37 inch tires is quite a bit of lift.