Leaf springs: rebuild, or replace?
 

I've always wondered what the term "rebuilt" means when referring to leaf springs. Are they heat treated, re-bent, or what? Are they as good as new ones, or just a short-term solution?

Just curious if rebuilding is a viable option for saggy front leafs in a '59 F100, or if new ones are the best bet.

Thanks for any input.

- Jay

Leaf springs: rebuild, or replace?
 

i took my leaf sprinds apart and wire wheeled them real good.
then i took hem and painted them with rustoleum primer and rustoleum gloss black.
they turned out real good for me.
i might replace mine after my truc is all done, cause i have some that are broke and ill just through them out for now and just buy new when time comes.
but its your final call on everything you do.

swany

Leaf springs: rebuild, or replace?
 

Seems to me that there are three things to the rebuild of a leaf spring pack.

1. Replace any broken or cracked leaves. A quick way to tell if a leaf is cracked is to rap it sharply with a hammer and listen to the tone. If it's cracked, it won't ring (more of a thud) and the tone will be lower than an uncracked leaf of the same length.

2. THOROUGHLY clean up the surfaces and replace any leaves where the adjacent leaf has worn a significant groove in the surface. Remember, those leaves have to slide with respect to each other in order to work properly. You'll want to put some rust protection on the leaves once you have them clean.

3. Check the arch of the leaves and have any flat ones re-arched by a spring shop.

Check all the leaves in your old packs and find our which ones will need to be replaced and which ones need to be re-arched. A replacement leaf cost me about $13 in 2000. Re-arching a leaf is even less - maybe $5. From those numbers you can figure out how much it would be to repair what you have vs. buying new. Also keep in mind that there's a fair amount of work involved in cleaning up those old leaves and check them for wear! :)

Leaf springs: rebuild, or replace?
 

There are two more things you can do to your springs to make them function better. (1) Grinding the bottom edge of end end of each spring leaf will prevent them from digging into each other and. (2) use poly liner between the leaves. This will ensure that they will work properly with no bind.