what have you done to make your leaf springs ride and flex better?

Erik

Erik

Well-Known Member
Joined
Oct 20, 2005
Location
Wilmington, NC
i was thinking of buying a sheet of teflon and cutting strips for between the leaf springs, or possibly just flexing the jeep and globbing grease between all the leafs... also considered sanding allt he lafs and painting them with a tractor paint since they usually have graphite in them.....

what do you guys suggest? any secrets you want to share :)
 
The grease would be a bad idea.. it would turn to grit in no time.

With all my leafs, I always took apart the pack, and used a wire wheel on a grinder to strip them down to the bare metal, the painted them. Just doing that helps a ton.
I had also used the slinky strips between the leaves, but they tended to fan out, so it got kinda annoying.

Best bet is to use packs with many thin leaves, rather than just a few, thicker leaves.
 
ok thanks.

anyone want to comment on the proc and cons of using more or less (or different style) sping clips that hold the pack together?
 
when i built my last set i ended up with three
spring clamps on the rear and one on the front
of the spring. after i bent them over i welded
them together with a piece of 3/4 flat steel.
the clamps don't come apart like they used to.
and it still flexes the same.
seven thin leaf mix of stock front and rear toy
leafs.
 
I haven't done it myself, but if you didn't want to tear down the pack to polish each spring and re-paint (I'll be doing this shortly), I hear WD-40 will work great and not attract o much crap.

I've had limited success with the bend-to-hold clamps, but I haven't tried welding them shut.

I have 2 sets of the u-bolt type clamps per pack, and they're purposefully made with a good bit of slack to let the springs come apart...I may end up doing what DAWGTOY did soon though.
 
I've been wondering

they sell dry film lubricant paint. Graphite, moly, something like that. I've seen it in Tractor Supply.

I bet a TiN coating would be cool.

awww.agspecialty.com_famEZSld.jpg
 
I used WD40 with fine results, nothing really special, but a definite improvement.
 
Some thoughts...

Teflon would work, but might peen out.

A lot of springs do have something in em from the factory, (teflon?) so they don't squeak!

Maybe, UHMW Polyethylene? We use it for an awful lot of hi wear stuff.

The alternate clamping stuff is prob the best solution
 
Remove a leaf or two if it is too stiff. Usually the third or fourth one is a good place to start.
 
just did quite a bit of searching today and for what i'm looking for i think the tractor supply graphite paint is the way i'm headed.

the teflon can and probably will work its way out... and it's expensive... more so than the paint, and no where near as permanant....

of the two modified xj packs i installed last night i have the right side spring sagging about 3/4" or so..... i guess when i take them apart to clean and paint them i'll move them around a bit to help even things out.... so... really it's not too much more work to go through stripping and painting each leaf for me.

a traction bar is in my NEAR future.... these springs are waaaay softer than my superlifts which, knock on wood, never "needed" a traction bar....
 
JThomas said:
Every time my leafs flexed the best They would bend from axle torque. must have traction bar/anti wrap bar
Click to expand...

x2 what he said.. I wouldn't go on one run without one, if your springs are soft..
 
X3 I have lost a pinion due to axle wrap lack of traction bar + soft long springs will leave you sitting for repair
 
right now driving it around town i hardly idle off the clutch and i have to be super easy ont he gas to keep from wrapping them much..... if i didn't have the locker in the back i think it would be 100x worse on the one rear tire so i guess i have that going for me.... kinda....
 
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