Leaf Spring Alterations?

I've got a 67 with the :v6:.

It has a Pro Comp 2.5" lift with 6-leaf springs front and rear, and Explorer shocks. I've got 31" tires on it.

The Jeep rides horribly. It is absolutely harsh. I can't go more than about 5 miles an hour up the local forest service roads without getting severe pounding. It feels like the hard top is going to break. I can take the same roads in my Honda Element at 25-30 no problem. Just that little bit of washboard makes it unbearable. I tried lowering the tire pressure from 25ish down to 14 or so. Helped a little, but not much.

How can I soften the ride? I unbolted the shocks, and drove over some bumps like that, and the ride is still stiff. The shackles are in good shape and moving freely.

Can I remove a leaf from the spring pack? I don't care about the lift ride height. If anything shorter would be better.

This thing is almost undrivable on anything rough. I bought the Jeep to be my mountain car

Any ideas would be most appreciated.

 

Air down. When we first started using the MB at the farm, it would shake your fillings out. At 28 psi in the NDT's. I run the tires at 12# now, and it made all the difference in the world. With your 31's you'll have even more sidewall to help.

What are the shock specs? A light duty hydraulic shock will help as well instead of a gas charged shock designed for a pickup truck...

 

I know. I tried to edit myself and the board locked up... Look Stoopid now

I suggested additional time on the trail in the edit. My suspension loosened up dramatically after some more trail time. He can continue to drop some psi. With the light weight, 10# should be ok.

 

Well there are 2 ways that I know of to do it, but they aren't cheap.
1. Swap in YJ springs, or
2. Go to long leaves from Holbrook.

Keith

 

I vote taking a leaf out. I have those shocks on a TJ, not the best ride. I think I might go back to stockers. It's a daily driver anyway. Are your shackle bolts cranked down? If they can't move you're losing half your flex right there. How about putting some weight in the Jeep to help soften the springs faster? That even works on the highway with regular cars and trucks.

Paul

 

How tight are the shackle bolts?

You mostly pay your money and take your chances with aftermarket springs. Some company's springs are very stiff, some aren't. Removing a leaf wont hurt.

Big puffy tires with tall, soft sidewalls will help too.

 

When I got my '71 it already had add-a-leafs in the stock spring packs front and rear. They were very stiff. I removed the bottom 3 leafs (there were 8 or 9 to start with) from both front spring packs and left in the add-a-leaf. It greatly improved the ride. I did loose about a half an inch of lift.

 

So far I've removed leafs from the front end. Seemed to soften it up quite a bit. The back end isn't done yet (We have a nice thunderstorm shaking things up right now), but it looks like this might be a good start.

The shackles moved freely, so I don't think they are a problem.

Any ideas on what to use as weight? I was thinking maybe a couple of bags of concrete? I don't want to leave anything valuable in the jeep as I rarely have the doors on.

Also, any reccomendations for shocks that aren't too expensive? I'm not going to be doing any serious offroading, just tooling around in the hills.

 

I have shackles that are 3 5/8" center to center on the bolt holes. Any idea what stock shackle length is?

The bottom of the shackle is 1/2" farther forward than the top. I assume this is angled forward on shackles that are on the front of the jeep? It is about ten degrees from vertical.

Good call on the ballast. I still have the tank under the drivers seat... Something to think about.

 

my shackles are 2 1/2 inches bolt hole to bolt hole.i got the rear springs from a '74 model cj5.shackles point foward in front,point rearward in back.mine rides well in my opinion.i wanted stock heighth with 31'' tires so it would fill up the fenderwells.

 

Take a look at the holbrook springs http://www.holbrookspecialties.com/ They are called long leafs and they work, "The LongLeaf springs serve two purposes: 1) they provide a simple lift, and 2) they help smooth out those bumpy trails." Give them a call, talk to Gary.

 

I remember reading on another thread someone recomending the Rancho 9000 shocks that have adjustable settings allowing you to have them provide a firmer ride on the rode and a much more responsive ride on the trail. A really rough ride probably has just as much to do with the tuning of the shocks as the springs. I have that same lift on my '64 and it is also pretty bad at higher speeds off road, the problem is with my rancho 5000 shocks and the compression and rebound dampening provided by the shock. They aren't tuned for the lighter weight vehicle which is why they ride so horribly.

 

I got the rear done today. I removed two leafs from each spring pack. What an amazing difference. I lost about an inch of lift, but the ride is smooth. I can take speed bumps now without cringing. I still need to get it off road, but the initial results are promising. A bit more body roll around corners.

Thanks for all the help. It is most appreciated.

 

I used the Skyjacker Soft Ride springs. They made a huge difference - the old springs would just about shake your teeth out.

Radial tires make a big difference also.

No harm trying to just remove some leafs either.

 

It's the ProComp that's the problem. I've got a set on my '76 and they just pound on your kidneys. I grit my teeth every time I see a pot hole. Glad to hear taking out a leaf worked; I might try that also.

 

I've been wanting to do this. Did you have a problem with the pin that holds the leafs together? Mine my be really rusty.

 

It's called a spring center bolt. A common parts store item. Cut it if it's rusty - they are routinely replaced when you restack the leaves.