Dobinson's Leaf Spring questions (1 Viewer)

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May 2, 2014
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Location
Galveston County, Texas
My son and I are installing a new Dobinson's spring kit on his '84 FJ60 and we had a couple of questions/issues.

Unlike the OME springs I have installed, the Dobinson's do not come with a spacer to center the rear springs. To anyone who has installed a set of these, did you re-use the factory rubber isolator to center the springs?

Also, when torquing the Ubolts, 90ft lbs (factory spec) seems like it is wanting to bend the lower plates on the rear. Bolts seem to be stretching more than other brands I have used. Checked the Snap On torque wrench with a couple of others and it is reading accurate. Anyone else had this issue?

Thanks
 
My son and I are installing a new Dobinson's spring kit on his '84 FJ60 and we had a couple of questions/issues.

Unlike the OME springs I have installed, the Dobinson's do not come with a spacer to center the rear springs. To anyone who has installed a set of these, did you re-use the factory rubber isolator to center the springs?

Also, when torquing the Ubolts, 90ft lbs (factory spec) seems like it is wanting to bend the lower plates on the rear. Bolts seem to be stretching more than other brands I have used. Checked the Snap On torque wrench with a couple of others and it is reading accurate. Anyone else had this issue?

Thanks
I’m having a Dobinsons kit installed on my 89 right now. I got a pair of rear center pin spacers from ManAFre. I talked with several shops and all recommended dropping the factory rubber isolator/bracket setup since the new spring pack is thicker than the factory springs.

Can’t help you with the torque specs but will check my Ubolt nuts when I get the cruiser back.

For what’s it’s worth I moved the spacers on the rear leaf springs to the top of the spring pack to reduce the lift 1/4” since I’m not reinstalling the factory isolator and bracket. This should negate any extra lift from leaving those components out, I wanted to minimize rake. I’ll let you know if that ended up being the right call, made sense to me though!

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I have always removed the rubber isolators when Installing OME & Dobinson springs. I’ve tried and can never get to 90lb-ft of torque - hell, one time the rubber was warm to the touch from the friction.

I recently installed Dobinsons springs on the rear of my daily driver 60 and had to order the center pin spacer from Cruiser Outfitters. I just went with the OME ones and they fit perfectly.
 
Chris you probably got it figured out by now, but yeah 90+ ftlbs on the u bolts always feels excessive. Don't think I've ever taken them to that tight because, as you mentioned, things start feeling "stressed" and breaky.
I don‘t recall what torque value felt right to me. Set your torque wrench to a comfortable setting and tighten them sequentially and evenly. Check them again after driving it around a bit. Bump up the torque a little if it feels needed.

I personally don't believe in re installing the factory rubber pads and/or C channels back on aftermarket springs, and there's plenty of opinions on Mud about that. Those items are designed for the dimensions of the oem springs. Definitely need the round center pin spacer, cruiseroutfitters has them as well.
 
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I personally don't believe in re installing the factory rubber pads and/or C channels back on aftermarket springs, and there's plenty of opinions on Mud about that. Those items are designed for the dimensions of the oem springs.

This is it exactly. the metal channels and rubber isolators were designed for the OEM leaf packs, so everything seats nicely when you get to the right torque. Aftermarket stuff is thicker in height and it doesn't work that way. I still see people advocating for keeping the channels and isolators on aftermarket spring installs and just scratch my head. No clue how they're getting that to work.
 
Curious to hear how the dobinsons ride
I have the Dobby springs and IMS shocks on the rear of my 60 and love how they ride versus the full OME setup I had on my previous 60.

Currently trying decide on springs for my front shackle reversal. Custom Alcans or Dobinsons HZJ75 are the two contenders, and I’ll probably go with the Dobbies.
 
I’m having a Dobinsons kit installed on my 89 right now. I got a pair of rear center pin spacers from ManAFre. I talked with several shops and all recommended dropping the factory rubber isolator/bracket setup since the new spring pack is thicker than the factory springs.

Can’t help you with the torque specs but will check my Ubolt nuts when I get the cruiser back.

For what’s it’s worth I moved the spacers on the rear leaf springs to the top of the spring pack to reduce the lift 1/4” since I’m not reinstalling the factory isolator and bracket. This should negate any extra lift from leaving those components out, I wanted to minimize rake. I’ll let you know if that ended up being the right call, made sense to me though!

View attachment 3303457
Any word on how this turned out? I'm about to install this lift as well.
 
Any word on how this turned out? I'm about to install this lift as well.
I’ve added some info to my build thread, some before and after pics with 33’s as well. After about a week I ended up removing the spacer from the drivers side rear leaf pack to minimize cruiser lean, was about 3/4” before and now about 1/4-1/2” depending on where I’m parked. I’m running a full sized spare and am almost dead level front to rear, very pleased with the stance and ride quality.

The Dobinsons rear leafs are left/right specific but my advice is to put the spacer on top of the passenger side leaf pack only to further minimize lean.

 
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I just noticed this on my front springs- neither are centered on the rear hanger, and spring is contacting hangar slightly. Not sure what’s going on… what centers these? Almost looks like the springs are installed opposite from what they should, but I didn't think there was a l & r for the front?

@crikeymike any idea whats going on here?
 
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View attachment 3438164

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I just noticed this on my front springs- neither are centered on the rear hanger, and spring is contacting hangar slightly. Not sure what’s going on… what centers these? Almost looks like the springs are installed opposite from what they should, but The left spring says L so I wouldn’t think so?
I wonder if L and R are reversed because the Dobinsons kit is Austrailian and originally made for RHD vehicles?
 
@toy_tek the OME suspension on my old 60 did that frequently. It’s almost like the leaves shifted around on each other. Never did anything about it. I’ll be interested to see what other folks think.
 
View attachment 3438164

View attachment 3438165

I just noticed this on my front springs- neither are centered on the rear hanger, and spring is contacting hangar slightly. Not sure what’s going on… what centers these? Almost looks like the springs are installed opposite from what they should, but I didn't think there was a l & r for the front?

@crikeymike any idea whats going on here?
That's just leaf spring splay. They can shift left to right during flexing. Without the clamps holding the leafs together, they'd all go sideways.

Left and Right markings is generally for the weight bias on one side of a vehicle. Rear springs are made left/right, but the fronts are the same on both sides.
 

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