A few weeks ago I was inspecting my front suspension and noticed the passenger front shackle was leaning outward toward the wheel a little. This was right about the same time I discovered the rear spring eyes (of the front springs) are contacting the rear hanger (see this post). Mike suggested it was just leaf splay, but after looking at this closer I'm suspecting something more. Not to mention the pics in that post were taken on level ground with the wheels straight ahead. At that point I had checked all the bolt torques, and everything was tight as it should have been.
This is a Dobinsons heavy kit that was installed about 18 months ago. Probably have 3-4k miles on it since then, maybe 600 of that off road.
I thought I had taken a pic a few weeks ago of the shackle lean, but now I realize I didn't.
Finally had a chance to remove and inspect the front shackle today. I jacked the truck up, let the axle hang with no weight on it, then loosened the U-bolts to relieve any bind that might have been present. Shackle parts look fine, not bent, the upper bushings had a little ovaling of the center hole due to the outward lean. At this point it was evident that the issue is not the shackle, but that the front spring eye is not parallel with the shackle hanger. This last pic was taken after I used a long pry bar and attempted to twist the eye counterclockwise... so the twist in the pic doesn't look quite as extreme as it did initially. I then swapped the upper bushings to the lower and clocked them 90 degrees, and torqued the u bolts before the shackle bolts to see if that would help, but it doesn't appear to have made much difference, if any. The clamps, rivets and cushions are all intact, the springs don't have any signs of damage, and the spring packs are parallel throughout the length.
Anyone else ever experience a twisted leaf spring? Can it be re-set so the eyes are parallel to each other? Now I'm wondering if this was twisted from new or if it happened somehow while driving. Should I contact Dobinsons?
If anyone has suggestions, I'm listening.
This is a Dobinsons heavy kit that was installed about 18 months ago. Probably have 3-4k miles on it since then, maybe 600 of that off road.
I thought I had taken a pic a few weeks ago of the shackle lean, but now I realize I didn't.
Finally had a chance to remove and inspect the front shackle today. I jacked the truck up, let the axle hang with no weight on it, then loosened the U-bolts to relieve any bind that might have been present. Shackle parts look fine, not bent, the upper bushings had a little ovaling of the center hole due to the outward lean. At this point it was evident that the issue is not the shackle, but that the front spring eye is not parallel with the shackle hanger. This last pic was taken after I used a long pry bar and attempted to twist the eye counterclockwise... so the twist in the pic doesn't look quite as extreme as it did initially. I then swapped the upper bushings to the lower and clocked them 90 degrees, and torqued the u bolts before the shackle bolts to see if that would help, but it doesn't appear to have made much difference, if any. The clamps, rivets and cushions are all intact, the springs don't have any signs of damage, and the spring packs are parallel throughout the length.
Anyone else ever experience a twisted leaf spring? Can it be re-set so the eyes are parallel to each other? Now I'm wondering if this was twisted from new or if it happened somehow while driving. Should I contact Dobinsons?
If anyone has suggestions, I'm listening.
