Leaf removal to reduce lift

[Lunar-tic]

Gents, I just installed one of JBG's 3.5 inch 11 pack leaf spring sets to level out my Bronco. Now it is a little higher in the rear and it is super stiff. Can I remove two or three of the smaller leafs at the bottom of the pack to lower it a little and soften the ride?

Thanks

 

[siderbox]

You might want to drive for awhile. They'll settle a bit.

 

[Scoop]

Mine never settled. I removed 2 leafs which dropped the rear about 1 1/2 inches. This was from a CAGE 8 pack. With 11 leafs you may need to pull 3. I suggest spacing the pulled leafs evenly from the pack. I would not pull them all from the small leafs.

 

[OKLA70]

I removed 2 to level mine. It seems like they wore out quickly ,but may be due to the wheeling. I worked them pretty hard and they seemed to be "springy" (pun intended)

 

[KRAWLER]

If i remember correctly, i called Duff when i lowered mine. Took out 1 leaf, the third down from the top, dropped me almost 2".

 

[addicted]

I thought those springs were supposed to be pretty soft. Did you torque everything to spec with the weight of the truck on the springs? Sometimes if its in a bind it will ride a little rough. Also, do you have the top on? How about any weight in the back? Like a heavy bumper and or a spare? It will sit high and ride rough if youre light in the ass end. I only ask because before you start pulling leafs you might want to consider if you will be adding any weight in the future. It would suck to drop it down only to add weight later and have it sag out. Like stated, they will soften and settle a little. If it was me I would throw 4 50lbs bags of sand behind the rear seat and drive it for a bit. See how it sits and feels. Then decide if you want to start pulling leafs. Also look at your U bolts and make sure you have enough thread if you do decide to remove leafs. Just my .02

 

[Lunar-tic]

Thanks for the help. I do have the hard top on and a four point roll bar along with some summit racing seats in the back. It is a little light and I am sure if I add some weight it will soften up, but I don't want to ride around with unneeded weight if I don't have to. I figured removing a couple of leaves wouldn't be too excessive. Should I have tightened everything up while it was on the jack stands? I plan on hauling some wood this weekend, we will see how that works out. Thanks again.

 

[addicted]

Ok good. I was just saying you want to get your ride height dialed in with the Bronco weighted how it will be driven most of the time. And as long as you tightend up the suspension bolts (especially the rear shackles) with the weight of the truck on the springs, youre fine. I installed some rear springs once on a F100 and tightened all my bolts while the springs were hanging. The rear end squeeked like sob and rode like crap. A friend told me to loosen everything up and retorque and that fixed the noise and ride.

 

[Lunar-tic]

Update, I removed the two small leaves at the bottom and it lowered it just right. I also had the new shocks installed upside down so that fixed the rough ride. Now it is just right with the hard top on. Thanks for the help.