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Spring pack rebuilding

AJMBLAZER

AJMBLAZER

Better to be lucky than good.
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Got a set of springs from Shady today. 100k miles on them and his Burb is a cream puff compared to the life of towing my Blazer apparently had.
Need bushings and I'd like to get rid of the surface crust and repaint them.
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1-How do you officially measure the bushing size in the eye? Stopped at my buddy's and we pulled out the calipers and measured the width of the rubber as it squeezes out of the metal cylinder they are in...looks to be about 1 3/8".
Never done this before and know I've heard and seen lots of stories about people getting the wrong bushing size.

2-Where do you guys get your poly bushings? Any particular difference between Energy, Daystar, etc?

3-Okay...springs flex...what sort of primer and paint can I use? Regular old Rustoleum or do I need something fancy/special?
 
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I always thought why not paint leafs with some type of rubber coating. Say like on the handle of channel locks. I know it can be bought in gallons and you can dip your tool handles in it. Why not be able to paint it on, and it would be tough and stretch. :dunno:
 
Hrmmmm...not sure really.

Wondering if any of our "holders of useful but minute knowledge" members can help?
 
You want epoxy enamel, it deals with the flexing well and is very durable compared to anything else out of a rattle can. High heat wood stove paint is usually an epoxy enamel (and the right color) Also, find a spring shop somewhere and get new teflon slider tips...they have center pins at the same places too.

I use a wire cup brush on a big grinder to knock all the crud and scale off em one leaf at a time.

ORD should be able to hook you up with the correct bushings, but honestly those rubber bushings look like they're in pretty decent shape still. I'd run em after liberally greasing the sleeve and bolt area on assembly.

Rene
 
I just accidentally shot pictures of the two bushings that aren't all cracked and crappy. They're done.

How do you tell if the teflon needs replacing? From looking at these they are all still square/rectangular, and there. General grime on them but I don't see any of the cracking or just being missing I've seen and had before.

Would you bother priming? I don't wheel it much at all but don't want to have them rusting in a few years if I put this work into them.

Brush or spray can matter?
 
The teflon is about 35 cents each...and there is no easier time to replace them. The leafs will be bare steel, a spritz of Ryoken green first would be a good idea (Zinc Chromate primer).

I prefer spray can for leafs...

Rene
 
Cool, thanks man.

Now to find a spring shop around here...
 
The one I found here mostly deals with big rigs, might be a good place to start.

i get my U-bolts there as well, sized and bent to my spec's while i wait. Grade 8, fine thread, hardened flat washers, double tall nuts.

Rene
 
Did a search and sure enough, two in the area. Have to call and see. Not been terribly impressed with the "car culture" around here so far.
 
Keep in mind correct bushing sizes are measured WITHOUT the steel outer sleeve surrounding the rubber bushings.

You will need to remove the outer sleeve once you burn or press out the rubber bushings. The aftermarket poly bushings fit the spring eyes without the sleeve. So just measure the o.d. of the sleeves and order your bushings.

Keep in mind that when you order the rear spring shackle bushings, you need to measure the eye of the shackle before selecting the correct bushings. GM made something like 3 different size of shackle bushings so check for this so you get the correct order the first time. I believe the bushing sizes are 1 3/8", 1 1/2" and 1 3/4".
 
Wait, so the spring eye dimension is different than the shackle eye dimension?

I am thinking about upgrading to some DIY or ORD beefy shackles and greasable bolts/bushings while I am under it.
 
Yep, the rear spring shackles can vary from truck to truck. Check the ORD site for info on this. They list the 3 different size bushings and info about them.
 
Most rear springs use the 1 1/5" bushings but its all in the shackle that determines which bushing kit to order. You've got to measure the shackle o.d. sleeve to get the correct kit.
 
Copy & pasted directly from the ORD site:

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Tech Notes:[/FONT][FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]All K5, Suburban, 1/2 and 3/4T (with 52" springs) vehicles up to 1980 use the #GU38002 kit since these trucks commonly have a 1 1/2" shackle bushing. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]From '81 up 3/4T trucks use 1 1/2" shackle bushings. All lighter duty ratings (1/2T, K5 and 1/2T Suburban) use the 1 3/8" shackle bushings.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]All 1 ton truck applications and any 3/4T with 56" rear springs must measure bushing size before ordering the kit. We've seen 1 3/8", 1 1/2", and 1 3/4" bushing sizes, all on the same truck! To avoid sending the wrong parts we request that you measure first. Remember the outer sleeve is removed to use urethane. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]We have encountered some '88-'91 Blazers and Suburbans with a metric spring eye bushing size. These will measure about 1.7". ORD has the proper bushings to fit these springs if you call us.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Not all bushings are available with internal grease grooves. These bushings will still lubricate OK and/or they can be grooved manually for maximum greasability.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]'88-up trucks or truck with '88-newer springs use different bushings, call for price and application.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The only difference between our two kits is the shackle bushings. Both use 1 1/2" diameter spring bushings. Most factory and aftermarket springs use 1 1/2" spring eye bushings.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The factory rubber bushing consists of an inner steel sleeve, the rubber and a thin outer steel sleeve. The urethane bushings fit directly against the leaf spring so all 3 components of the factory bushing must be removed. There are several methods to removing factory rubber bushings. The safest is to use a small diameter drill bit to drill out the rubber around the inner sleeve until it is loose enough to be driven out. After it is out, the rest of the rubber can be "chunked" out with a chisel or screwdriver and the outer sleeve split and driven out. Install the new poly bushings with plenty of grease or anti-seize on the outside and inside. They should be a snug fit but shouldn’t need to be pressed in. [/FONT]​
Click to expand...
 
Deuling said:
I always thought why not paint leafs with some type of rubber coating. Say like on the handle of channel locks. I know it can be bought in gallons and you can dip your tool handles in it. Why not be able to paint it on, and it would be tough and stretch. :dunno:
Click to expand...

The key to a nice riding leaf spring is to reduce the inherent friction in between the leaves as much as possible. Those types of coatings would do the opposite

Blasting is obviously preferred method of cleaning them up for me but in the absence of that I have used a wire wheel on a grinder.

In the past I have sprayed them with a decent quality paint from a spray can. The key here is not to put the leaves together until the paint cures, this can be up to a week, or longer if its colder. Then after the paint cures I spray them with a paint that contains graphite. Let that dry and reassemble.

In the past I have used the stock antirub pads ( the plastic things in between the leaves) and just sanded em a bit till I got all of the metal out of em.

If I wanted the paint to last a long time I would just choose a higher quality paint and spray it through a gun. I would still use the graphite paint though
 
So for the front of the spring...the other end without the shackle, how do you figure that bushing since their is no shackle eye? Just the hole in the bracket on the frame?

Thanks guys.
 
AJMBLAZER said:
So for the front of the spring...the other end without the shackle, how do you figure that bushing since their is no shackle eye? Just the hole in the bracket on the frame?

Thanks guys.
Click to expand...
Front spring shackles are all the same. There is no different sizes, etc. like the rears.

Unless you swap out the bracket for the FUSH or other heavy duty ones made by ORD, DIY4X, etc. then those are 1 1/2" i.d.
 
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