As seen in my signature, my rig is a 95 4dr 4x4 F350 with 38's and a 9Fr/6Rear inch lift. I never tow anything, nor do I haul much more than dirtbikes, and groceries, etc.
The ride is comparable to that of a basketball getting dribbled down the street. While I don't mind it, and my kids think it's funny, things are getting loose and cracked as a result. I stopped by a local 4x4 shop in Austin and the owner said for $450, he'd pull out the #4 leaf springs in the front and remove the towing accessory springs on the rear and that would get me a better ride. I know if you tow, you are asking for trouble, but since I don't...
Is there a benefit to doing this, and are there negatives to doing it as far as handling, etc.
Also, the tires are Nitto Mud Grapplers, and are set at 50psi. I know dropping them would help my cause, but to what? 35? 40? (for around town driving)
The "tow accessory spring" or overload spring never comes into play in an unloaded situation. I've only gotten into those springs twice- once with a pallet of concrete and once with two cubic yards of stabilized sand. You will get no benefit from removing them. The front is already smoother than the rear from the weight of the engine. Research sulastic shackles.
Interesting. I may have to give them a try. The review said it makes a 3/4 ton feel more like a 1/2 ton. By that logic, perhaps a little tire deflation, coupled with the shackles, I might get closer to an F250 ride.
They got more interesting as I read more and more about them, so I went ahead and purchased a set of Sulastic shackles. I've also dropped the tire pressure on the 38" Nitto Mud Grapplers from 50 (max) to 40 up front and 38 in the rear. Does that sound reasonable so I'll improve ride, but not need new tires by next weekend?
Those big tires are going to be like a basketball. I've watched the monster trucks. Fun to watch them bounce 10ft in the air. If you want normal ride you'll have to get normal tires. Get rid of the lift would help too.
Not looking for a stock ride, just a bit of an improvement. I did get that this morning, and noticeably, by dropping the pressure from 50 all the way around to 40 in front, and 37 in the rears. It was a big difference. I'm also looking forward to the shackle kit coming and will report my findings once installed this weekend.
Tuff country try has a set of spring that they call EZ-ride. Not sure if they make a kit for your truck... Member on here installed the kit on his 2003 7.3 (NOSPARKPLUGS) and I'm trying to get some feed back from him because I'm interested
I went down to 35 psi all around last night and this morning it felt like a different truck. Every jarring hit that I would take previously, was replaced by more of a subtle and softened interruption of smoothness, for lack of a better term. By no means was I riding in a F150, but it made worlds of difference!!! I'm looking forward to trying out the shackles in a couple of weeks.
The EZ ride idea looks interesting as well. I think there's no 1 simple cure all, but rather a nice combination that will yield good results. Hopefully I'm on the right track.
Just installed the Sulastic shackles. It's a big difference. I chalked the tires and found 40 to be proper. Next step will be to get some decent shocks on there as no doubt the ones on now could be improved upon.
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