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I have been experimenting lately with the compression of my leaf springs. I have been loading and unloading my truck often. Each time I have done this I have measured from the top of the tire, to a specific area on the wheel hub.
Is there a way to determine how much weight I am carrying by the inches of compression in my stock leaf spring system?
I know that there will be some die hard know it all's out there so help me out. I have a system, but nothing to compare it to, and the material I have been loading is hard to estimate actual weight of the material.
I have been loading the back end of the truck to the same distance on the front end of the truck which is 7 ins. I don't drive very far, or fast with this much weight because I figure it is probably pretty close to over weight.
Help me figure out this system, and I would it would be great!
I'm not sure why you would measure from "top of the tire, to a specific area on the wheel hub", or what that would show. Isn't that always the same? I must be lost in the produce section.
2006 F350 CC LWB Dually XLT Oxford white manual 4x4 6.0 PSD 6 speed. 4.10 LS front and rear, Built May05. 4" turbo back, 100gal aux fuel tank. A real pig from a stop, but give me 10' and she'll lite'em up.
I have been experimenting lately with the compression of my leaf springs. I have been loading and unloading my truck often. Each time I have done this I have measured from the top of the tire, to a specific area on the wheel hub.
I'm sure you didn't say what you meant. Measuring from the top of the tire to some part of the hub would always give the same result, which would have nothing to do with suspension compression.
I suspect you meant from the top of the bed rail to the center of the wheel hub. That would measure the amount of suspension compresssion.
There are numerous combos of rear suspension parts, including rear leaf springs. So nobody can come up with any sort of formula or table that would fit all pickups.
But you can develop a table of measurements that apply to your individual truck. That will require you to weigh the truck and measure the suspension travel for various loads on the truck. Include one measurement when it's empty, another when it's loaded for bear, and another when it's loaded with your normal stuff. Keep adding weights/measurements to your data table for various loads in the bed. After you get the table built, then a simple measurement from the top of the bed rail to the center of the wheel hub should tell you the approximate weight in the bed.
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ya I guess I did write that incorrectly but yes smokey that is what I ment. So I guess there is no stock table to figure that then eh?
I will have to make my own then! So the Ministry of Transportation don't pull me over!
It would be skewed if the load had a larger or smaller footprint, as well as if it was shifted slightly forward or backward. This is because if it was "forward", some would be carried by the front end. If it was far backward, the "teeter-totter" effect would make the rear end carry some of the front end weight
It would be skewed if the load had a larger or smaller footprint, as well as if it was shifted slightly forward or backward. This is because if it was "forward", some would be carried by the front end. If it was far backward, the "teeter-totter" effect would make the rear end carry some of the front end weight
True, as it would be if the load was toward one side or the other. But you could get fairly accurate estimate if you developed a table for both front and back axles weighed individually. The method is valid, just needs to be applied correctly. One problem in developing a table, would be if the overload leaves engaged, the spring rate changes drastically, so at that point a unit of "squat" would be worth more than one when the overload leaves were not engaged. The best way would be to develop the tables in small load increments, but that would take a lot of work at the scale.
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