BLHTAZ Posted November 28, 2007 Share Posted November 28, 2007 The leaf springs from Tom at Hell Creek Suspensions got here the other day. They are very nice and I can't wait to get them installed. Should be doing it on Sunday 8) . I will take comparison pics to the AAL's that are in there now and hopefully it comes out level. I am just slightly worried that these springs will be a little taller than the AAL with the RE 3.5" kit that I installed...then I would have to lift the front a little more...and buy new shocks ;) . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WahooSteeler Posted November 28, 2007 Share Posted November 28, 2007 i've seen these on ebay, very anxious to see how they look installed etc. fyi, looked at the pics of your MJ. IMO, one of the nicest i've seen, just simple and clean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLHTAZ Posted November 28, 2007 Author Share Posted November 28, 2007 i've seen these on ebay, very anxious to see how they look installed etc.I first found them on eBay, then i found that Tom is a member here as well so I contacted him through here and got a set coming. Great guy, nice product and fast shipping. fyi, looked at the pics of your MJ. IMO, one of the nicest i've seen, just simple and clean.Thank you. That is our intention with this one...just to restore it and make a "nice" looking truck. We have the YJ for trail beating. ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
90PioSport99 Posted November 28, 2007 Share Posted November 28, 2007 I like the fact that you put your Jeep parts on the Oriental rug :D. My dad loves when I do that. All kidding aside those are some beefy looking springs though, we expect to see pics when they're done :redX:. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLHTAZ Posted November 28, 2007 Author Share Posted November 28, 2007 :chillin: That rug is an old one that was going to be thrown away, but we decided to keep it on the screen porch, so it is actually outside ;) . There will be plenty more pics when I do it :cheers: . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLHTAZ Posted December 2, 2007 Author Share Posted December 2, 2007 OK..they are done :D It turned out very nice...nearly exactly the same height as well, but I think just a little lower if anything. These springs are definitely a great fit with the RE 3.5" kit. Here are a few pics form the mornings work... This is a frined of mine (Will) that did a lot of the work due to my bad back. Here are some comparison shots... Here is the after shot... ...and this is just a couple other Jeeps sitting around during the fun :cheers: The CJ belongs to Will, the TJ belongs to Bill (who came to our rescue with a more powerful impact gun for the spring bolts) and the YJ is ours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Confedneck Posted December 2, 2007 Share Posted December 2, 2007 nice, are those the standard or longer length? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLHTAZ Posted December 2, 2007 Author Share Posted December 2, 2007 They are the same as the factory springs, just 3" lift. They have a terrible "creeking" that I can not figure out. I found one shackle bolt that we forgot to tighten up and thought that might be the problem, but it seems to have gotten worse after I snugged it up. :nuts: The springs obviously come with new bushings, but maybe I need to replace the shackle bushings or the shackles themselves. I find it hard to believe that the shackle bushings would be the problem all of the sudden like that though. I'll have to ask Tom if he uses rubber or poly bushings in the springs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suuperman Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 Brent I replied over on FJOA also... I am betting they are poly. I had a set on the 1st XJ I lifted and man they were noisy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Confedneck Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 brent, i posted on fjoa about your noise, but what the hey.... if you tightened the springs up without the weight of the vehicle on them, that could be undue binding in the bushings once the weight is on them, so loosen them up and spray some silicone or blaster around them then tighten them back up with the vehicle on the ground and the weight on the springs... if all else fails, use blue teflon grease (available at a ford dealer), it fixes almost EVERY squeak lol... ohh when you loosen the spring bolts, shake the truck side to side and up and down to settle the suspension a little.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLHTAZ Posted December 3, 2007 Author Share Posted December 3, 2007 Yea...I was thinking that poly may be the issue too. We did tighten everything with the weight on it and all the bolts were installed with grease on the bolts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HellCreek Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 Hi, Brent, That noise is the poly bushings. It sounded the same on my truck, so all production springs are getting factory style rubber bushings. Those are the prototypes. To stop the squeaking, you will have to use grease on the sides of the bushing, since that is where the noise is coming from. We ran those for about 3 months, so they are already settled in. Thanks, Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOrnbrod Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 I ASSuME your old spring is on top and the new one is on the bottom. Did you say the top 5-leaf is from an AAL kit? I might be a little concerned about the new springs sagging a bit down the road, as all new leaf springs do, especially since you state you might be a bit lower now than before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twisty Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 Tom from Hell Creek said that those are all broken in. Maybe they will settle more than they are now. He could always take the main leaf from his pack and use that as an AAL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CWLONGSHOT Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 If they are poly, get some white lithium grease and GET USED TO IT!!! ;) Poly is good but can be noisy. Lots of lubes will quiet it down temp but I have found white lithium grease works best and usually is what manufactures recommend. BTW, truck looks GREAT!!! CW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOrnbrod Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 Tom from Hell Creek said that those are all broken in. Maybe they will settle more than they are now. He could always take the main leaf from his pack and use that as an AAL. Tom posted while I was typing my response - just saw his reply. I type slooooooooooow :roll: Tom, on these prototypes, how much did they settle over the three months or so you ran them? Thanks; Don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Confedneck Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 tellin ya, blue teflon grease... works better and sticks better than lithium and silicone... ive got some i think, if you need it i can send it to ya if the other stuff doesnt work... this should Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
feerocknok Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 if you tightened the springs up without the weight of the vehicle on them, that could be undue binding in the bushings once the weight is on them, so loosen them up and spray some silicone or blaster around them then tighten them back up with the vehicle on the ground and the weight on the springs... Was going to suggest this too. Was my problem when doing an Add-A-Leaf on my GMC. Also, doing it the improper way can rip your bushings and hurt your suspension's travel. When you install the new springs, put the bolts in place and hand tighten the nuts, then set the vehicle down and torque up the bolts. Poly can be that loud though? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLHTAZ Posted December 3, 2007 Author Share Posted December 3, 2007 I ASSuME your old spring is on top and the new one is on the bottom. Did you say the top 5-leaf is from an AAL kit? I might be a little concerned about the new springs sagging a bit down the road, as all new leaf springs do, especially since you state you might be a bit lower now than before. Yes, that is correct. I was able to drive it to Lowes today and get it on level ground. It sits the same as it was before...nice and level. I don't think that it will settle any more than it is and I am happy with the way it turned out...just need to get the noise fixed. I still haven't had the chance to email Tom and find out if the bushings are poly or not though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
feerocknok Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 That noise is the poly bushings. It sounded the same on my truck, so all production springs are getting factory style rubber bushings. Those are the prototypes. To stop the squeaking, you will have to use grease on the sides of the bushing, since that is where the noise is coming from. We ran those for about 3 months, so they are already settled in. Thanks, Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TNT Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 How much free arc do they have? It looks about the same as my Stanley springs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLHTAZ Posted December 3, 2007 Author Share Posted December 3, 2007 Hi, Brent, That noise is the poly bushings. It sounded the same on my truck, so all production springs are getting factory style rubber bushings. Those are the prototypes. To stop the squeaking, you will have to use grease on the sides of the bushing, since that is where the noise is coming from. We ran those for about 3 months, so they are already settled in. Thanks, Tom Hey Tom... Thanks for the reply. Somehow I missed it until now... :oops: ;) I will order some rubber bushings when I get to work today then. TNT... I am taking a guess that this is what you are asking, but not sure... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TNT Posted December 3, 2007 Share Posted December 3, 2007 Hi, Brent, That noise is the poly bushings. It sounded the same on my truck, so all production springs are getting factory style rubber bushings. Those are the prototypes. To stop the squeaking, you will have to use grease on the sides of the bushing, since that is where the noise is coming from. We ran those for about 3 months, so they are already settled in. Thanks, Tom Hey Tom... Thanks for the reply. Somehow I missed it until now... :oops: ;) I will order some rubber bushings when I get to work today then. TNT... I am taking a guess that this is what you are asking, but not sure... That is exactly what I wanted to know. I have a set of Stanley 1280# springs that have a free arc measurement from the center of the eyes to the main leaf that measure 10.25". They give me 4"-4.5" of lift. I have been told all of his springs are based on 1100# spring rate. Thanks. :cheers: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLHTAZ Posted December 5, 2007 Author Share Posted December 5, 2007 The springs I got are the same as factory according to Tom...980#. He offers a higher one if needed at #12xx (can't remember exactly right now). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HellCreek Posted December 6, 2007 Share Posted December 6, 2007 Hi, Don, Our springs were manufactured with 9 inches of free arch from the center of the bushings to the top of the main leaf. That would make them about 10 inches from the ground to the main leaf as in the picture above, so they did not loose any arch in the first three months. The only reason that we removed them was to test our 4.5" kit. We did test the 3 inch springs by carrying 1400 lbs. of springs in the bed for about 5 miles, but I wouldn't recommend it, that's why we also make the 4 leaf springs. Little known facts: The 980 lb., 1100 lb., 1160 lb., 1220 lb., and 1280 lb. capacity springs for the Comanches are ALL made from 3 leaves of 2-1/2 X .291 spring steel with a .625 thick 2nd stage helper leaf on the bottom. The only difference is in the arch. We have the blueprints to prove it. The 1440 lb. capacity spring is made from 2 leaves of .291 thick spring steel, 2 leaves of .262 thick spring steel, and the .625 thick 2nd stage helper leaf. The 1700 lb. capacity Metric Ton spring is made from 1 leaf of .291 thick spring steel and 2 leaves of .323 thick spring steel, with a 2nd stage helper spring pack made of one leaf of .590 spring steel and one leaf of .625 spring steel. BTW great avatar. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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