How many rear leafs do i remove?

[blk81shrt]

Hey im looking to do a rear leaf removal drop on my 81 shortbox. Does anyone know which leafs to remove? Wat drop will this accomplish? Wat kind of shocks do i need after removal? How is the ride?

[bigblock73]

First, we need to know your current set up. Do you have light duty or heavy duty springs? If you don't know the difference, just count the leafs and let us know.

[blk81shrt]

5 leafs top to bottom

[blk81shrt]

So which ones would u remove? and how much drop would that give me?

[bigblock73]

I would be hesitant to remove any leafs with a LD leaf pack like you have. I would start with drop shackles...that'll give you 2" or so, if you need more, you could get drop hangers...that'll give you 2" more....4" total. You could also do a flip kit only, you'll get 5-6" there. There are also drop leaf spring available too...but not sure what drop they come in.

[xtreme80]

I dropped mine with the LD leafs by pulling a leaf. No big deal really.

Just pull the one second from the top. In other words, the second longest one in there.

You'll be looking at maybe 2 inches. The problem with these old trucks is that the springs are often worn on everyone's trucks, so you may get more or less of a drop depending on the condition of your current springs.

[Pyrotechnic]

The light duty springs I've seen have 3 leafs and a big helper spring, and the heavy duty ones have 7 leafs and a big helper spring. I've never seen a 5 leaf pack though.

I experimented with pulling leafs from my HD springs. First I pulled the giant helper plus 3 leafs springs. Big mistake. The truck was lower, but it was way too bouncy in the rear. Later I went back and added 2 of the I thought had the most spring rate back in, and it's got a good spring rate now. Not too stiff or soft. Got a slight drop, but not much.

If you do have those thick helper springs at the bottom, you can take those out and they will give you about a half inch of drop. They don't start doing anything until you've got an extremely heavy load in back anyway,

[munroe]

ive read most people remove the seceond spring on the ld setups. which additional ones on my hd setup should go?

[79chevylover]

Hey Munroe and blk81shrt I believe I took out 4, 5, and 6. I posted some on this in blk81shrt other post on "inspiration needed" My truck isn't here or I'd go grab some pics.

[munroe]

thanks for the answer, 79chevylover, your stance is waht im lookin for. man this forum is makin my life easier

[Captkaos]

That is actually a 5 leaf pack (#6 is a helper) Take the bottom 2 off and no more, otherwise the ride will stink.

[blk81shrt]

So how much drop will removing 2 leafs do? How about 3?

[Captkaos]

I wouldn't look for more than 1.5" inches depending on how weak the springs are. DO NOT remove 3 leafs from a 5 leaf pack, the leafs are what keeps your tracking correct if you pull that many, the rear will be unstable not to mention the crappy ride you will have...

[blk81shrt]

Thanks captkaos i wouldnt wanna ruin the ride. Ill post a picture after the rear is done.

[454HO]

Originally Posted by blk81shrt

Thanks captkaos i wouldnt wanna ruin the ride. Ill post a picture after the rear is done.

Hey blk81, did you do this yet? How much drop did you get? Any before and after pics?

Which leafs can safely be removed from the 7 leaf springs?

Also, I read in another post that if you have the longer 7 leaf springs you may not need to notch the bed support on a short bed with the 2" drop shackles, is that true?? If so, how much drop could I expect to get with 4" hanger/shackle and removing a leaf or two??

[bobbo]

I pulled two middle leafs out of my LD as well as 2" drop shackles. Here's where it sits before the drop and after...And the ride is really good...