Hi all.
I've got a question on an old-school Dodge and I'm hoping one of you can answer it for me.
Background:
I bought a 1984 W150 w/slant six NP435 and a 7.5 Fisher Speedcast on it this past winter for use as a farm/plow truck. It runs great, drives nice (for a 30 year old truck, of course) and is in good shape. It spent a good part of its life on the Brunswick Naval Air Station and it's got pretty low miles (just under 80k) and the body and frame are in nice shape with relatively little rust. Being that it's 30 years old and it's had a plow on it for god knows how long the springs aren't that springy anymore, especially on the front side.

My question is this: I'm planning on putting new leaf packs under all 4 corners this summer, and I want to beef up the load capacity a bit to help deal with the weight of that plow. Can I put W250 springs on there instead, without major changes to the rest of the truck?

I mean, I'm not looking to have to change out spring hangers and frame mounts and axle plates etc. If I have to do all that then I'll just go with W150 springs and an AAL or overload springs. But if it's something basic like just changing the shackles or something then I'm definitely interested in the beefier spring pack.

Thoughts?

 

They are bolt in and have no mounting differences.

Remember to buy new u-bolts - never re-use them

 

New u-bolts for sure. New shackles and hardware too, to be on the safe side.
That's great to know about the leaf packs!
Thanks!

The Yeti thanks you too; I'm sure it'll appreciate a suspension that doesn't bottom out on the bumps!