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2nd Gen Ram Tech1994-2001 Rams: This section is for TECHNICAL discussions only, that involve the 1994 through 2001 Rams. For any non-tech discussions, please direct your attention to the "General discussion/NON-tech" sub sections.
For anyone using the search function in the future, i ended up ordering a set of u bolts, nuts, and plates from WFO concepts. I'll attach a copy of my receipt. Of course, prices may have changed since then. The parts weren't listed on his website so i called and he admitted he had many things that were not yet on the site, but he did stock everything i needed. The bolts were extra long, which would be great for a lifted vehicle but i just wanted to make sure i wasn't coming up short. After torquing them in place with loctite i cut off the excess. Years later, all is still peachy.
When I had to do mine (I'm in MI, so I feel your pain being in the rust belt), I used 7" C-channel and just bought 5/8" U-bolts from a local heavy truck repair shop. I think they were $12 per bolt and included washers and nuts.
Alright so I just wasn't incredibly impressed with the options out there, although I guess I just like building stuff anyway even though I arguably don't have the time.
The OEM plates gain a great deal of rigidity from having vertical surfaces or breaks not only at the ends but in the center ---er at least on Fords that are already "flipped". For the aftermarket breaking the ends is easy but you need some serious dies to stamp out something like a Ford plate.
My point is that I feel even 3/8 w.t. is insufficient without bends both at the ends and around the center pin. The proper torque on 5/8" u-bolts is really trying to wrap those plates around the spring. Doesn't mean I'm right, it's just my opinion as a fabricator.
Thus, I used 1/2" plate. Lacking the ability to brake this, I slit with the bandsaw, bend to roughly ~45* and fill the resulting gap with weld. Doesn't mean it's a good way to do it, it's just how I do it (I've done this before) Drilled in the mill Slitting in bandsaw Fully slit Bent Welded up at 22/450 with .035 Ground down - forgot to hit the holes with a c-sink!
So even though this '98 has spent its entire life in the arid Four Corners, it still had a similar issue to that which @aresf11 encountered in his link above: eroded axle tubes. I find it curious that the spring plate was in great shape but was filled with what ONCE WAS the axle tube.
I was simply uncomfortable with how the u-bolts interfaced with the eroded tube -- IMO they would never hold torque. So I welded up the tube and sanded it down. Since this was all by eye the tube radius is still less than perfect but is 99% better AFAIC Not great I'm not comfortable trying to pull the u-bolt to that Oddly the spring plate is mostly unaffected. I chipped out a lot of the rust deposition before this shot. Not pretty but it doesn't need to be as it gets sanded down. Rusty metal often makes for boogers. Much better. What little daylight is visible will hopefully close up after torquing and re-torquing. Trying to work out an upper overload system with the 1/2t 2.5" leafs. Thus far it's......an experiment
