hey guys, attempted to do an add a leaf yesterday and basically had it done on my drivers side but ran into a dilemma. I got the kit off amazon that I know others have tried ( pro comp $36 universal kit). Had everything done and did it the right way and then after I finally got the center pin out and went to install my new leaf on top of the overload I realized the new bolts they gave with the kit were WAY too tall. Problem is I didn't have nearly enough clearance to get the bolt in from the bottom and through the, now four leafs, plus overload. I figured cutting the bolt was my only option since Lowe's didn't have any of those Allen bolts with the rounded heads. My questions are; A. What did you use for a bolt? and B. If you trimmed the one that came with your kit about how long did you make it?

I got a stupid little handsaw that cuts metal but it would've taken an hour for each bolt to finally get cut. And if I did have that kind of patience the bolt could have still been too long to fit in there or, even worse, too short.

B.T.W. AXLE WAS DROPPED ALL THE WAY (ONLY ON THAT SIDE), REAR SHOCK DISENGAGED, SWAY BAR DISCONNECTED AS WELL..I DID NOT LOOSEN THE U-BOLTS ON THE PASSENGER SIDE HOWEVER

 

If you had loosened the other side, you could have rolled the axle back a little so it was out of the way. Also, did you take the wheel off? If not, that would have gained you some more droop. They make the bolts "universal", which means long enough to fit anything. You cut them off with a hacksaw after you're done. They're actually pretty soft, BTW. Not very hard to cut at all.

 

both wheels were off from rear axle. I see they're universal but if they are too long to even get in there from the bottom of the leafs, its an issue. Also, mine were not very soft because my friend was cutting for 15 minutes or so and was no more than a third of the way through. It's just a PITA because I know exactly what to do and basically had it halfway done when I reinstalled. Want my baby lifted!

 

An angle grinder with a cutoff wheel will make super short work of those bolts. Melted though the cambolts like butter when I changed my lower a-arm, and those where . If you do cut them, go slow so you dont burn the bolt which may cause it to lose some temper and also rust faster.

 

How long are these bolts, exactly? Pretty much all the ones I've seen were 5-6 inches long. Are yours longer than that?

 

The centering pin isn't all that soft, it holds all the leaves in a stack (centered) and the head will sit in a mating hole on the spring mount to keep the spring from slipping out of position. It's a special type of bolt in both shape and hardness to keep the head from snapping off (too brittle) under stress or to bend or shear under stress (too soft). Sometimes the universal kits are a pain in the back side - they're supposed to be all things to all mankind but seldom fullfill even the basics of what they need to do. Essentially, you'll need to customize the bolt length or buy new bolts from a suspension shop (they aren't that expensive). If the kit that you have is a true add-a-leaf, it will fit in as an integral part of the whole unit and you first stack them all together with the new leaf in it's position, put either a long bolt or steel rod through the center holes (leave this loose, it's only to keep the holes in line), then, using some GOOD clamps, you pull all the leaves together. Using a pin punch or equivalent, knock out the bolt or rod. Now you can insert the new centering bolt, tighten it and cut off any excess and now you can install the whole pack.

When I make changes to any solid axle suspension, I find that disassembling both sides makes life a lot easier on installation, otherwise you'll be fighting the tight spring to try getting things aligned. You'll need some axle stands to keep your truck supported and a couple more to keep the axle in roughly the right position so you don't need to take off things like the brake lines etc. Use chocks for the front wheels so the truck doesn't roll off your stands, especially while you're underneath.

An angle grinder is the way to go for cutting bolts & steel for these DIY projects. Some people use a dremel, this, in my opinion, doesn't "cut it" (no pun intended )

 

Ask anybody who's ever stripped a center bolt by using it to pull the spring pack together (instead of clamps) or buggered up the threads tapping one in with a hammer when the leaves weren't perfectly lined up. They're pretty soft. I didn't mean they're made from goose down, but they're certainly not Grade 8. I wouldn't be surprised if they're not even Grade 5. And I'm pretty sure I've never spent more than 30 seconds cutting one with a good hacksaw blade.

As for what to disassemble, I like to leave the side I'm not working on completely assembled (including the wheel) and sitting on the ground with the u-bolts loosened. That way, there's no chance of the axle rotating, but I can still move the side I'm working on forward and back a bit. And the weight on the tire helps the other side droop.

 

Thanks for the input guys

 

I think the way I did it was to lift the rear by the frame fairly high, put it on stands, then put the jack under the pumpkin, loosened the u-bolts on both sides and slowly lowered the pumpkin to drop the axle. I have the same kit and I didn't cut any bolts.