Leaf Spring Removal - Easier Way?

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73Swinger18

73Swinger18

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I'm going to be replacing my leaf springs soon on my '73 Dart and was reviewing the repair manual. It states to remove the hangers from the body. A few questions...

1. Would it be possible/easier to just remove the pivot bolt from the front?
2. Same thing for the rear hanger. Should it be removed or just the shackle?
3. Can the bushings be replaced with the rear hanger still installed?

Thanks for the help.
 
I would support the body with jack stands,another set of stands for the axle to rest on, remove the u bolts,shocks,rear hanger at the body and then the fronts
 
jack up the car and put stands below both the frame and axle so that the springs ar not under load , remove U-Bolt nuts ( I hope you have an impact...lol)
Remove the 4 9/16 nuts holding front hangers and drop front of springs to floor
Remove rear hanger bolts and remove from frame
The bushings will most likely be frozen (rusted ) in place both front and back ... use a propane torch to burn the old bushings out. If you dont have one go buy one...they are cheap !
Wire wheel the old pivot bolt and hanger stud , grease bushings and reassemble.

It really doesnt take very long.
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Nothing difficult about it at all. I imagine the book says to remove everything is because they knew by the time you needed to all of the supporting brackets and shackles would need restoring too. It's a very simple procedure.
 
on my last install I spent more time trying to get the damn old busings out than the R&R of the springs....
TORCH !!
 
You will not get the front pivot bolt out, no matter what you do! It is trapped in and the front hangar must be dropped! As stated above, removing the hangers is way easier than trying to deal with old frozen rusty parts under the car! Everything will need to be cleaned and greased, and new bushings installed!! Wait till you try to get the shackle pins out of the rear bushings, then tell me you would've rather done that under the car with the leaf springs hanging from it!!
 
18.00 to avoid 2 hours of misery and cursing....lol
Fronts arent much more.....
 
I suggest new shackles and hardware, also those will take a 5/8" bolt through the front hanger. So, you will probably have to drill the hole out to fit this bolt.
 
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You could have the whole rear axle, leaf springs and all on the ground in 45 minutes by yourself takin your time using hand tools. What's not easy? The only way it would be easier is if someone came over and did it for you. If you think it;s too much work, maybe you need a new Challenger.
 
RustyRatRod said:
You could have the whole rear axle, leaf springs and all on the ground in 45 minutes by yourself takin your time using hand tools. What's not easy? The only way it would be easier is if someone came over and did it for you. If you think it;s too much work, maybe you need a new Challenger.
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Damn! Maybe you should read my original questions. I was just wondering if it would be better to remove two bolts instead of eight. Come on over and give me a hand you grump.
 
73Swinger18 said:
Damn! Maybe you should read my original questions. I was just wondering if it would be better to remove two bolts instead of eight. Come on over and give me a hand you grump.
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I would be more than happy to if we were local. here is all you have. 4 nuts on each of the front brackets. 4 nuts and bolts to remove on the rear shackles. 4 bolts that hold in the drive shaft. 2 parking brake cables and one brake hose. The rear end is on the ground and MUCH easier and safer to work with.

As mentioned though, the leaf spring u bolts are apain in the butt and they almost always break when you try to remove the bolts. So, my advice is, before you even start, order in a new set of U bolts. Measure what you have and go to General Spring. They have great prices.

A good way to bring out the grump in anyone is to keep asking the same thing over and over again, trying to get the answer you want. This is a VERY simple job. There's really nothing to it. Make sure you spray all the fasteners down with PBlaster a day or so ahead of time.
 
RustyRatRod said:
A good way to bring out the grump in anyone is to keep asking the same thing over and over again, trying to get the answer you want. This is a VERY simple job. There's really nothing to it. Make sure you spray all the fasteners down with PBlaster a day or so ahead of time.
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I already received my springs, u bolts, nuts, and bushings from General Spring. I've read all the messages regarding leaf springs on this forum. They all say the same thing you said... again. I was not asking if the job was hard or if I need to put penetrate on the u bolt nuts. I already read that. Just seeing if there was a better way to go about it. Please, no need for you to waste anymore of your time on this thread. Thanks for your input. I am honored to have such a great mechanic like yourself bestow your knowledge upon me. I am truly humbled.
 
73Swinger18 said:
I already received my springs, u bolts, nuts, and bushings from General Spring. I've read all the messages regarding leaf springs on this forum. They all say the same thing you said... again. I was not asking if the job was hard or if I need to put penetrate on the u bolt nuts. I already read that. Just seeing if there was a better way to go about it. Please, no need for you to waste anymore of your time on this thread. Thanks for your input. I am honored to have such a great mechanic like yourself bestow your knowledge upon me. I am truly humbled.
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LOL. You're welcome.
 
If you drop the whole axle the brake lines become an issue.

The U-bolts can be a *****... good idea to soak them ahead of time.
Now get an impact or breaker bar extension..
MAKE SURE THE CAR IS STABLE ! Your will be exhorting a lot of sideways torque
Which can rock the car .
 
BTW..... don't overtorque the U-bolts... it will make the leaves bind and give you a harsh ride. I think they only get around 40 lbs/ft....double check that...
 
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