2004.5 dually

[SHobbs]

I picked up a 2004 the other day, been wanting to get back to manual for a while. Mechanically the truck is in good shape, the interior is better than most no stains, tears or sagging seats. I am the third owner and was told the original owner added a leaf to the rear for extra capacity. To me the rear looks really high and I would like to get close to stock ride height or maybe the way it sits is normal not sure. Maybe someone can tell me if this high or not.

 

[Ozymandias]

It is extremely high - just look at your shocks, fully extended.
Must have a ride like he'll that way. OMG

About half of the hight would probably be right.

 

[AH64ID]

The overloads (upper and lower) appear stock, but the main leaf pack either is aftermarket or has 2 add-a-leaves. Any photos of the spring pack from the outside?

I’d say the previous owner was overloading the heck out of that truck on a regular basis to run that modded spring setup.

 

[Rowdy Dalton]

Easy, just go to a junk yard, and find some out of a junked truck. Or, you could remove a few leafs from yours.

 

[SHobbs]

I have never messed with a spring pack. I know the U bolts come off then what? I see two bolts that look like they go down into the springs, do I remove them as well then take a couple of leafs out? I am thinking of removing the second and third leafs

 

[NIsaacs]

You should be able to tell which one's don't belong, I would take those out. Yes, 2 center bolts need to come off as well. You might need new ones, sometimes the nut is peened and you will ruin them.

 

[SHobbs]

Is it safe to reuse the U bolts as well as the bolts in the spring pack? If not I may just replace the whole set and be done with it. Do the screws in the middle screw into the thick piece at the bottom or thread through the entire pack?

 

[Topzide]

I wouldn't reuse the spring pack bolt. It's usually a fine thread with a specific torque. I added an extra leaf to my 1500 and when I removed the center bolt, it took out some threads. Bolts are cheap and not worth an issue. The u-bolts could be re-used, although a bit longer than needed. It looks like there are 2 spacers at the bottom of the stack. On my 1500 it brought the back end up to 2500 specs and that's how it has to be aligned. Forgot about extra leaf the first time and they asked me if it had been wrecked. I think once you get the extras out, it'll ride much better!

 

[AnonEd]

Only judging by how the threads look in the photos I think I'd get new U-bolts. JM2C.

 

[AH64ID]

To me it looks like the top two and bottom spring in the pack of 5 are the OEM springs, but that's not 100%. Do you have a photo of the front of the springs?

 

[SHobbs]

I have a pad directly on the axle then what looks like to more pads then the leafs.

 

[AH64ID]

If 1 is the top leaf then 3 and 4 are added.

Get new OEM u-bolts and new center pins. It won’t be crazy hard to remove those add-a-leaves.

 

[Ozymandias]

Yes, leaf 3&4 are additional, as the factory ones have the sliders in them.
I don't know about the blocks though.
I'd start with the two leaves and proceed from there.

 

[Ozymandias]

And put a snubber on your axle tube breather hose, right now it fills your axle with rain water every time you drive through a puddle.
It's not in the right location too.

 

[AH64ID]

I’m pretty sure the blocks are OE, my 05 had 2 or 3 of them.

 

[sag2]

Look up the option list for your truck as it may list the spring combination. Or post the last 8 of the VIN and I can look it up in parts catalog.

 

[SHobbs]

The last eight are 4G224781. Found a company online General Spring that advertises full leaf sets with different weight capacities. I may reach out to them and get a price for a set with shackles and new U bolts. Anyone know what the weight capacity for the OEM set?

 

[Ozymandias]

Check your door label, it's printed there. under RAWR.

Get new shocks too..

 

[AH64ID]

From my research I found the 3/1 spring pack on your truck to be rated at 2800lbs.

That's not all they can carry, but how they are rated. I beleive its lbs/in of compression.

 

[sag2]

Unfortunately the option list does not specify the spring rating. But here is the photo from parts of the spring that is specified for your VIN.