Replacing Rear Leaf Springs

When I put the new dual exhaust system that has two pipes going under (not through) the frame, I checked the ground clearance of the frame and found it about two inches too low. The front end is easy to correct by adjusting the torsion bars but the rear springs have to be either rebent or replaced. I am planning on restoring the unladen camber to the original springs. A local spring shop can do this with a cold process. Does anyone have experience with this? Will this restore the laden camber without retempering the metal? The shop does not have a tool to test for the load when flat. - Bruce Cunningham

Bruce, I remember...from twenty years ago..there was a spring remanufacturing company in Winooski. I think they heated and retempered the springs, which I have always understood was the only way to go. It would be too easy if that shop were still there....I think it may have been off rte 7. Jim Warren

Bruce -

A speed shop or spring works may also have a half-spring that may be bolted under the existing spring set, adding a leaf, to raise the load height. I'd be suspicious of a cold re-arcing, as the spring has already lost some of its energy; also, might be a weak point for subsequent spring snapping! Could your shop replace the non-top-leaf leaves with newly-manufactured ones? Worth considering. Trenton Spring Works in Yardville, NJ, once made a set of springs for me from scratch. Don't know if they're still in business, though. Worth pursuing, too. Best of luck! - Larry Schear, Twin Cam, Inc.

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