What is the preferred method for lining up the axle pivot bushings on twin traction beams with leaf springs?

In the process of putting the front end of my truck back together after doing axle pivot, front leaf spring and shackle bushings. 1991 f250 4x4. I am having difficulty getting the axle pivot bushings to line up enough to get the bolts through. I dropped the whole front end at once and did all the bushings at the same time. The leaf spring and shackle bolts are all back in. I thought that we should do those first because of the way they arc would make it difficult to get the spring eyes in side the hangers. However after struggling with it the last two nights im thinking of taking out the leaf spring bolts and getting the axle pivots in first. Is that the preferred way to do it?
Im pretty certain that if I was doing this on a lift or higher off the ground I could get it with a pry bar. However im doing this on jackstands and can only get like a 16 inch pry bar underneath. If I ever do this job again I will definitely raise the truck higher off the ground.
Any tips or tricks are appreciated. I need to get this done by the first or else ill have to pay for another month of rent at the storage unit im doing this in.

So did you pull the u bolts off?
If yes, thenratchet strap the ends so you can separate ( widen) the hubs and floor jack for up and bottle jack for down , this way you can left / right with the straps, and up/down with the jacks.
Also a long tapered prybar tail in the bolt hole...
Also try turning the steering wheel..
If not then The 2 jacks alone should help.

I did this a couple years ago, and it was an absolute pain, I too did it on jack stands in the driveway.

If i remember correctly, I used a floor jack under the the knuckle to help get into height place, I also used a wood wedge and would hammer it to help position the eyelet down or over to help.


As CLB above said I used a prybar in the bolt hole to help as well, so I could get it started on side.

It involved a lot of brunt force and swearing.

Oh yea
Beers or hugs and kissed from your honey don't hurt either...
This is a small one, but even a 1/2" extension is useful...

Clb said:

So did you oull the u bolts off?

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No. I didnt touch them. Im trying to save money and didnt want to take apart more stuff than I thought was necessary.

HS108 said:

I did this a couple years ago, and it was an absolute pain, I too did it on jack stands in the driveway.

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Did you have the leaf spring eye bolts in first when you were doing it?

Clb said:

Oh yea
Beers or hugs and kissed from your honey don't hurt either...

You must be registered for see images attach

This is a small one, but even a 1/2" extension is useful...

Click to expand...

My dad has a pry bar just like that. Its works but its too short to give me enough leverage to pry with.

Works best to not have the springs in there. Put pivot bolts in, then springs bolted to truck, then springs bolted to front end.

HS108 said:

If i remember correctly, I used a floor jack under the the knuckle to help get into height place, I also used a wood wedge and would hammer it to help position the eyelet down or over to help.

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We tried using large chisels as wedges and got close. Ran out of wedging power with them. I think we try wooden ones then.

headhunter38 said:

No. I didnt touch them. Im trying to save money and didnt want to take apart more stuff than I thought was necessary.

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No worries, probably easier

headhunter38 said:

Did you have the leaf spring eye bolts in first when you were doing it?

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Leaving everything else loose is probably a help.

headhunter38 said:

My dad has a pry bar just like that. Its works but its too short to give me enough leverage to pry with.

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Put a pipe on it...
It's a royal pita job for sure....
Good luck

Oh and lotsa soapy water

When you do serious work like this on one of these leaf spring frontends, you come to realize how much of a bind the front leaves and the shackle bushings for the leaf springs are really in. No wonder the leaf spring bushings do not last very long, especially the shackle bushings up front.

Black dawg said:

Works best to not have the springs in there. Put pivot bolts in, then springs bolted to truck, then springs bolted to front end.

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We ended up doing it this way. It went so easily after that. Re-attaching the axle beam to the springs was a lot easier than I thought it would be. Certainly easier than trying to pry the pivot bolts into place last. Thank you for the suggestion.
To anyone doing this in the future on jackstands, just do it the way Black dawg says. You'll save yourself a lot of time and effort. If you're doing it on a lift you'll probably be able to use a prybar and get it.