d50 superduty leafs?

[bblaweless]

hey everyone!

looking for some answers....cant seem to find any on the web...maybe im not looking hard enough, but my patience has worn thin.

my 7.3 idi (92 f250) d50 front end, has the infamous idi front sag....due to weak leafs from what ive been told. front shock absorbers are pooched as well, along with ball joints etc.

the previous owner of my truck recently got in contact with me, and gave me a set of front leafs from an old superduty. 3 leafs compared to the 2 skinny ones currently on the truck.

now, am i able to swap these leafs into my current front end without much hassle? if there is hassle....how much we talkin here...
also, my front end is sitting about 2" lower than my rear currently, ive got overload springs in the back for my camper, so theres a big ride height difference. will these superduty leafs raise my front end to level with the rear? or will they lift it over....ive read different all over the place, but this is where the experts hang out....

thanks for any input
cheers!

 

[snicklas]

One question. The springs, are they F-Superduty 87-97 (Precursor to the F-450) or are they from a 99+ F-250/F-350 Super Duty? There is a HUGE difference...

Also, the D-50 Front uses a reverse arch spring, meaning a brand new truck/spring the front spring would be almost flat to even starting to have a "frown face" look to it. Best case, if you have 1.5 to 2 inches between the axle and the bumpstop, you are about where they were new.

Putting a lift (which if the replacement springs cause the truck to sit much higher than stock, this is included) really wreaks havoc on the front geometry for suspension and alignment. With much over stock, the front wheels will loo like \-----/ this, and there is not enough adjustment to fix it...... You will want to keep this in mind, as you may need a drop pivot bracket to be able to align the front again.....

I know you will also get the response of "Just fix it right and put a D-60 under it...." The D-50 is more complex than a D-60, but depending on what you are doing with the truck, it serves many well. We had an F-150 with the D-44 TTB and it served us well for what we used the truck for. It was our "We live in the country and have to be able to drive in the snow on the roads" truck.... it was very well suited to it.... now if you want to use your truck in places a mountain goat would be uncomfortable.... then you may want to look into a D-60 or better.....

 

[bblaweless]

the springs are from an old superduty, not the 99+
if i can avoid a whole axle swap...i would like to do so....and i forgot to mention, the previous owner also gave me a pivot bracket!
i live in the city, im a builder so most of my use for the truck is hauling and towing...camping trips up island on logging roads etc, but nothing too hairy in the offroad department...thats why i like the d50, i cant justify a 60 swap

 

[snicklas]

I think we've had a couple members swap in F-Superduty Front Springs.... don't remember if they were on a D-50 or 60.... I would measure the length of both, and see how close they are to fitting. Sounds like you know what you may run into. I do think they are about the same length and will swap in.... but your ride height and quality will be much different..... the F-Superduty spring pack isn't going to have much "give" to it........

 

[bblaweless]

Measured the leafs.....same size, except there reversed to the current d50 springs. There's actually a 3" difference in ride height between front and back as it stands now....could I get away with tossing in the superduty springs, and then throwing in a spacer in the rear leaf pack?
B

 

[tbrumm]

If it were me and someone gave me a set of F-Superduty front springs (not '99 up Superduty springs) I would put the things on craigslist and try and find someone to buy them so I could at least partially finance the purchase of some new, replacement oem rated springs and shocks for the D50. Even putting add-a-leafs under the old D50 springs would probably give a better ride than those F-Superduty springs and wouldn't screw up the suspension geometry as much. I think a couple of guys on here have used the F-Superduty springs with D60's up front, but not with the D50. With the D60, you don't have to deal with the suspension geometry as much as with the D50. In addition to the harsh ride, you would need to install drop pivot brackets on both sides of the D50, and may need adjustable camber bushings too just to get the alignment back, if you even could. Parts needed to make the springs work with the D50 start to add up fast, and then you are still left with the harsh ride of those springs once you have made the geometry work. Not trying to discourage you from working on your truck and making it how you want it , but the D50 limits what can be done and still have a truck the rides and steers decent and doesn't eat tires.

 

[towcat]

if driving with a kidney belt on and ride quality is not a concern, the older F450 springs are fine for the job. even under a F450, the ride is miserable at best. if you do put those springs on, you'll need a 3" block at least for the rear.

 

[NJGearhead666]

When i still had the D50 in my truck I had the springs re-arched and had them add a 3rd leaf. Made a huge difference. I also had the added weight of a plow mount and the plow pump and the truck sat great and had no tire issues.

 

[Dieselcrawler]

Fsuperduty springs installed on a d60 truck will give 5-6 inches of lift over stock height. And ride like hell as stated.

 

[bblaweless]

Alright, thanks for all the input guys, I think I may go with what njgearhead did....seems like these springs are too much hassle and I don't wanna kill my ride....to much citt driving.
Thanks for all the input!!

 

[NJGearhead666]

You won't regret it. I have a D60 and F350 springs in my truck now, I miss the ride of my D50. If shipping wouldn't be so much I'd sell you my old springs.