leaf spring mod and rebuild questions

im planning on lowering the front of my 64 f100 similar to how they would have done it "back when". ive ordered a 3in drop axle and am now starting to work on the leafs. my quesitons are is it safe to dearch and reverse the eyes on the main leaf? when reversing the eyes do you start in the center of the spring or on work from one side to another? is it safe to use a wire wheel to clean the leaves up? do you recommend using the plastic inserts between the leaves when re***embled? can i paint inbetween them?would you recommend removing any of the leaves if either or both of the listed ideas are used? i want to make this as safe and as driveable as possible without doing an ifs conversion or spending hundreds on lowering springs. sorry if this is a pain in the *** for some of you but im new to modding springs. thanks in advance for the help. oldnuts

 

There have been a few threads on reversing spring eyes. I think most use a shop press and slowly work out from the centre. Mark every couple of inches to keep the amount of movement equal both sides. Sneak up on the arch that you want. You should have already drawn that arch on your garage floor before you start. Is it safe? I don't know. Sometimes old springs break. Sometimes new ones do. Use a wire wheel or disc sander to clean them up. Chamfer the ends of the leaves so they don't dig into each other. Paint between them and lay a smear of grease on each leaf as you re***emble. Never used the inserts so I have no opinion on them.

$0.02

Pete

 

thanks striper.

 

You can rearch(dearch) the main leaf with no problem. Just go a little at a time and put a press mark about every half inch. If you can avoid it, do not press directly over the center bolt hole. That spot is the most likely to break, if you can't avoid it, chamfer the hole and move it a little at a time.

dave