Anyone have a source for those plastic pads that fit in the holes at the end of leafs and keep the springs from rubbing together? The ones that came out are round 2" dia. with a 7/16 dia. stud on the back. I need a doz. Thanks!

I would call your local spring shop, or scavenge some from a local wrecking yard.
I believe alot of high end psrings use teflon pads int here now.
I dont think I have had those pads in my springs for about 3 years now :)

I checked out the local spring shop, they didn't have any with a round locator stud. All the ones I see at wrecking yards are pretty much worn out already. I would like to put them in, if I can find some soon. It at least keeps the springs a bit quieter when then get full of sand and its about an extra 3/8" of lift! :confused:

I just cut some circles out of a 5gal bucket and used electrical tape to hold them in while I assembled the leaf pack, then I cut off the extra tape. I haven't lost one yet, but I've only had them in for about 2 months.

Dirty Dog, that is hilarious, since I have thought about doing that exact same thing!

Mine are gone on one side as well. I haven't found a source for them.

NOBODY has a source for these? Man if I still worked at that plastics place, I'd make a bunch!

Dirty Dog, that is hilarious, since I have thought about doing that exact same thing!

Well so far so good for me :) A buddy of mine did it on his Heep and they've been in there for a year and a half already--he gave me the idea

Eaton Detroit Spring in Detroit. Ask for Mike Eaton; Phone 1-313-963-3839 Fax 1-313-963-7047 EatonDetroit (http://www.eatonsprings.com ).

I couldn't find them on their website, so I sent them an email, we'll see what they have to say.

Don't hold you breath...I sent them an email on 3/28 about the leaf spring pads. Still no respnse...I resent it again this morning.

Lee

Mike Eaton is the person that answers those emails. I know they had email server problems recently. I would try calling.

What's the benefit of replacing these? Mine are sticking out 45 degrees to the side.

They're supposed to keep the leaves quiet (no squeaking). You need the u-shaped retaining clips to keep your pack from fanning. I think Eaton has these, too.

Over time they also keep the leaves from grinding on each other, you can see some of the leaves at junk yards are worn to a razor sharp edge at the ends.

I sent several emails to Eaton and finally got a reply to the final one which I didn't put a decription in, since I figured they wouldn't reply. The reply asked for more info! No guess on if they will answer that or not.

I sent several emails to Eaton and finally got a reply to the final one which I didn't put a decription in, since I figured they wouldn't reply. The reply asked for more info! No guess on if they will answer that or not.

If they do answer, please post...I would like to pick up a set of these plastic pads as well. thanks.

Lee

Absolutely, I know several guys are looking for these.

I am looking for these too! Got most of my stuff together to get my x-sport sitting pretty, 4 door leaf springs, warrior shackles and Gabriel Air Shocks. I still am planning/wanting to buy, these round spring spacers we are talking about here and some new ubolts, as well as new bolts for the frame end of my leafs(can these be stainless steel?)

I dont think I have had those pads in my springs for about 3 years now :)

Same here...mine have broken off from off roading but I'm not concerned about it. On my last set of springs I took the pack apart and smoothed them out with a wire wheel on a die grinder then painted them with some semi gloss and finally, I rubbed a bar of parafin wax between the leaves that would be rubbing. It seemed to help smooth them out some.

rOdrOc,
stainless steel bolts are too brittle for leaf spring applications, you should stick with a grade 8 bolt. If your stock bolts are rusted just replace them with some 9/16" zinc plated (grade 8) bolts.

Old thread revival. Any clue on where to find these leaf spring pads yet, both the round pads on the overload spring and the rectangular ones on the ends of the mains? Dealers only sell the complete leaf spring assembly.

I sure would like set of new nylon-teflon ones to refresh the ol' spring packs.

Well I got my x together soon after my last post, over a year ago. I used grade 8 bolts, not stainless, like suggested. So fat so good.

As far as the spring pads between the ends of the springs . . . I went to Ace hardware and bought nylon washers and screws and pieced them together to fit. So far it works fine. ;)

Hope this helps someone!

I cut and pasted the response that I received from Mike at Eaton Spring. His website is pretty informative as well...

I think that they make their inserts from Delron if I'm not mistaken.

CW :salute:


Chris,

we have replacement inserts Your springs should have a round insert with a nib sticking through the leaf. This is our p/n RI250. They are .95 each plus shipping.

In order to provide a shipping price we need the Zip Code to where your order will be sent to.

We accept Visa, Master Card, American Express, Money Orders, Wire Transfers, Checks and Cash. Sorry no COD.

Due to the large number of e-mails and phone calls I handle everyday I am not talented enough to remember everything I wrote or spoke about. So, when responding back help me by include this response. If you do not you may not get an answer.

Thank You
Mike
Phone 1-313-963-3839
Fax 1-313-963-7047
www.eatonsprings.com

----- Original Message -----
From: Chris Woodman
To: tech@eatonsprings.com
Sent: Sunday, July 22, 2007 10:04 AM
Subject: Tech Question


Hey Mike, I have a question regading inter-leaf friction.

I have an '93 Ford Explorer and the origional plastic pads that are normally between the rear spring leaves are worn away. My rear suspension is now fairly noisy. I read that you should not grease or oil the springs in your tech question section, so how do I fix the problem?

Thanks in advance for your response.
Chris

Thanks, I'll check out their website and probably order from them. I actually would like to get the rectangular inter-leaf pads too, not just the single round overload pad, but I'll hope they can get those too.