OME Dakar HD Leaf Pack

For me it was worth it. I did it myself. Truck sits level where before the ass end was squatting rather bad. Even still the truck is sitting level. I just went with the OME leaf that matches the medium pack.. I wish I had bought the HD pack initially then downgraded/upgraded as needed instead of doing it after the fact but no harm done. Not a big deal.

 

AHHH, I'm siting level right now. With my bed rack and tent. Just want a little lift in the rear, So i don't sag when i'm fully loaded with gear. How much was the OME leaf? what site?

 

I purchased the leaf at a shop local to me, comparable to what you’ll see online. Wouldn’t hurt to go with @HeadStrong Off-Road , Marie can help you with part #s etc and get you squared away. I’d imagine putting the extra leaf in the pack without a constant load you’d have a bit of rake (truck leaning forward) and the truck may seem stiff in the rear without the constant load.

 

Ahhh I purchase my leaf from Marie! HAHAHA My truck was raking before I added the bed rack and tent. IT actually feels really nice to drive. Feels "FULL"

 

Ok perfect, I’d head there and see about getting that leaf then if that’s what you’re looking for. If you add the leaf and it’s too rough, too much rear lift because of the non constant weight then I’d look into something different like air bags to assist with the weight. But I don’t run those so I’m not the one to ask about it.

 

After 6 months (?) with my OME with heavy Dakars I can give you my thoughts. We left the front stock springs.

The ride is so much better. No bottoming out on the FSR's. Even the freeway handling is MUCH improved.

But, the squeaking of the springs is unbearable. It not only squeaks it clunks around anytime the weight shifts. My guy told me it's the leaves shifting around. It totally sucks.

I would NEVER put them on again.

Apparently the new ones have a new shim system in them that alleviates this. But, as they are now - I'm very disappointed.It would be worth more $$ to have springs that don't sound like they're on a clapped out '72.

 

I thought all of them sold this year were "the new ones"? What's the part number on your springs? I think they changed it when they redesigned them to try and get rid of the noise issues.

 

Hey dudes. I am hoping for some insight on my newly installed OME Dakar HD leaf pack. For background, I have a Gen 2 (2012) and have been running the medium OME pack for a few years. I believe the part number was EL095R. I have Nitro Chargers all around and 884 springs upfront. I went with 884 instead of 885 because I have a good deal of constant weight (snugtop shell, decking/storage with gear). That combo performed really well, but squeaked terribly from day one. I tried a bunch of tricks, but never got it to quiet down. This summer I called OME to see about new squeak pads or other ideas and they offered to send me the new pack (part number EL111R) for free.

I am picking up a Four Wheel Campers Project M in three weeks, so I decided to add the new pack plus the HD leaf (

$55 EL46XL ARB XL to Suit El095R 96R

EL46XL). I added that leaf to the new pack and installed it over the weekend with some buddies. I have no idea what I am doing, but they do. Initially I was very pleased. The ride is very stiff/harsh in the back, but I think that's because it's underloaded. It should be good with the Project M. I just hope it can support it. It lifted my rear slightly less than I was expecting. However, it seems to need a lot of weight to sag. Also, after 3 days of driving, I can report there is no squeak. That said, some of the anti-friction measures look a bit flimsy. We'll see how long they last. Anyway, here's my issue...

I seem to have much more "Taco lean" in the rear this time than it use to (more than the usual/expected amount). I believe I can see the culprit, but I'm not sure what's causing it. I looked at the leaf stacks today, and there seems to be a bigger gap below the extra/HD leaf I added. There is no gap where the leafs bolt together in the middle, it's more out on the curves. As far as I can tell, the only thing that would cause this is one of the AALs being a bit more or differently curved than the other. Is there any other explanation you can thing of? Is this part of what will "settle" with time?

One semi-related question that's been bothering me. The AALs did not come with the idiot proof forward arrows that the leaf pack came with. Also, the taper on the ends of the AAL is different than the taper on the leafs in the pack. On the AAL with is a squared off end, and an end with sort of a rounded or bull-nosed taper. The leafs in the pack were more bull nosed and matched on both ends. I ended up putting the rounded end facing foreword because it seemed to fit the length/taper of the existing leafs better. The forums seem to reflect people putting them in both ways without incident. anyway, I thought I should mention that in case it's wrong or could be contributing to my issue.

Any help would be much appreciated!

 

So I did the Dakar pack back in April when I was going totally insane sitting. Springs were silent until did some wheeling with buddies and was in water that ended pretty deep. Got very squeaky quickly. Tried pressure washing, very direct method, but that only would work to keep the squeaks away for a day. Had three weeks of squeaks. Embarrassing as all get out.
Bought this:

$18 Energy Suspension 9.11104 8 OZ TUB OF FORMULA 5 PRELUBE

Energy Suspension 9.11104 8 Oz Tub Of Lubricant

on Amazon, along with the cheapest 1 inch brush at Home Depot. Jacked up, and levered apart leaf pack with large screw driver and crow bar, and liberally (really liberally) jammed that stuff anywhere it looked like there could be contact. WEAR GLOVES YOU CAN THROW OUT. This stuff sticks like no other grease I've ever used.

Totally silent 4 weeks later. Will see how long it lasts.