Squeaky Dakars : Any advice from others with the Dakars ?

Was thinking this too. Think @Crom had thought of going this route. Not sure if he ever did.

 

The nylon spacers should be a permanent solution. You'll have to drill the leaf ends. Just watch the heat and should be okay. Not yet done it myself.

 

I added nylon spacers to mine last week and so far so good. Remember to go slow and let the bit do the work. I let a buddy drill one and he ruined the bit real quick, turned into a pricey little hole

 

Plenty of oil & take your time drilling

 

Take some pics , I'll add it to the OP

 

I didn't take any photos during install so this is the best I can do for now. I pulled the 3rd leaf but am going to reinstall in a few weeks. I'll be adding the spacers to the 3rd when I do, so I will take some better photos then.

 

Looking at pic I realized I forgot to paint where I drilled so I'll have to do that when I reinstall the 3rd leaf.

 

How many pairs of spacers are you going to end up using?

 

I don't have Dakars, I have General HD leafs, but I too had a squeaking issue. It came from where the second leaf curves up around the front eyelet, which looks like the same exact spot you all get noise from.

I used landscape edging since I had some laying around. Worked great! Relatively durable, flat (so easy to cut and work with). And, if you don't have any, it's cheap. Maybe that'd work for you guys too.

In case anyone doesn't know what I'm referring to, it's this stuff:

 

I put one on each end of the leaf, and will do the same to the 3rd down when I reinstall. So total will be 4 new ones per leaf pack. I went to the local spring shop and they were 50 cents a piece.

 

K when you do that post some pics and I'll add them to the OP

 

I've got the squeaks on my truck as well. Took a quick look under there today and it seems that most of the leafs already have a nylon spacer and holes drilled, maybe except for the upper 2 under the top leaf. I am thinking of adding nylon spacers to just these two leafs and hopefully will solve the problem.

 

There is another option to do this if you have a place around you. For about the same price as the pads and drill bits you can take the springs to a local spring shop and they will heat the ends and punch out the holes for you. I had 4 springs (2 per side) done so 8 holes and the total bill was around $30 -$35 and that included the pads. I did this when I did my Chevy leaf mod and it = no squeaks. Just a thought for you guys

 

^^^^^^^

That's a great idea. Small price to pay for the service.

 

works like a charm...quiet as can be.

 

Are the zip ties wrapped around that middle leaf?

 

Rob, did you use these:

 

yes..wrap them around completely...keeps them from moving. they may break over time and need to be replaced. i used the thicker white zipties...they seem to hold up a little better.

when u lift the back of the truck up and the springs sag down, it gives you plenty of room to slide them through...u cant do it with the wheels on the ground.

 

Thanks.
Are the zip ties wrapped around the 2nd leaf from the top?

 

Yes, it was something every similar to those