How to soften up this pig..

About a year ago i broke a leaf spring and bought a set of general HD springs along with 4 bilstein 5100's which i set the fronts at 2.5" on stock sr5 springs. Im looking for some input on how to soften it up a little bit without loosing height as im about rubbing with 285s and some wide wheels. I was thinking some eibach springs up front or and set the 5100s at .85 which i think would keep me around 2.5" but im not sure if that will soften it up at all?? No idea what to do out back with keeping these springs!? Thanks!

 

Welcome to TW!

Your front is too stiff because of the preload on the stock springs caused by using the clip settings on the 5100s to gain lift vs using a longer spring. Your proposed solution would definitely help, though I'd suggest maybe looking at longer OME springs to give you the lift you need and set the 5100s to zero for better results. Is your rear to stiff as well? I'm not familiar with General HD springs. You could try removing a leaf from the pack to soften them up, otherwise you are looking at a new rear leaf pack.

 

If the need for the lift is wheel/tire based, and they are not specifically needed to accomplish off road adventure, you might start by using different wheels/tires. That will set a new platform criteria for the lift.

Assuming you must keep the wheels/tires, or you just want to be that high for other reasons, the recommendations @crashnburn80 makes are right on.

It's best to pick the proper spring (length/wt) for the task at hand, then select the correct damper to control the spring. Dinking with perch settings and using preload to achieve lift is always a compromise, regardless of what's 'popular'.

The thought I'd add is to fix the front before doing anything to the rear, and see what happens to the ride quality then. It could be a longer shock is in order for the rear if the HDs create lift on their own.

 

Good point on the tires. OP, if you are running E-load tires, your ride will also suffer. Using C-loads for off road use will provide better ride while maintaining durability. If your truck is a street truck only and doesn't do any towing, I'd look at P-loads, which are the OEM rated tire for best ride.