O2 Base Leaf Spring Setup

I'm assuming this is not a stock setup on my truck. The truck rides hard and I'm thinking about removing the helper spring the previous owner installed. When I bought the truck, the ubolts to the helper were loose and rattling. Anyone know if this setup is correct?

 

Those ubolts definitely are not stock. Could by some sort of anti-axle wrap device. In fact the whole spring pack is not original.

Looks like tightening the ubolts would make the ride firmer. Might try removing them to see what you get.

 

... not to mention it's a spring under vs spring over (stock). Someone hacked that rear end to hell.

 

I'm pretty sure the OP is a 5 lug, not a 6 lug.

 

Remove the u bolts, it will ride close to stock. Looks like a helwig spring helper

 

That leaf pack looks stock but it seems shot.
And remove tev hellwing

 

That looks like a 5 lug, which is spring under...

@bwinterstine: That isn't really a "helper spring", as @Digiratus said, it looks more like an anti-axle wrap device. Just helps keep the axle from twisting under torque. It can't hurt to try and take it off, though. Should be easy to remove. If that helps, great. If not, might suggest new shocks, and even a new leaf pack, too. Usually, a worn out leaf pack causes a soft saggy ride, but you might be hitting the bumpstop too easily, which can make it feel "hard" even though it's actually too soft...

However, does it look like this:

or like this?:


If you have those extra springs on both sides, that would definitely add stiffness, whereas the one sided (top pic) does more for the axles wrap (I believe), but probably does add a little stiffness...

That said: It's a pickup truck, so set your ride expectations accordingly. Even the 5 lugs won't ever ride like a car... There are people who've spent many hundreds (thousands) on suspension only to realize what they were just trying to get their truck to ride more like their car.

 

Sua, bump stop on frame, 2 leaf pack, fkat overload all add up to its a 5lug

 

Duh.... That explains it!

 

It is a 5 lug and has a one piece helper. The helper is long and has a ubolt on both sides of the axle.

Thanks for all the responses. I might disconnect the helper ubolts and see if the ride improves. Easy enough to try but, it is a truck.

 

those are really only meant to "kick in" when the load exceeds the standard springs capacity.

if you over-tighten the help springs "outer" U-bolt it will cause a stiffer ride. back them off until they are just enough on the spring to keep from causing a noise.