Recommended leaf pack for 300-500lb bed load to stop sag/squat.

3rd gen tacoma here. With my bed rack, awning, gear, and rooftop tent I'm carrying somewhere near 300+ lbs. I'm noticing some significant sag/squat in the rear as well. In my rears I have the stock leaf springs, ICON 1.5" rear reservoir shocks, and the ICON 1.5" AAL.

I had three questions; what were the stock 3rd gen Tacoma leaf pack original weight capacity, do I need to get new shocks to support the new leaf pack, and what leaf pack do you guys recommend I should get? I've heard of Deavers and Dobinsons.

 

Deavers or RXT
Deaver will make it custom to your needs or have a good off the shelf, the RXT is a known good adjustable via adding or removing leaves pack.

 

x2 with what @Sixthelement

Full leaf pack is a good idea. Do you plan to add more weight with accessories in the future? If you have some time to tally up actual weights of each item, that can really help you pick out the best spring/shock package. We do this all day every day. Deaver U402 would be a good leaf pack to choose from, but you are right on the border of stage 1 vs stage 2. We try out best to not over spring trucks. I would recommend a proper length shock to go with the leaf pack. If your budget allows for it, get a tuned shock to go with it. Standard off the shelf shocks for XYZ lift don't take into account added weight.

 

Most def the Deaver Stage 2 pack, rides great, no squeaking, happy with mine.

 

IMO, Icon RXT’s give you more bang for the buck for lighter (<600 lb.) loads. That said, with 500 lbs. in back, they will probably lift you just under 1.5 inches.

Unlike the RXT’s, Deavers are not meant to be adjustable, so do yourself a favor and weigh the rear of your truck on a CAT scale to be absolutely certain of its weight before choosing between Deaver Stage 1 or 2’s.

If you overestimate your truck’s weight and pick the Stage 2’s, you could end up with 3 inches lift in rear. If you underestimate, Stage 1’s might not give you the lift you desire.

 

You can always call Deaver and have them make add a leafs or a different leaf to swap into a heavy pack to lesson it.

 

I’ve got a similar load, OME Dakar medium duty has done well for me



I had three questions; what were the stock 3rd gen Tacoma leaf pack original weight capacity, seems like it’s meant to support an empty bed to me lol, my shit sagged a couple months after adding the shell
do I need to get new shocks to support the new leaf pack, not unless you lift more than 1.5ish inches, especially not if you’re simply restoring factory ride height with your new springs. Mine lifted me one inch in the rear and i didnt replace my shocks until i had the money to blow. Had no issues.
and what leaf pack do you guys recommend I should get? Answered this already. Dakars are tried and true and fixed the squeaking issue with an update a few years back. Deavers are better but cost double. Dobbo will be a lot like OME, both are australian brands geared toward constant load overlanding stuff. I've heard of Deavers and Dobinsons

 

From what I’ve read here, if you are oversprung with one of their stock packs, they instruct that you can remove an overload leaf and/or the fifth leaf to correct it, but they don’t consider that an ideal solution.

Speaking as the owner of a Deaver U402 pack, I’m not sure (by looking the pack’s design), and by Deaver’s apparently typical responses, that they would make an AAL for their own leaf pack. They are more likely to instruct you to simply buy the next stage up. Note, each of their stages has the same number of leafs — it is not a matter of adding or subtracting leaves to modify a pack to behave like a different stage in their lineup.

In short, it’s much better to buy correctly the first time with Deaver.