Need new struts and shocks

The Toytec BOSS Suspension System. With the OME leaf spring packs and SPC UCAs. I also had them include the longer rear brake line, which is definitely needed. The lift was pretty straight forward to install. I had some rust issues and ended up needing new shackels which I sourced at a local spring shop. I had a vibration issue that I chased for awhile and added rear axle shims trying to fix that. I don't know if that was necessary, it didn't help and it turned out to be a bad U-joint.

 

The videos I watched were all on 2nd gens where the AAL was added on the truck. I ended up pulling the springs and adding the AAL off the truck. It was easier for me to handle (e.g. wrestle) by laying the springs flat on the garage floor. After botching up the threads on one of the spring bolts, I used it to make a guide pin that I could run through the springs while compressing them with the c-clamp in the picture. I started using two c-clamps in the beginning and quickly realized the 2nd clamp was getting in the way and that I could do it using only one clamp. Once I had the springs aligned with the guide pin, and the springs compressed, then pulled out the pin and inserted the bolt and tightened up without issue. Initially, I started using a screwdriver as the guide pin in the beginning. The screwdriver wasn't thick enough to get the springs perfectly aligned so the bolt could be inserted without scraping on the spring and botching the threads. I'm glad that I had 4 bolts. Two came with the AAL and two came with the shim. So I wasted one bolt that I use to make the guide pin.

I installed the shim without really knowing I needed it. I've see people install the shims with AALs so I though they must be a good thing. I lucked out on that one. Also, I installed the longer SS brake line from Wheelers before the AAL installation.

What I didn't expect out of all this was the problems the AAL + Shim corrected. I must have had a slight drive line alignment issue that that shim and spring corrected. Before the upgrade, I could feel a slight vibration in the gear shift at 65 MPH. I spent a bunch of money balancing rear tires to get rid of the vibration. After the AAL + shim installation, this thing glides down the interstate like some type of front wheel drive car. By improving the rear spring rate via the AAL, it just handles better on curves. I already had new BIL 5100s. The other strange thing, it is seems to ride better over the speed bumps and dips in neighborhood streets. By shifting the load forward, it took out some of the harshness that I felt after the new 5100s and OME 880s. I had somewhat resolved the axle wrap slip yoke issue with grease before I started this upgrade. I can say that I haven't felt any axle wrap at all after this mod.

After the AAL installation, I had a bit more rear rake than what I wanted. The truck is really light on the back end. So I put 300 lbs of sand bags in some construction bags at the front of the bed to give it some weight. I need to figure out a way to permanently add some weight to the rear with maybe a topper or heavier rear bumper.





At 6:00 minutes in the video there is a skip where the camera stops. I think a helper came in from the background helped to align the spring bolt. That's the part where I got into trouble and resorted to the guide pin to help align the springs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eq9nv_3vU4Y




The red stuff between the springs in the picture is CRC disk brake quiet that I happened to have in the garage. I thought I would give it a try. I don't know if it made a difference, but the rear springs are quite.

 

AALs are easy, I pulled my leaf springs off to install mine but there are methods of doing them on the truck...YT has videos for both