Terry Rey spring pad upgrade

[cewillis]

I installed a semi-custom set of top overload springs several years ago. The springs work great, but I've always had trouble with spring pads wearing out and moving - undoubtedly because of the heavy weight I put on them so that my truck rides at stock height with the loaded camper.
Now, thanks to a suggestion from Terry Rey, I made some pads from uhmw - ultra high molecular weight polyethylene. I don't remember exactly how he described the stuff, but it was something like 1)wears like tempered steel, 2) but easily machined, and 3) is naturally slippery.
I bought a 12"x12"x2" block for about $50, sawed out 4 2"x3"x2" pieces, and drilled and countersunk 2 G8 bolts in each. The installed pads look like this:

More pictures are here .

After a recent trip of over a 1000 miles with the camper fully loaded, the new pads worked perfectly and there is no detectable wear.

I think this is the answer. Thanks, Terry.

[cewillis]

steve68steve wrote:

So, the stupid q: do I want the overloads to be engaged 100% of the time when the TC is loaded,

I would usually say yes, absolutely - overloads should be fully engaged when TC is loaded. IMO, how 'much engaged' would depend on desired right height and how much sway you get now when driving.
If ride height is OK, but you get too much sway, you might just want and inch or so taller pads in your case. If you also want the rear of the truck higher, taller pads. You could look at Torklift stableloads pads for your truck, instead of making some.

[jefe_4x4]

Steve68,
My secondaries are hard on engaged with the TC on. The best ride I get with the truck is when the TC is on. But i have double secondaries (overloads) and still have some flex. No sway.
My counsel is to have the secondaries engaged all the time when the TC is on.
regards, as always, jefe

[jefe_4x4]

Cal,
What,..we have here....is.... form follows function. Fine job on the spring blocks.
regards, as always, jefe

[steve68steve]

Stupid question: My truck has thin factory bumpers on the overload springs. When I'm parked (with TC installed), I have about 3/4" of clearance between the pads and the springs. The truck "looks" level to me, but I've never put a micrometer on it.

It obvious from the clean spot on the overload spring right below the stop that the pad is making contact as I'm bouncing along down the road. I can rock the rig side-to-side enough just by pushing it back and forth to watch the overloads hit the pads, too.

So, the stupid q: do I want the overloads to be engaged 100% of the time when the TC is loaded, or are they doing their job engaging intermittently as I hit potholes and gusty crosswinds?

Sorry for hijack, I'm new to all this and this looks like a great mod (I even have some UHMW plastic). It's just not obvious it's going to buy me a handling improvement since I DO contact the overloads, just not steadily.
OTOH, my overload springs are operating by engaging/disengaging. Maybe it'd be smoother if instead they were operating by engaging more/ less.

[terryrey]

Hi Cal:

Cal, I'm really happy that these pads have worked out for you! Hopefully they will last as long as as you have the truck and camper, but if not, it will be easy for you to make new ones.

As many on this forum know, most trucks (not all, but many) are at or over their weight limit carrying a camper and most of us want to go down the road level, so some form of over load springs are usually fitted. Air bags work great on the road, but not so good off road, where they don't do as good a job of controlling rock and roll, but are used by many truck campers because of they are a fairly inexpensive upgrade and pretty easy to install, solving the overload issue for most campers. However, to control suspension movement on challenging road surfaces, overload springs seem to give the best performance. Why go into all of this? Because the overload spring setup Cal has engineered and installed on his truck provides an ideal solution for his rig and how he uses his camper. The only fly in the ointment was that the contact pads that came with the springs didn't last, and without contact pads the overload springs were not very useable. After trying a number of different contact pad materials, I'm really glad Cal has hit upon what appears to be the answer to contact pad requirements. I only suggested that UHMW might be worth a look, it was Cal who designed and built his pads, and it appears he did a fist class job. Terry

[cewillis]

mooring product wrote:
Are the overload springs for a trailer application?

Looks like alot of mods for a light camper. Do you need the bottom stableloads now?

No, they were designed for an earlier version of my 2500hd (maybe late 90s). They were the only ones I could find with adjustable brackets.
The stableloads help spread the camper load between top and bottom overloads. As mentioned, together they keep the truck at stock height with the camper loaded. The camper, with 365 lbs of water, 360 lbs of batteries, and other things is 2800+ lbs.

[mooring_product]

Are the overload springs for a trailer application?

Looks like alot of mods for a light camper. Do you need the bottom stableloads now?