Chevrolet 1977 light duty truck Service Manual page 323

Spring Leaf Replacement
1. Place spring assembly in a bench mounted vise
and remove spring clips.
2. Position spring in vise jaws, compressing leaves
at center and adjacent to center bolts.
3. File peened end o f center bolt and remove nut.
O pen vise slowly to allow spring assembly to expand.
4. W ire brush and clean spring leaves. Inspect
spring leaves to determ ine if replacem ent is required;
also replace defective spring leaf liners at this time.
5. Align center holes in spring leaves by means o f
a long d rift a n d compress spring leaves in a vise.
6. Remove drift from center hole and install a new
center bolt. Peen bolt to retain nut.
7. Align spring leaves by tapping with ham m er,
then bend spring clips into place or install bolts and
spacer if so equipped.
N O T E : Spring clips should be bent sufficiently to
m ain tain alignment, but not tight enough to bind
spring action.
Leaf Spring Installation
1. Position spring assembly to axle. Make sure
spring is in position at both spring hangers.
N O T E : T he shackle assembly must be attached to
the rear spring eye before installing shackle to rear
hanger.
2. Install spring retainer plate and " U " bolts.
Loosely install retaining nuts, but do not torque at this
time.
3. Jack fram e as required to align spring and
shackle with spring hangers.
4. Install shackle bolt an d nut and again reposition
spring, if necessary to align front eye. Install front eye
bolt and nut. Torque h ang er and shackle fasteners to
specifications.
NOTE: Make certain that the bolts are free-
turning in their bushings prior to torquing.
5. Lower vehicle so that weight o f vehicle is on
suspension components and
specifications.
6. Lower vehicle and remove from hoist.
U-Bolt and Anchor Plate Installation
Fig. 3D-17 illustrates the m a n dato ry sequence o f
tightening U-bolt nuts. Tighten diagonally opposite nuts
to 40-50 foot pounds, then tighten all nuts as shown to
specifications.
CAUTION: See C A U T IO N on page 1 o f this
section, regarding " U"-Bolt fasteners.
SHACKLE REPLACEM ENT
1. Raise vehicle on hoist. Place adjustable lifting
device under axle.
2. Remove load from spring by jacking frame.
3. Loosen spring-to-shackle retaining bolt, but do
not remove.
4. Remove shackle-to-frame bracket retaining bolt
then remove shackle bolt from spring eye.
5. Position shackle to spring eye and loosely install
retaining bolt. Do not torque retaining bolt at this time.
6. Position shackle to fram e bracket and install
retaining bolt.
7. Rest vehicle weight on suspension components
and torque both shackle
specifications.
CAUTION: See C A U T IO N on page I o f this
section, regarding these fasteners.
8. Lower vehicle and remove from hoist.
N O TE: " U " BOLTS MUST BE LOCATED
AROUND THE A X L E TUBE SO T H A T
THE LEGS PASS THE SPRING SEAT
W ITH IN .060.
torque U-bolt nuts to
)
bolt reta in in g nuts to