tom.bullock

Has anyone here ever seen or had some installed on their pickup? Are they worth the money or is there a cheaper option? I know the F150 is'nt meant to carry alot of weight. but I just hate to see it sag with very little in the back. thanks
I should also add that I'm talking about helpers for the rear leaf spring.

keith97xlt

how much weight are you putting in there?? u have the original shocks on there still??. i had 11 50# bags of plaster loaded up in my 97 4x4 few weeks back with no sag. id look at some new shocks. dont bother with the helper springs. also check make sure your leafs is broken already and you dont realize it.

NGM

Helper springs will help some. It will lift the back of the truck an inch or so if you do an addd a leaf style. The truck will ride a little rougher too.
Shocks will not stop a truck from sagging. All they do is dampen going over bumps and help keep the truck stable. They provide almost no support, unless they are air shocks or load leveler shocks with the built in coil springs.

tom.bullock

Yeah I thought about getting some air shocks or sumthing like that. But was advised that was a temporary solution.
I want to keep the same ride feel. But just want the added support when I have a load. I have a new 18ft car trailer that will make my truck sag even when sitting unloaded. I'm wondering if my springs have lost some of thier tension?

NGM

Thats possible. New springs from ford are not that expensive. Might wanna check into that.

lawdawg

I bought my '98 F150 from my father this past January. He had added a single leaf (on each side) above the stock leaf springs. They are painted red. I asked him about them when I bought the truck, and he called them "helper" springs. But he said he added them to keep the truck from spinning the tires as much. I don't know how they work, or if they add any load carrying capacity, but I sent him an email just now to get the details.

He probably won't answer till he get to work tomorow.

BTW, they do an amazing job of keeping the rear wheels planted. I had driving the truck in years past, and it's like night and day now.

lawdawg

Okay, nevermind. They came from JC Whitney and were for traction only, not for increased payload.

They do work like a charm though.

vicjerry007

What I would do..... is not waste any money on helper springs for sure. If you've got the money, and you want air bags, go ahead. But back to what i would do, is find an 80-96 eff two or three fiddy with nice thick rear leaf packs, and swap those ones in for your existing ones.