2003 Ford F250 Buildup - Deaver Suspension

A puller was used to remove the Pitman arm.
Josh was able to remove the leaf spring with the front bumper still mounted to the truck. (It's easier, but more time consuming, to remove the bumper first.) Here's the two-leaf pack being removed.
Josh was able to remove the leaf spring with the front bumper still mounted to the truck.
Here's the whole front suspension, minus hardware. The track bar bracket and Pitman arm both drop down 4 inches to restore geometry, while the longer sway bar end links maintain stability.
Here's the whole front suspension, minus hardware. The track bar bracket and Pitman arm bo

The Deaver spring pack is much thicker than the factory two-leaf pack, but it allows for a more progressive rate and better ride quality. These trucks are notorious for riding rough and Deaver's springs and the new Bilstein shocks will help smooth out the bumps.
The Deaver spring pack is much thicker than the factory two-leaf pack, but it allows for a
The front of the leaf spring mount was the most difficult, but Josh was able to manhandle the heavy spring pack in place and got the bolts torqued down.
The front of the leaf spring mount was the most difficult, but Josh was able to manhandle
New, longer U-bolts were necessary to secure the thicker leaf packs.

Josh then bolted in the new track bar drop bracket using the factory mounts in the frame.
After bolting in the passenger side spring and shocks, Josh mounted the new, longer sway bar end links and got the driver side fully bolted in. The passenger side would have to wait until the truck was on the ground.
After bolting in the passenger side spring and shocks, Josh mounted the new, longer sway b
Josh removed the U-bolts and removed the factory leaf spring pack. Like the front, the rear Deaver spring also uses more leaves than the factory pack. Now we're riding on seven springs in the main pack compared with four from the factory springs.
Josh removed the U-bolts and removed the factory leaf spring pack. Like the front, the rea

Two screw jacks were used to position the spring and axle so the two could be lined up and the U-bolts installed. The last two Bilstein shocks were mounted to the frame and axle and the truck was ready to be lowered to the ground. The final step was to mount the sway bars with the truck on the ground before all of the bolts were double-checked and torqued to spec.
Two screw jacks were used to position the spring and axle so the two could be lined up and
USA Forged 20x8-inch wheels and 35-inch Nitto Trail Grapplers look like they were made for this truck. They're not too loud, give us more off-road grip than we know what to do with, and we know that the forged wheels are heavy-duty enough for anything we can throw at them.
USA Forged 20x8-inch wheels and 35-inch Nitto Trail Grapplers look like they were made for

FROM THE DRIVER SEAT
We didn't have any idea that the 6.8L V-10 was hiding so much potential until the Banks Power Pack was installed. Even though the truck remained rather quiet, the results were amazing. Merging is now a breeze! Mileage was also improved in the weeks after the Banks install and before the lift. (We don't have enough miles on the truck with the lift to know how the wheels and tires have affected mileage yet.)

The look of the 4-inch lift and Nitto 35s is exactly what the truck needed, and the ride is even better than stock. Expansion joints in SoCal highways are still felt, but large jolts are absorbed much better. The new Trail Grapplers don't whine at highway speeds and are incredibly smooth at speed, so we're very happy on that front, and the USA Forged wheels were the right call since the offset provided left us just the slightest bit of rubbing on the passenger leaf spring at full steering lock to the right. Since there's no rubbing at all on the left, an adjustable track bar might eliminate it altogether. The turning radius is not good, but that was the case before the lift, so nothing changed there. The only drawback is that new brakes are practically mandatory since Super Duty brakes are already taxed when the truck is loaded. We'll address that in a future issue.