Speaking of U-bolts

[Douglas]

hey-Hey!!!,
Who makes the best U-bolts? I am going to be swapping out my 4.10 open rear for a 3.07 Power Lok'd one and will need new bolts. For something like this I want top quality, even if it is twice as expensive as the usual grade. I'll likely need them a bit longer since there is an additional spring and bumper installed( not usually in contact unloaded ) if it matters.
cheers,
Douglas

[RumbleFish]

i get all my u-bolts made at a loacl semi/trailer shop. they make them for big rigs, so i figure they will be ok in my 1 ton. they are usually cheaper than buying from the parts store too.

[PapeCAT]

I have mine made custom at sacramento spring near me. They have worked great i.e. haven't broken!

[pulltilbroke]

I get all mine made at Inland truck parts in Lincoln NE, Now would be the time to upgrade to 5/8 bolts. All you gotta do is drill out the botto plate a tad

[Douglas]

I get all mine made at Inland truck parts in Lincoln NE, Now would be the time to upgrade to 5/8 bolts. All you gotta do is drill out the botto plate a tad

Now that's a fine idea. Now of course it isn't just drill it out...the ID of the axle isn't going to change, and drilling will shrink the space by half the diameter increase in both directions. I do know where I can get some time on a Bridgeport though...
cheers,
Douglas

[Douglas]

hey-Hey!!!,
Soooo, I crawled underneath with a ruler. I thought I had round ends for some reason...and of course turned 90-degrees. So, they're square-topped and 9/16 diameter with 2 9/16" inside width. So...looked at truckspring.com( local folks ), and they've got 5/8" grade 8's for $22 a side. Seems quite reasonable to me. Now what I should get to make the axle swap smoother is some new shock mounts and modify them to minimize down-time; can't picture the patience to do it any other way. Going to re-bearing the new rear too...not going to be comfortable any other way. Which ov course leads me to the next question...
cheers,
Douglas

[PapeCAT]

I had some 5/8" custom u bolts made for the rear of the W350. Just had to run a 5/8" bit through the spring plates to hog em out a bit and it worked great. Beefy.