How do you remove the front coil springs on the 87-96 f-series?

 

get some spring compressors and tighten them down to hold the spring copressed a little then take the retaining bolt off the bottom.... i think thats all.......

but do use spring compressors and jackstands ... so u dont launch the spring threw ur neighbors front door and knoch the truck off on ur self or somebody

 

There is also a clip with a bolt at the top/side of the spring that you have to remove

 

Bigmac,you gotta get you a repair manual!

1. Remove upper spring retaining bolt.
2. Place floor jack under the spring
3. Remove shock
4. Lower jack slowly
5.Presto!

 

You should not need a spring compressor. I didn't. I didn't even need one for the leveling springs I used to have.

Use a floor jack under the I beam and radius arm. Jack it up and put a jackstand under the frame. Then after the lower shock bolt is removed and the spring retainers top and bottom are removed, the suspension should drop down far enough for the spring to fall out. I think with the leveling coils I had to push down on the suspension a little.

What are you replacing your springs with, new ones or taller ones?

I think the lower spring retaining nut is 1 1/8 inch.

 

My experience was just like Texasguy's. Once the retaining bolts were out, I had to step on the hub to push it down far enough for the spring to fall out but its pretty simple.

 

Why do you give people advice on things you've never done yourself?

You don't need a spring compressor. Just jack the truck up and let the axle hang. There is a small clip that retains the top of the spring. There is also a large retaining nut at the bottom. Drop the socket (I think it's 1 1/8") through the hole in the top of the coil bucket and take the bottom nut out. Use lots of PB if it's rusty.

 

the manual says use a chain but compressors are easier to come by there is a safe way and a way that could launch the spring out and possibly kill somebody...

advice on things ive never done myself exactly what all have u done keep ur rude *** comments to urself

 

Wow you don't need a spring compresser to get them out , there not going to jump out & kill nobody , buy the time you lower the jack theres hardly any pressure on them u just pull them out ..At most you just use a pry bar ...Lew

 

You can't get your post count up as fast that way!!!

 

Getting a wrench on the retainer nut is a task all in itself. I bought a 1-1/8 boxend wrench from a local bulk tools house and cut the open end off it with a hacksaw. That allows you to slide on the 5 foot long piece of pipe you will need to produce sufficient torque to break the nut loose, and it easily fits in between the spring coils. You will need a massive impact wrench to produce the same TQ and just getting at the nut with a socket is a chore.

 

You don't need a spring compressor. There is no danger if you remove all the tension from the spring by letting the axle hang. If you had ever done this job before you would know that. Do you always raise the vehicle, secure it with jackstands and disconnect the battery before performing any repair like the book says?

I wasn't being rude. You'll know it when I am.

 

The bottom retaining nut is a 1 1/8" and you will not need a spring compressor. Once the truck is jacked up there is no pressure on the spring especially with the axle hanging/sagging down. Once you remove the top retaining clip and bottom spring perch nut, you may have to push down on the axle to get the spring out but I didn't need to push down on my to get my springs out as they pretty much just fell out.

 

Thanks everyone for the info! I am heading to a pick n pull here in a few that says they have some f250's and 350's. i am going to get the front springs off of one of them to level my f150 out . That is why i needed to know how to remove them easily since ill be doing it in the junk yard.

 

How do you plan on getting it aligned? Are you going to get the correct camber bushings to correct the alignment? Are you going to install them yourself or have a shop do it? Have you found a shop that knows how to install the correct bushings and align it?

You should have good answers to all of these questions before you start working on this project.