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Old 03-27-2015, 11:07 AM   #21
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Not an expert here, but I found this discussion elsewhere talking about removing the shortest to soften ride without causing damage to suspension. I haven't read it completely but when we were kids we removed the shortest ones as well cause that's what the "old guys" said to do.
To soften ride - remove longest or shortest leaf? - Hot Rod Forum : Hotrodders Bulletin Board

I was wondering what you think about adding a shackle or slider to soften it a bit... that would be less disassembly and shouldn't affect overall strength.

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Old 03-27-2015, 11:21 AM   #22
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Originally Posted by Malkieri View Post
Not an expert here, but I found this discussion elsewhere talking about removing the shortest to soften ride without causing damage to suspension. I haven't read it completely but when we were kids we removed the shortest ones as well cause that's what the "old guys" said to do.
To soften ride - remove longest or shortest leaf? - Hot Rod Forum : Hotrodders Bulletin Board
I've done some research on shorter vs longer and haven't really come to a conclusion. Most threads on the topic seem to throw opinions back and forth without much reason or evidence.

In that particular post I get the guys point that the smaller leaf has less leverage, thus is harder to bend, but it's also affecting the smallest region. My initial guess is that if the small spring is only covering 5% of the flexible spring area, then it's probably only affecting the spring stacks function by about 5%. I would like to affect the spring stack by around 10-20%, so perhaps I could remove the 2 bottom-most spring, or a middle one perhaps.. This is all speculation, of course.

I'll go talk to a suspension shop at some point anyway, but it's nice to have multiple opinions.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Malkieri View Post
I was wondering what you think about adding a shackle or slider to soften it a bit... that would be less disassembly and shouldn't affect overall strength.
Can't say I know anything about this.. I'll do some research.
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Old 03-27-2015, 06:13 PM   #23
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The problem with school buses is the vast majority of them were built on steel springs because the ride wasn't much of a consideration.

With the vast majority of bus rides taking less than 15-minutes the need for a smooth ride was way down on the list of things to improve.

Yes some school buses came from the factory with air suspensions. Most that have air only have it on the rear but some had air suspension on all four corners. They ride like a motorcoach and don't bounce and jounce. With enough $$$ you can add that to your bus.

For those who wanted improvement but didn't want to spend big $$$ the Mor Ryde rubber shear suspension has been a great alternative. RS Suspension System - MORryde Products
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Old 03-27-2015, 06:25 PM   #24
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That Morryde system looks like a decently simple installation! It looks like it could be done in an afternoon.

I haven't found any pricing yet, but my guess is that it's not within my budget at the moment.
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Old 03-27-2015, 06:57 PM   #25
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I would remove the bottom three short leafs.

A fourth may be necessary to soften the ride.

Nat
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