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9/11/19: Next on the list is to get the springs mounted. I found it easier to mount the front of the spring, the side with the shackle than the back that uses a single bolt. This bolt is very tight and with the front being supported by the shackle, it helped with the alignment of the bolt to the frame mount. After mounting the drivers side, I found that the front shackle had a bit of movement that was not in the passengers side. I had not noticed this before and will need to be replaced.

On to the front axle and new king pins. With the steering knuckle bushings already set in place. Starting with the passengers side, I placed the knuckle with the thrust bearing and tried to insert it in the axle. There wasn’t enough room. Further inspection revealed that the upper bushing had slipped down slightly which prevented me from fitting it into the axle. I was able to remedy the situation by using a draw file technique to file it level with the steering knuckle, I then chamfered the bushing, blew it out and it fit like a glove. Now I was able to fit it to the axle and insert the king pin. Using a wood clamp to remove the slack, I measured the gap between the top of the axle and the bottom of the upper bushing. The gap was .009 thousands of inch. I inserted .005” total shims and reduced this gap to .004” which is within tolerance. Before reassembly, I coated the axle where the king pin rides and the tapered retaining pin with a coat of anti seize. I also packed the thrust bushing with grease prior to reassembly. Once reassembled. I inserted the dust caps, expanded them with a small ball peen hammer, then staked them in four spots with a center punch to help prevent them from falling out. I repeated this procedure for the drivers side. This side only required one shim to get the assembly within tolerance. After a good greasing with the grease gun, the axle was ready for installation.

Positioning the axle under the truck by myself, I used my floor jack to raise it. This however did not work too well as it wanted to topple. Once I got the axle contacting the springs, it stabilized it. After positioning the caster shims and inserting the u-bolts, it became apparent that one u-bolt on each side, was not going to be long enough to stick completely thru the nut. This was due to the spring liners that add a bit of height to the spring stack. I foresaw this with the center bolt but not with the u-bolts, an over-site on my part. It was however long enough to continue reassembly knowing that it would have to be changed before her next test drive.

I reinstalled the shocks and called it a day! More to do but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.