Re-attaching leaf springs

[Scooter]

Me again. I'm looking for bushings to re-assemble the slider on my trailer and i looks like that won't be a problem, but I'm wondering if there should be anything on the other end of the leaf spring. The spring just kind of extends the flat part a little further than the side with the bolt and there's a loop on the slider that it fits into. It doesn't look too tight though. I'm guessing there's some movement there as the spring flexes. It looks like a really good spot for some sort of sacrificial plate or grommet but there wasn't anything there when I took it apart. On the other hand lots of things on the boat have rotted and fallen off on their own. I can imagine it rubbing through and re-rusting pretty quickly. Am I worried over nothing?

[Scooter]

To whit:

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[Charles Brennan]

Scooter, The slider type leaf spring  (as opposed to double-eye leaf springs, more usually associated with tandem suspension arrangements) only requires a nylon bushing on the bolt that goes through the forward eye end.  The other end, (the flat part) rests up against the slider assembly and the bolt that goes through the slider assembly hole on the slipper end is used only to keep the spring from getting loose in the event of severe bouncing.

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As you can see from the above pic, the leaf spring flat end is resting against the underside of the slider assembly.  You can also see the daylight between the top of the leaf spring and the bolt going through the slider assembly shackle.  A bushing on the rear slider shackle buys you absolutely nothing.

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Looking at it from directly underneath, you can see the bolts only purpose is to keep the spring from bouncing loose, like if you went over a railroad track, or other severe bump.

I prefer slipper springs, as opposed to double-eye springs with shackles, since they don't tend to "bottom out" like a double-eye spring that reaches the end of it's maximum travel.  I feel this is much gentler on the hull when going over unexpected bounces.
You are correct in thinking that the leaf spring will rub against the underside of the slider assembly and (for example) wear off the galvanizing and/or paint.  But the next time you are on the road, the spring will rub off any rust that occurred, so think of the leaf spring as self-cleaning!

Hope this clarifies,
Charles Brennan

[Scooter]

Thanks Charles. Gotta say the more I find out about leaf springs the less I trust them. In my case one end is held in place with a compressed bushing and the other rattling around almost free... There isn't even a washer on the eye end to stop the bolt from sliding out. On the other hand there are millions of them out there and I've never heard of leaf springs working loose so I'm going to try not to worry about it.

[Scooter]

On the same topic, it turns out that hat style bushings for Dilly trailers from a long time ago are hard to come by. Is there any reason not to use a generic bushing/bolt set that fits a 7/8" x 1 3/4" eye?

[Riley Smith]

I would imagine Dilly outsourced stuff like that themselves..... I'm lucky enough to have a local trailer parts place that has EVERYTHING!!! Oh boy do I remember springs. I had BOTH sets break on a trip. (Hey, they looked like I could get ONE MORE TRIP out of 'em!!!!) In my defense, we moved the unloaded trailer from one place to another. Not a good decision, as a load helps dampen some of the vibration and it did both springs in. If you think railroad tracks are bad on your BOAT, think what they're doing to your TRAILER. You only get so many chances to do some things, so I chanced it and paid the price. I've heard of people coating them with a layer of grease to slow the corrosion but can't say if that would help or not. More probably not.