31 roadster springs

[sphooch]

Hey Guys : Here's a question I'd like to have the answer to just for my own knowledge, I just removed the rear spring on my 31 roadster and found it has 8 leafs instead of 7 . My plan is to recondition it and reinstall it, How is the 7 leaf spring made , can I just leave the top leaf out and install the 7 remaining leafs or is the 7 leaf made differently. This is work in progress so any helpful answers will be greatly appreciated. Thanks THE HOOCH

[Tom Wesenberg]

Twin Cities assembly plant stamped the rear crossmember on the right side with a letter and number to tell the body style and number of spring leaves to be used. My 29 Tudor has "T 0" which stands for Tudor, 10 leaf. My 29 Phaeton has "P 8" which stands for Phaeton 8 leaf. Although I always read the Roadsters had a 7 leaf spring, I wonder if they came with an 8 leaf if they had a factory rumble seat? My friend has a frame with "R 8", which of course means Roadster 8 leaf. I just thought the 8 might be a mistake, but now your frame also has an 8 leaf. Do you have a factory rumble seat?

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

I have wondered the same thing Tom. While I realize the lower leaf is often referred to as the dummy leaf, it still is indeed a leaf that when added to the others does equal 8 leaves doesn't it?

[Bob C]

Here is Marco's Chart.

Bob

[Purdy Swoft]

Don't remove the top leaf as it is beveled on the edges to fit the rear crossmember. My 31 roadster has seven main leaves and a short spacer leaf that Brent refers to as a dummy leaf under the bottom. If you count the bottom dummy leaf it does equal eight leaves. I didn't ever notice the number on the rear cross member.Tom has just taught me something new, I'll have to go out and check my frame and crossmember collection.

[sphooch]

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Yes I do have a factory rumble seat . My spring clips , wich I have removed for refurbishing have the ford script stamped on them. I don't know about the frame number , It's a good point and I'll check it out . As far as this Marco chart I have no clue as to what it refers to . thanks you've been a help . HOOCH

[Tom Wesenberg]

Here is the rear crossmember with the R 8 stamp, which is a mystery. Is the "8" a mistake, or did Roadsters with rumble seats come with an 8 leaf spring?

To the best of my knowledge, only cars assembled at the Twin Cities plant were stamped on the rear crossmember for spring identification.

[Marco Tahtaras]

Ford did call the bottom spacer a "dummy leaf"! All Roadsters used the same spring assembly.

Originally Posted by Tom Wesenberg

Here is the rear crossmember with the R 8 stamp, which is a mystery. Is the "8" a mistake, or did Roadsters with rumble seats come with an 8 leaf spring?

To the best of my knowledge, only cars assembled at the Twin Cities plant were stamped on the rear crossmember for spring identification.

[Patrick L.]

I just took a look at my rear spring.. Without dropping it I can't really count the number of leaves,, but,, it appears to be about as thick as 7 leaves.. It doesn't have the bottom dummy leaf[ I didn't know it needed one] which may be there for the sole purpose of cotter pin placement..

[Bob C]

As Marco said the1937 parts book lists the Roadster spring as 8 leaf, leaves 1-7 and a dummy.

Bob

[Marco Tahtaras]

Originally Posted by Patrick L.

I just took a look at my rear spring.. Without dropping it I can't really count the number of leaves,, but,, it appears to be about as thick as 7 leaves.. It doesn't have the bottom dummy leaf[ I didn't know it needed one] which may be there for the sole purpose of cotter pin placement..

Any less that 8 leaves and the spring clip bars will tighten against the cross member instead of the spring unless of course somebody stuffed something else up there.

[Patrick L.]

OK,, now I'm really confused [ normal].. Does the 'dummy' leaf go toward the body or axle ?? In the picture I don't see the dummy leaf on the bottom [ u-bolt saddle] unless the leaf is long enough to not be shown in the picture.. My spring does appear to sit in the crossmember as deep as in the picture and it does have a short top leaf as in any other spring assembly.. The retainer clips appear to be OK.. I just cleaned and re-assembled what was there and it looked like any spring I've ever worked on so I thought everything was normal..

[Purdy Swoft]

The dummy leaf is on the bottom or axle side. You should be able to see it when looking under the car.

[Patrick L.]

OK, thanks,, I thought that is what they meant.. I'm missing it.. I also couldn't find any numbers on the crossmember..

[barnstuf]

If you check the Ford Parts List it is Ford part number A-5585, Leaf (rear spring dummy) used with A-5560-C.

[Marco Tahtaras]

Originally Posted by Patrick L.

OK, thanks,, I thought that is what they meant.. I'm missing it.. I also couldn't find any numbers on the crossmember..

Study the pic a little closer. The height of the spring between the spring clip bars is lower than the leaf that extends beyond the bars.

[Patrick L.]

Ooops,, you're right,, I see what you're talking about.. It looked to me like that was still part of the u-bolt clamp saddle.. That leaf isn't any too long is it ?? I went back and really looked the rear cross member over again to see if I missed something there,, I still don't see any stampings..

[sphooch]

Ok I'm back to square 1 , I have 8 leafs total . the smallest one is on the top, opposite the leaf with the schackle eyes. I have no short dummy leaf on the bottom. the judging standards refers to roadsters with 7 leafs, no mention of a dummy leaf, any wonder as to why that is??

[johnsor]

I have a 30 Roadster that had 8 leaves and I thought it LOOKED too high in the rear. I followed Marco's spring diagram with spring leaf lengths indicated and installed 7 leaves. It now looks perfect and rides better.