Remove 3" lift and return to stock

[Inman789]

I just purchased a 1973 K10 with what appears to be a 3" lift kit installed and my intention is to return it to stock height configuration.
Of course the manufacturer of the lift kit is unknown and original parts are long gone. I have looked through some lift kit installation instructions in an attempt to "reverse engineer" the process.

It appears there are 3" leaf spring blocks in the back, tall poly rear cab bushings and I assume replacing the front springs is common for this type of lift?
Do you think it would be good to begin sourcing front leaf springs, new shocks, cab mounts, etc? Or are there other points I need to consider before jumping in the deep end?
Good source for stock front leaf springs on a K10? I see some advertised with 2 and 3 leafs, would the 2 leaf version be stock and 3 leaf be HD?
Thanks

 

[45tt]

I really like the direction you’re going with your k10. Reverting back to stock specs is pretty cool. I briefly skimmed over the leaf springs at Summit Racing and they do have several options for your truck, however I’m not sure if any of them are factory specs. It would need further investigation to see what options Summit or other similar vendors have for your truck.

Just off the top of my head I would recommend changing out both front and rear springs. One thing I noticed on mine when I lifted it was the original rear springs in the back had 40+ years to compress and when the new springs were put in the front it made the front sit higher than the rear. Not sure if converting back to stock springs would create the same issue, but if the springs were all new, it should look & sit properly and the springs should compress evenly over time.

A few other items/parts to consider are new axle U bolts, if the front drive shaft was modified in any way for the lift and possibly replacing the front sway bar stabilizer set up.

Good luck with your build, I’d love to see the progress on it.

 

[Inman789]

Thanks. I was wondering about the rear springs. If I can find a good source and the price (including shipping) isnt crazy, I may go ahead and replace all four. Looking in LIM and they have the U bolts, nuts etc so atleast the parts do seem to be available.
Any thoughts on the front springs (stock K10) having 2 or 3 leaves?

 

[75gmck25]

If you go to the rockauto.com site you can look at various stock leaf spring options for your truck. It’s usually best to try to match them to a stock spring that matches your GVW if you plan to actually use the truck to haul anything.

If you also want to improve the the ride you might also look at some of the aftermarket soft-ride springs.

Another challenge is that GM used springs with different bushing sizes over the years, and it can be a little hard to figure out exactly which ones you have. I used energy suspension poly bushings and had to buy one full kit plus some other separate sets to get the right combination.

 

[Inman789]

Thanks, looking at Rock Auto today. Also came across a SD Truck Springs website.

Good points on the bushing sizes, I can appreciate what a pain that is. Went through that with control arm bushings on my 71 Chevelle.

 

[Joshua Keith]

@Inman789 Awesome that you’re going back to stock. Would love to see some before and after of it. I believe the best you’ll be able to do as far as oem cab bushings would be LMC. Otherwise you’ll have to go with polyurethane. They’re fine but can have some cab squeaks until they settle in. Most OEM front springs that I have seen have 2 leafs. I think the 3 leafs may be needed if you had a 454 but a 2 inch would probably help with the ride quality. Also what you could do is get new leaf springs for the front and remove the rear blocks and see how she looks. If the front looks too high, then add a 1” rear block to the back. A 1” block is much cheaper than 2 new rear leaf springs.

 

[Inman789]

Thanks Josh, and thanks for everyone that has replied!
Summit appears to only have springs for various lifted setups, so I ended up ordering a set of 22402 springs from Rock Auto (they had different prices and listings under the same part number for Dayton and Husky - but it appears they are the same).
Anyway, front springs are coming and will remove the rear spring block and see how everything looks.
Just going away from the 33" tires to 235/75R15 will lower it quite a bit
Red vinyl flames are going away along with rusty aftermarket grill.
Thanks again!

 

[Joshua Keith]

Oh man that thing is going to look sweet. Don’t like the 33”s? I love the stock height with 33”s

 

[Camar068]

doh nm, I've got 32" on mine stock. Fills the fender well's better than the 31's

 

[shiftpro]

I guess I can't talk you into long travel shocks and cross over steering...

 

[78C10BigTen]

I think that setup looks great as it! Not low, not high obnoxious, perfect.

 

[Grit dog]

I agree with @78C10BigTen.
It’s a 4x4 and it looks good like it is.
But to your question OP, it doesn’t look like it has a body lift so I’d confirm that your cab mounts are stock.
Front end, new stock springs and then replace whichever steering piece is dropped. Either the Pittman arm or drag link should have a drop for the lift.
Rear, do whatever you want. Easy enough to just pop out the lift blocks. But idk if stock height had any block.
Drop the front back down then decide how much if any you want to take out of the rear height

 

[Inman789]

Thanks @Grit dog and @78C10BigTen , have been focused on other areas and didn't consider the steering.
Wife and I are old, have a small horse farm and cant climb into things (especially with our Border Collie) like we used to...stock height it is for us.
What do you think?
Maybe I need a stock steering arm?

 

[gmbellew]

I may be wrong, but I think that is already the stock steering arm and pitman arm. For a about a 3in lift, you don't HAVE to change those items.

 

[Inman789]

thanks @gmbellew