My "new" old truck

[Alan L.]

Ford used two axle setups on F250 4x4's. One, is an independant, twin I-beam. The second, is a solid front axle.

The twin- I-beam rode nice, but had a tendency to wear the front springs badly. When that happens, the front end sags. The front end will sit low, and the front tires will lean. If you look at one from the front, the front tires lean in.

The only way to fix the worn IFS, is to go with new or rearched springs. Many other parts may be worn also. The bummer is, the front will sag again... That is what happened to me. After doing this once, I swapped over to a straight axle.

Another thing about the twin-Ibeam IFS, is it takes an area about the size of Texas to manuever; the turning radius is much larger than it is for the straight axle.

Robert, I have taken a good look at my truck and yes, I do notice now that the front wheels seem to lean in slightly, that is, the top of the tires are closer together than the bottom. Hardly noticeable, but detectible. I had not noticed that the front end was low, but probably because I didn't have anything to compare it to. The hood is nearly head high, so it sure didn't seem low. The springs are leaf springs and they do have that negative arch.

Another question I meant to ask is, how does the diesel take to sitting for weeks at a time without being fired up. I will only need it every now and then, but when I need it I need it. Sometimes my Kubota will go a month or more in the winter without being started and it doesn not seem to care.