Towing and rear suspension opinions needed

[capev86]

any stock height 1/2 ton w/ rear coils.....cleanest looking, most effective route is to just swap in the 3/4 ton rear coils. my dad had a 72 burb 1/2 ton back in the 80's and he did the upgrade because the stock rear coils were shot. his truck had the overload leafs. after the swap the truck sat a bit like a hot rod / drag racer while unloaded but with our '71 holiday 23 footer w/ 800 pound tongue weight those overloads never came into play after that.

the 3/4 ton springs are 2000 lb rated per side instead of 1400 lb rated so that gives you an extra 1200 pounds of capacity. they will ride stiffer but not too bad since you are only stiffening up the rear where you need it. it will definitely help with body roll too. the overload springs were a novel idea, but don't add as much capacity and the truck has to sag a good deal before they even come into play. i recommend the 3/4 ton rears for any 1/2 ton truck hauling more than trophies. they were optional equipment on all coil rear trucks including the 2wd blazer....natural choice for a "tow package".

you can use lowering springs for a 3/4 ton if you have a mild drop but in your case stock springs would be best. i bought the 3/4 ton HD option rear coils (2750 lb per side) for my 72 burb 3/4 ton so that some day if i want to pull big toy haulers i can. but they are probably too stiff for right now and WAY too rough for a 1/2 ton axle. you will find those standard 3/4 ton coils are perfect with your big camper hitched up. no extra parts to maintain unlike and aux air bag system....just swap and go!

i'd also suggest you replace the rear trailing arm and track bar bushings with polyurethane ones. they are an inexpensive replacement for the stock worn out rubber.....cheap insurance to make sure there is no excess play in the back end of your tow rig. LMC carries the parts, but i had to go to CPP to get the poly kit for the bigger track bar on my 3/4 ton burb. trailing arms are the same.