I went through this on my 1/2t 54 Jimmy about 8 years ago. I kept the longest leaf and the master leaf then removed every other leaf in each set. Since mine has a torque tube there is no concern about spring wrap which should be concidered when reducing leaf number with an open drive line. Some bolt on traction bars would be required to alleviate the spring wrap. I used that poly liner between each leaf but it was worn and squished out in about two years. What happened in my case is; due to the roughness of the leaf's surface and the sharpness of the ends of each leaf (where most of the pressure is applied) the liner was cut and ground back to metal on metal in no time. I also had to retighten the "U" bolts several times. The solution was to thoroughly clean the leafs of rust and debris then polish both sides of each leaf last few inches with red and blue 3M Scotchbrite ROLOCs and knock the sharp edges of the ends. It has been another six years with no apparant deterioration, no squeeks, and a conciderably smoother ride. I concidered switching to mono leafs but because of the expense and mixed reviews I opted for this inexpensive "shade tree" approach. If I where to do this again I would have my local spring shop drill out my leafs for nylon buttons. I hope this helps your decision process. Best Regards, KB.
