My 002&003 S/S Springs came with a 5/16" locator pin/bolt. The last time I had them apart the pin/bolt on the right spring was bent almost into an S shape, All the bolts and clamps were tight.

Has anyone ever drilled the leaf spring locator pin holes bigger? They came 5/16" and I was thinking of drilling them to 3/8". Can this be done without losing strenght in the springs?

That is only 1/32 to aide larger. I wouldn't worry about it. You will also have to drill the location hole in the spring perch for larger head. I know that the stores like NAPA and Carquest have 3/8 spring tie bolts.

Drilled mine out with a carbide tipped drill, was to hard for standard high speed. I had the same problem but my 5/16 pins broke into. Used a hardend 3/8 socket head cap screw. Had to turn the head down about 1/16 diameter to fit locator hole.

You can use a die grinder with a round stone also to open-up the hole. May be easier and faster than a drill bit.
Good Luck!!

I had a similar problem with my leaf springs. I was able to open up the holes using a very good HSS drill bit (Walters), lots of cutting oil and slow speed. Instead of the standard spring bolt, I used a 3/8” hex socket head capscrew. These are a lot tougher than the standard spring bolt and the head fits nicely in the spring perch without having to drill it out. I used a longer than required capscrew so the smooth shank portion rests inside the holes of the leaves. Then just cut off the excess.

Garth