For sure do shackles in the rear and cut the front springs a few inches, re insert them till you get your desired drop.
Also stop talking to your boss about it, he will never notice the 1” drop. Just buy the stuff yourself and do the work yourself he isn’t going to help you or allow his mechanics to do it.
No worries about the boss. My manager is on board 100%. He recently stopped driving after 20 years hitting switches and knows the challenges I face in the garages all too well. The difficulty is in getting the big boss (owner) to spend any significant amount on modifications because he's never been a driver and explaining the need to him is pointless. Shackles don't cost much, and a little spring cut is relatively simple. I even discussed that exact scenario with him (manager) yesterday - cut a little bit, try it, maybe cut a little more.
F350 coils in the front and f350 leaf springs. Or take it to a spring shop and have them re work the rear springs, I’ve done it several times on f450/550 service trucks.
Another option is take that leaf pack apart, I can’t imagine it needing that much spring. My dad only ran 3/4ton chevys when he had his wrecker/repo trucks.
Off topic but can i get an AMEN for the f450/550 turning radius!?
While not a bad idea, that'd be a no-go on spending the amount to get springs from another truck, or to pay a spring shop to work on them. The F350 stuff may be too light-duty, as well. And yes, these trucks really do need that much spring; you should see some of the crap we have to tow these days. The era of 3/4 ton repo style trucks is pretty much over. Even a 1 ton is challenged to go after everything you might need to hook. There's still dudes operating those but the'll have to turn down jobs based on what their trucks are capable of.
Turning radius, you say? It is impressive, and I swear it's the only saving grace these trucks have. Well, that and they're not Dodges.
Was gonna suggest F450 stuff, but I have no experience at all, so I'll jump on this bandwagon!
I've also noticed a few of our newer F450 trucks sit higher than my '21 F450. Maybe my springs are worn, but I don't think they're THAT worn. I've been running this truck in the same parking garages its whole service life and it hasn't gained any clearance in any of the really tight spots I go to. I still have to be really careful and I use those examples when training new guys. I'll stop at a particular spot and have them open the door and see how the light bar is within millimeters of rubbing on the overhead beam. "NEVER trust the clearance sign numbers" and "Just because the truck fits through one area of the garage doesn't mean it fits through ALL of it."
The ideas are great fellas and most of them would be candidates if it weren't for not getting authorization to spending a large amount on this project. I'm still leaning towards shackles and a little spring cut, but any other ideas are welcome. This has been an awesome quick brainstorming session and might prove useful if one was ever in the same position and actually had real money to spend.
Richard