Betts Truck Parts & Service, a West Coast supplier of heavy-duty truck and trailer parts and repair services since 1972, recently expanded its custom U-bolt manufacturing program to ship nationwide. The move takes a service once limited to in-person branch visits and opens it to fleets, mechanics, and vehicle owners across the country.

Betts has manufactured U-bolts to exact customer specifications at its Fresno, California facility since 1970, building millions of them for commercial trucking and fleet customers throughout the West. Until now, getting one meant visiting a Betts branch in person. With the new nationwide shipping option, customers anywhere in the United States can order custom U-bolts online and receive them within days, according to the company.

"We've been bending U-bolts to exact spec since 1970, but until now, you had to come see us in person," said John Devany, General Manager of Betts Truck Parts & Service. "Opening that up to the whole country means a fleet in Ohio or someone building a lift kit in Texas gets the same custom fit and the same fast turnaround our branch customers have relied on for decades.”

Each U-bolt is manufactured to order rather than pulled from stock. Customers specify round, square, or semi-round bends in Grade 5 (3/8 inch to 9/16 inch rod diameter) or Grade 8 (5/8 inch to 1 1/4 inch rod diameter) unplated steel, built to the inside width and leg length their application requires.

Grade 8 U-bolts carry torque ratings up to 1,300 ft-lb, rated for heavy commercial suspension work. Most custom orders ship same-day or next-day from the Fresno facility, with ground, expedited, overnight, and freight options available to all 50 states.

The expansion also broadens the market Betts serves. Where the company's U-bolt program has historically centered on leaf spring replacement for semi-trucks, trailers, and commercial fleets, nationwide shipping extends the same manufacturing line to lift kits, lowering kits, spacer and block suspensions, motorhomes and P-30 chassis builds, vans, off-road vehicles, and hot rods.

Betts pairs the expansion with a safety message the company has built into its U-bolt program from the start: U-bolts should never be reused when servicing leaf springs. Stretched or fatigued U-bolts lose clamping force over time, which can lead to axle shifting or spring failure. Betts recommends re-torquing new U-bolts within 500 miles of installation.

Custom U-bolt quotes are available at bettstruckparts.com/custom-u-bolt-quote.