The rear axle was a bit heavier than thought, so back on wheels we rolled it into the garage...

What happens if you really need to lift something heavy? The local hardware store does a "next 3 hours 20% off" campaign. I've never seen the hardware store that crowded: Cars all over the place, no shopping carts left - did we miss the zombie apocalypse warning in the weather forecast? Anyways, a nice way to get stuff for online prices, but without shipping cost

After disassembly, rust removal, painting, lubricating and re-assembly one leaf spring look nice again (red stuff on the right one is just dust), the other will follow soon:

The original color of the van (under the heavy layers of paint) is a special mercedes mix, so we picked the closest RAL color. The hood (again after rust removal, rust protection primer and final color), looks quite nice (upper trim strip not mounted yet):