Let's not forget how StinkBug got it's name either. SOA in the rear with torsion bars cranked and the back end sat *much* higher than the front and he was quickly dubbed 'StinkBug' by Randii cause that's kinda what it looked like.

Have you see the SOA tech article? On a 1st gen, it's hard to even it out as you can only get about 3" out of the front.

I would not suggest removing leaves though. I know of a few people (myself included) that did that and promptly bent them up the first trip out. I think you could get away with removing (or flipping over) the over-load leaf on the bottom. I think George R. removed his without a problem, though he did add airbags to retain his load carrying ability. Don't remove a leaf from the main pack though, it will bend if you do (check page 3 of the article above).

--Dan