the reason i'm messing with the springs is the truck rides like a truck. it has a removable hard top kit and is my fun truck. it will never see a full load or off road. i'm removing a leaf from the springs to see what that will do towards smoothing out the ride. several years ago i bought the bushings for the eyes. just opened the box and they are a hard plastic or nylon. what ford used is a rubber bushing. i think the aftermarket bushings will transmit shocks to the frame that the rubber might cushion a bit. so it's off to ford to see if they have the bushings and how many of the kids i have to sell to afford them.
So, a 1988 Ranger will always ride like a truck.
Pulling a leaf out of the pack isn’t going to make much difference. Plus it will contribute to potential axle wrap issues (this is where the leaf spring bends from a flat U shape to a sort of S shape from the torque and breaks things. If you do pull a leaf out, I would recommend adding traction bars to the rear axle to help prevent axle wrap.
The 1998-2011 trucks tend to ride a little better because they have a different front suspension design and often softer leaf springs in the rear from the factory. Leaf springs will interchange.
Poly bushings are a lot stiffer than rubber. Most auto parts stores house brand replacement bushings are rubber.
If you’re really chasing a better ride on your 88, you have to make some major changes to the suspension. Rubber bushings and good shocks are only the start, extended radius arms in the front are supposed to help with ride too. Then you get into starting to change the suspension components like the front coil springs and rear leaf springs for something better, but there’s nothing available aftermarket that just bolts on, everything will require fabricating. But the other part of the factor is that too soft of a ride will cause body roll in corners and can be dangerous.
Basically, if you want a ride like a luxury car, get a luxury car. It’s a truck, so it has to ride more like a truck to be stable because you have a high center of gravity. A lot of newer trucks ride better than the older ones, but the suspension is so soft that they sag dramatically with weight in the bed and then ride like trash with the weight. It’s a balancing act really.