[RocktimusPryme]

Originally Posted by Skip Fix

Even getting the, back in the car can be a pain because the mounting ears squeeze together from being bolted in for decades

For my IA Camaro I used some all thread and washers and nuts to gently spread them for the same reason.

I did the same exact thing. I made a thread about on here it and showed some pictures and got harangued about possibly cracking the mounting ears.

I stand by my statement that this is a job I would happily pay a shop to do if the price was right. Just because it sucked, and coil springs activate my anxiety anyway. I looked at that Ridetech tool, its very nice but you would be well on your way to having a shop do it at the price they want for it.

If I were to give more advice about doing it yourself, I would say getting the mounting ears dead clean helps a lot. Its such a tight fit, and if you use urethane like I did it doesn't compress at all. You need every fraction of space you can get, so there cant be any built up road grime left in the way. using rubber might make it a little easier because it will compress a little.

[HWYSTR455]

I did them on my 72 GTO, used a press, and a large impact socket to keep the control arm from squeezing together. Still not fun.

On install, if it doesn't get pressed square/straight, you may have an issue on the inside of the joint shell lining up with the 2nd opening. C-clamp helps if it's too wide. If too close together you can keep pressing the bushing in until it gets closer to lining up, then whack it with a hammer to start it. Then C-clamp on the outside to press rest of way.

You can burn the rubber out of them and collapse the shell, but the heat can cause integrity issues.

The OE control arms after years of service, or even sitting, are questionable from an integrity standpoint to begin with, I personally don't trust them. If it's an OE type resto and you don't beat on it you should be better off, but still don't trust them.

It sux when the ball joint is loose in the arm too, pretty common. The 'saver' type ball joints are a little larger to help with that, but if it's cracked, it will just crack more.

Then you have to check for cracks in other areas, and even then, back in service for a period of time and they can still crack.

The repops are 'good', I've held them in my hand, and 'appear' like the originals. The ones I saw were round bushings, but that might not be a bad thing. I would still trust them more than a used set.

I suggest replacing the repops' ball joints though, unless they specifically say Moog on them. (I don't think they do).

Honestly, if it's not going to be judged just use tubulars. They are better in all aspects except for OE look.



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[HWYSTR455]

Originally Posted by RocktimusPryme

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If I were to give more advice about doing it yourself, I would say getting the mounting ears dead clean helps a lot. Its such a tight fit, and if you use urethane like I did it doesn't compress at all. You need every fraction of space you can get, so there cant be any built up road grime left in the way. using rubber might make it a little easier because it will compress a little.

This is true, and you can smear a little assembly lube on them to help.

They go in easier at a specific angle, which is outside it's normal operating range. Like, jack the thing way up, slide the ends in the tabs with the control arm pointing as far down as possible, and you can use a dead-blow to whack at the ball joint area. (And wherever else needed). It's usually tight towards the outside of the tabs, so sliding it in more from the bottom get around that. Some.


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