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Post by don29163 on May 9, 2010 22:56:08 GMT -5
I want to remove the upper and lower control arms on my 68 chasis to replace the ball joints. I have the complete front beam off for blast and paint.
My qoestion is, What do I need to watch out for so I don't get injured?
Are they master splined?
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Post by mj on May 10, 2010 6:36:05 GMT -5
Don, I avoided the problem by replacing the arm and joints as a unit. And the bushings. Then the torsion bars...  I'm looking forward to an answer to your question, too. |
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Post by jspbtown on May 10, 2010 8:21:13 GMT -5
I am not sure what you mean by "master splined". Its very easy to seperate the spindles from the ball joints. I always loosen the lower ball joint nuts first so they are very loose but not all the way off. I then smack the spindle at the ball joint area and the bottoms will usually pop right off. I then remove the lower control arm via the grub screw. I then loosen the upper ball joint nuts in the same method and smack the control arms near the ball joint area and the weight of the brakes/spindle usually causes them to drop. You can then remove the entire brake/spindle assembly. Then remove the upper control arm. I pay my local machine shop $10 per control arm to remove and press in the new ball joints. Best $40 I can spend. If the front of your car has been lowered I suggest getting the clearance ball joints like these: www2.cip1.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=ACC%2DC10%2D4192 |
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Post by Gary Hammond on May 10, 2010 11:08:29 GMT -5
Hi Don, It's been over 10 years ago that I replaced all four of mine, so don't remember the exact procedure I used. But I do remember removing all four control arms using a procedure similar to the one described by Jeff (jspbtown). But instead of taking them to someone else, I replaced them in my own shop. To remove the old joints, I held each control arm in a bench vise and heated the area surrounding the ball joint with an oxy-acetylene torch before driving them out with a large heavy hammer!   Then, after the arms cooled back to room temperature, I pressed each new ball joint into place with my 12 ton hydraulic press. And it took all 12 tons to do it! A bigger press would have done it easier. There is no master spline to worry about, as there is no indexing involved. Just press them into place. Heat and a big hammer is the recommended removal process, but a press must be used for installation.  Gary Hammond,   |
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Post by don29163 on May 10, 2010 20:32:37 GMT -5
I should have been clearer. I was wondering if the end of the torsion bar, where the upper and lower control arms attach is splined. and if so, is there a master spline that only allows them to be installed in one position.
Also, what is the "Grub Screw"?
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Post by jspbtown on May 10, 2010 20:52:32 GMT -5
There really isn't a torsion "bar". It is a stack of long metal strips (called leaves). They are arranged in something like a "+" sign. The hole in the torsion arms correspond with that shape. You would really have to work very hard to get them back in any way other than what it was designed for.
The grub screws are the small allen headed bolts that hold the arms onto the torsion stack and also hold the stack centered (there is 1 in the center of each torsion tube).
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