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My conversion/rebuild is finished (??-more on that later). To
update- , I installed Global West upper control arms with tall spindles &
12" brake rotors on my 1972 el camino. It took quite a bit longer to
finish than I expected, but what doesn't. I am very happy with the
results.
I haven't had a chance to really wiring it out, but in general
handling is much better. I can easily go 60 mph thru a curve that was
white knuckle time at 50mph before. (Maybe the worn front end parts had
something to do with this.) And the car remains flat thru the turn.
It goes where pointed and stops much better than the stock discs.
The spindles dropped the front end 1" on each side (I measured b4 &
after). Also the wheel/tire is about 3/8 of an inch (measured with
wheels straight ahead) closer to the fender than before. I have lost a
little in turning radius. With a Monte Carlo SS box, the diameter of
the tightest circle I can make is ABOUT 37 feet ( for some strange reason
it is a bit tighter going to the left than to the right) . Before, the
diameter was about 36 feet. Not much, but I can definitly tell the
difference when turning into a tight spot.
Special tools - Tie rod & ball joint pullers- I couldn't make pickle
forks work for me & the pullers were cheap (harbor freight $5.00 each),
INNER spring compressor - I didn't need it for disassembly but had to
have it for reassembly (harbor freight $14.00) 27mm socket for the
spindle nut. Air tools are sooooo much nicer during disassembly.
Time - Disassembly was about 3.5 hours.
Reassembly was about 14 hours.
I only worked on it 1-2 hours per day. Includes doing several things
over, and working for an hour or 2 (TRYING to reinstall springs) and NOT
really accomplishing a thing. Does not include chassis degreasing &
paint of new parts or installlation of bushings & ball joints.
Parts - I used spindles from an 86 Caprice Estate wagon, calipers &
hoses from an 80 Camaro. Stock 72 calipers WILL bolt up to the spindles
& probably would work. Stock hoses are too short.They need to be about 1
1/2 inch longer. I could not make a full (stop to stop) turn with the
stock hoses. The camaro hoses are the right length, BUT do not lock into
the 72 frame brackets correctly. The 72 bracket is too thick. I looked
at many different hoses, but could not find any that had the correct
length & would clip into the bracket. Next trip to the wrecking yard
I'll retrieve some thinner brackets.
THE BAD NEWS - My frame is sagging. The alignment shop could not
get the car into specs recommended by Global West. The best they could
do on camber is -1 degree on each side. It still runs OK, but I will
have tire wear problems until I get the frame pushed out (Anyone know
what that costs?) . The frame will have to wait, as its gonna take me a
while to pay off the rebuild parts.
I was aware that some frames sag but thought that my 120,000 mile
never really molested/wrecked elky would be immune. Wrong! My nickels
worth, if you are gonna invest in a costly long term restoration, get
the frame checked early. Just think of it as another long term
investment.
If anyone has questions, fire away.
Last thing - I definitly do NOT like the downhil look. I need to
drop the back end about an inch. Does anyone have suggestions on
springs? I'd prefer MOOG or TRW but let me know what works.
rick (Abilene Texas)
72 El Camino TPI 350/700r4
ACES #00140 TEAM CHEVELLE #00038
http://members.home.net/jimmy4/rick1972elky.html
http://chevelles.com/showroom/ricks%20motor%20-L
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