First Generation Firebird-L Mailing List ......................................................................... Is there enough room to remove the shaft before starting on the bushings or does one of the bushings need to come out first? I ordered Spicer "professional grade" ball joints as I had heard good things about them. The old uppers are bolted in so someone has replaced them in the past.
----- Original Message ---- From: Larry *.* <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: First Generation Firebird-L <[email protected]> Sent: Friday, May 9, 2008 1:51:33 PM Subject: Re: [FGF] front suspension work First Generation Firebird-L Mailing List ......................................................................... You don't need to press the old bushing out. You can, but there is another way, which I used. Drill out the rubber between the outer bushing and the inner bushing. Once you drill a series of holes through the rubber, the center bushing and rubber will drop out, leaving behind just the outer shoulder bushing. Some people use a torch to melt out the rubber. That will work too, but don't heat the a-arm. Remember what part you are saving. Cut the shoulder bushing lengthwise with a hacksaw or sawsall. I mean score it along the inner axis where the cross shaft went through. When you are 90 percent through, stop and use a hammer and cold chissel to crush the bushing. It will drop right out. You need a press to install the new part. You must use a support piece between the gap, or the arm will be crushed when you use the press. DSE supplied a 1" length of steel angle for that purpose. The idea is to prevent the arm from crushing as you press the bushing in through the two holes. If you fail to support it, the unsupported hole will crush inwards. The Harbor Freight front end kit is <somewhat> adequate to press this part in. A press properly set up will work well too. Just be mindful of not crushing the arm from fauilre to supporting that gap. The ball joints can be pressed out using the Harbor Freight too also. On one aftermarket ball joint I removed, I had to do some grinding on the excess oversized shoulder because it was larger than the receiver cup. A pro kit borrowed from a mechanic friend didn't have a workable cup either. This is one job I would do myself rather than have done. Front end parts are a precise press fit. You don't want someone in the back room wailing away on your parts with a three pound hammer. That will wallow out the holes and cause lost of the interference fit. Look for welds. That was popular correction for loose ball joints after the hammer-monkey damaged the fitment. There are differences in ball joint outer dimensions. Some are 6 to 10 thou oversized. Some from Mexico are undersize and will be loose. Be careful what you buy. Larry Dan LeBarge <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: Kind of scary when they finally let go. Also, it is kind of difficult to press the old bushings out since you have to press them out from the inside of the arm. --------------------------------- Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. Try it now. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Submissions to Firebird-L: <[email protected]> Unsubscribe from Firebird-L: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Help: <http://FirstGenFirebird.org/firebird/Firebird-L.html> Classifieds: <http://FirstGenFirebird.org/ubb/> Owner Pictures: <http://FirstGenFirebird.org/show/> Donations: <http://FirstGenFirebird.org/store/cart.mv?999999> FGF Merchandise: <http://FirstGenFirebird.org/store> ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Submissions to Firebird-L: <[email protected]> Unsubscribe from Firebird-L: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Help: <http://FirstGenFirebird.org/firebird/Firebird-L.html> Classifieds: <http://FirstGenFirebird.org/ubb/> Owner Pictures: <http://FirstGenFirebird.org/show/> Donations: <http://FirstGenFirebird.org/store/cart.mv?999999> FGF Merchandise: <http://FirstGenFirebird.org/store>
