How to question
 

I am planning on going to the junk yard today to find the parts to do the front power disc brake setup (spindles, arms, tie rods etc). My question is, while I am there how do I get the upper/lower arms apart with the spring knocking me in the head? At home I have the jack to do that, I was wondering if there was a trick or do I need to bring a bottle jack, wooded blocks and so on? Thanks all!

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Sorry about the subject line, guess that is something that you can not edit.

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I would use a jack on the crossmember. Lower a-arms on the ground. Remove lower ball joint nut. Wack the chet out of it till it breaks loose. Remove nut. Jack it up slowly till the springs fall out.

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I taped my grinder on a stick stood back about 8' and cut the u bolts.:lol:I know it's not the right way to do it but it's my way and it worked. Did'nt really seem like there was a lot of pressure on them anyways. I think they make a spring compressor that you rent from Auto Zone. I was to just lazy to get one. You could hook a chain around it and hook it to something if you think it going to come flying out of there. :uhmk:

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Thanks guys! Now that you mean it I do have a spring compressor that I used for my mustang, I'll see if it fits. They work good just take forever to get them on and off, but better then losing a body part lol.

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..find a 72 if possable,borrow there torch cut the frame off at the firewall and take the whole thing home and disassemble it at your leasure...my "02"..

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LOL dont take the nut off. Just loosen it up Whack it on the flat spot on the spindle. The nut will stop it form coming off. then put your jack under it use a 1/2 long handle ratchet and take the nut off.

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I know. Edit time ran out.:m6:

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Good idea, maybe in conjunction with the spring compressor and a jack it will be "safe" lol

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That would be the ideal situation but I have no way to transport it home. The bed is off my truck and I dont know anyone crazy enough to let me drop a greasy, rusty old front end in their truck/van hahahaha...I need new friends:lol:

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just tie some rope around the spring then tie it to the frame so it can't jump out.....take the lower ball joint nut off and swing your BFH, as you stay out of the way of the lower arm.....

I went and got a spindle from a junk yard, the guy pulled it with a pair of pliers, adjustable wrench, and a BFH :lol:

as stated previously, there doesn't seem to be much tension.

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Hope that will be true for me :)...doesn't look like today though, I am still working.......at least my plans for my truck are going better then my plans to be independently wealthy :lol:

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you get the second deal figured out, please let me know ;)

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:lol: I am sure that this truck is not a good "financial" investment

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:agree::gi:

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I did'nt read you have no way of tranporting it.:waah:You mean you hav'nt cut your parts truck in half and made a trailer out of it yet?:lol:

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Hahahaha...no parts truck here....I dont really live in a neighborhood where I have room for things like that. I have also been reading up on all the parts I will need and I am still a little confused, so more research needed. I am going to be running discs with a power booster, but I would like to have the 73-87 parts (I think the years are correct) so that replacement parts are more abundent.

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71 and 72 will work also. If your hard up.:uhmk:

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It's not an urgency so if I have to find some parts now and get some later then that is fine as well, but thanks for the heads up, I am adding it to my list of potential parts.

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Most guys go for the '73-'87's partly because they are more abundant in the salvage/junk yards. I seem to remember that the lower balljoint for the '71-'72's are more expensive than the '73-'87's also.

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The lowers are the same the uppers are a $14 difference.

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Thanks guys, one step closer, well probably two since I know what I am hunting for.

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I would let you drop it in my truck. But then again the comute might be rough,..

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Nice offer. What about tieing it on top of the old ladies car. I saw a guy at the lumber store with a 6x16 beam on his wagon.

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thanks for the offer fleetside! that is most gracious! what I might end up doing is renting a truck from Lowe's I think they are like $20/hour.

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I can dig it, I have had a couple of 2 X 6 X 16s in my convertible Mustang once :lol:

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I wouldnt bother taking the suspension apart at all. Take off the tie-rods first. I would then unbolt the U-bolts from the top(engine compartment) and let the springs open up and relieve the pressure.....they cant fly out unless the thing is in the air at least a couple feet. Then just unbolt the upper a-arms at the frame and you have yourself a whole assembly.

Now make sure your back is feeling pretty good, and throw it into a cart:lol:

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Thanks Protrash! I am picturing this in my head at the moment, once I get there I think it will make more sense.

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I didnt read everything thoroughly, so Im assuming that you did NOT want the crossmember assembly. My method leaves you with upper and lower control arms and a spindle still attached with as much hardware as you can carry. I took mine apart this way along time ago when re-doing the suspension. When you get done you can grab the control arm cross shafts and have about an 80# sling of truck parts:lol:. And it can get squirrley on ya too...watch the fingers and shins and jewels and so forth.

Just hack the brake lines off...flex lines, anyway. I'm also assuming that you would be standing in front of the truck and not on the side in case the assembly kicks out some from the spring releasing.

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I like the "make sure your back is feeling pretty good part".:lol: That's probably the most important part. Here he's all worried about the springs nailing him.:lol:

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I dont know about you daverod, but Im no spring chicken anymore. If I tried to push this stuff around Im usually feeling it the next day.......then:barn: for medicinal purposes only;).

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I here ya. 15 years of house building wares on you.:smoke::lol: I'd much sooner just work on my truck.

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On releasing the springs, I had the whole crossmember out, So I set the loader bucket on my tractor on top of it to slightly collapse the springs, Whopped the ball joints with 2 BFH's to loosen them, then raised the loader up SLOWLY so the springs would not fly off. Farm Boy Logic

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Well I am just back from the yard, got all ready with you guys' great advice, and guess what NOTHING. There weren't many trucks and was there was either 8 lug or 5 lug and then ALL the upper control arms were taken and other hardware. Of course I left my little list home of what parts I needed and what years. :waah:

Not a complete loss though, I got myself a fuel door from a 1993 1500!

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I had a hard time finding one too. All the trucks around here were heavy halfs or camper specials.

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same here, and there really weren't that many of them. I think I probably need to make a trip to Chula Vista there is a bigger yard there.

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Keep your eye out for a sub. too.

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Ok, I only saw one there and it had been raided already. Was interesting to see that there were probably 50% more Fords! Don't know if that is just the driving preference here or.......... :lol:

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Fixed the first one at least...

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Thanks Mike!!! you're the man, I swear I wasn't :barn: when I typed this up!