A-Arm seal help

[novice]

I recently purchased some upper and lower a-arm seals for my truck from LMC. I'm not really happy with the fit. Please review the pics and see if the look correct to you. The end caps are really a female dog to install anyway. Beside from that, the seals don't really seam to "seal" anything. They are loose fit and have a ton of play in them. Do they look correct?

[novice]

And this..

[Toms67]

Mine didn't fit tight either. I wasn't impressed with the fit. Be prepared to wipe the excess grease off. I know my old ones were loose too. I thought it was because of the age of the rubber. Good luck.

[GR8-68]

So if they fit loose what really are they sealing ? That's crazy, I am curious how mine fit now. I am going to check when I get home Wednesday

[GASoline71]

I used Moog parts on all of my front end control arm shafts and seals, ball joints, and inner and outer tie rod ends. Quality was really nice and the seals fit perfect. Not sure who LMC uses for their seals and stuff. LMC has some decent stuff, but when it comes to things like suspension parts and the lot, I will stick with Moog. I got all of the Moog parts from either Rock Auto or Summit Racing.

And those control arm shafts are a PITA no matter how you slice them.

Gary

[seafoam68]

Dont take me as an expert, but I believe they are backwards. Its been so long since I did mine, but I believe the big end goes in the hole in a arm and the "nut" with the grease fitting screws inside the rubber, with the smaller end of the rubber seal pointing towards the boss that holds the alignment shims.

[novice]

Thanks for all the reply's.

Toms67, that's what I'm afraid of. Tons of excess grease.

GR8-68, that's my thought. What are they sealing?

Gasoline71, I will take a look at Moog parts. These don't Impress me much. Thanks for the suggestion.

seafoam68, you may be right but there is no way the rubber will fit between the nut and the arm hole. I can flip them around and see if it's any better but I'm thinking it's still really loose.

[seafoam68]

Im sorry, I mispoke. I dont think it goes in the hole, but I believe they are backwards. If you notice, in the big end of rubber, there are threads. Maybe they screw onto the nut just on the back side of hole? Wish my memory was better. Lol, good luck.

[novice]

You may be 100% correct. I looked again and the rings inside of the seal are more like..... well rings. They aren't really in a thread pattern even though they do appear to be in the photos. Did you purchase yours from LMC as well?

[seafoam68]

Sorry im just getting back, I purchased all my front end stuff from local parts stores. Used moog products. I used to work as a mechanic specializing in brake, front end and just got sold on moog products. Im thinking maybe the big end of seal might fit over the lip of the hole? That would seal in the grease, I believe. The small end should fit snugly around shaft.

[Steven R]

Can someone pls post a pic of what it should look like. I would be interested to see if I did mine right. But I am thinking not so lucky, as they fit alot like the lmc ones in the pic above.

[novice]

Thank you seafoam68. I appreciate all your input for sure. I think this thread has helped me decide on the Moog parts. Between yourself and GASoline71 I'm thinking of going that direction. There is no confusion about the installation of those. Did you get the lower from them as well? They don't seem to have tapered seals as the uppers.

I'd like a picture of the LMC installed as well Steven R.

[seafoam68]

Yes, I did a complete rebuild. Threw away all the bolts and everything to keep myself from reusing anything. Made project a little more expensive, but I know everything is new. Grade 8 bolts are expensive when you are buying hundreds of them. Lol. Glad to be of help. Thats what I love about this website.

[seafoam68]

Ok, went out to garage and moved a few things. Here you are. Lol

[novice]

Yeah. They look like they fit way better.