sway bar install ?? - The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network

jmil1974 · 10-11-2002, 09:33 AM

What's the proper way to install one of these for the first time? Control arm holes line up well but I'll have to drill frame/bumper bracket holes. I was thinking the truck should be on jackstands, drill the holes, insert, and tighten 'em down until it's pretty much where it should be and then put here on the ground. Is there a better way or is this good?

Thanks!
Jason

Eddie H. · 10-11-2002, 09:37 AM

The holes are already there in the frame. You just have to remove
a couple of rivets at the front frame crossmember then bolt the sway bar brackets up there.

jmil1974 · 10-11-2002, 09:49 AM

There are a couple of holes and rivets that line up if I just lay the brackets over them but once I put the bar in the control arm brackets and try, I come no where near the holes. It may be because my truck was wrecked once and had to have the frame "straightened" or it could be I got the wrong bar? I got it off a 71 or 72 C20 that was converted to tow. Either way, it lines up ok enough with the frame to drill some holes, tighten down, and be out of the way of the idler arm and other parts. Dammit . . . my kingdom for a digi-cam!

jmil1974 · 10-11-2002, 12:10 PM

So should I drill/install while jacked up or on the ground?

Yellow Cheyenne · 10-11-2002, 01:26 PM

I did one a while back. Left the pickup parked on the driveway, did not jack it up. Holes lined up without any problems.

kaycee · 10-11-2002, 01:44 PM

I JUST PUT ONE ON MY 69 SWB STEP and only 1 bolt did not line up very good but after some fudging around got it to bolt up.Can you take a longer bolt and get it or are you way off.I installed mine just like it sits

jmil1974 · 10-11-2002, 01:52 PM

LCA mounts bolt right up, frame ones are WAY off. I know I could do it either way but which would be better? I was thinking mounting it on jacks so when it's on the ground, it would "load" the bar and make it tight. Would this unnecessarily stress things? I used original brackets, new poly bushings and hardware. Would it make any difference?

jmil1974 · 10-11-2002, 02:05 PM

new grade 8 hardware, btw

**COBALT** · 10-11-2002, 03:11 PM

I just put the sway bar I got off a '68 on my '69 to finish up my front-end. I would be very careful before drilling any holes. First, the rivets people are talking about are in the cross member. Those rivets (once you grind theheads off) pop right out. The slotted holes on the frame are not the ones to use (at least for me they weren't). You use the rivet holes, and the holes in front of the slotted ones. Mine did not have a sway bar stock, however the brackets bolted right onto the truck.

I would give some serious thought about the brackets you're trying to use. Even if the front clip was damaged and the front forks had to be straightened you should still have some indication as to which holes are right and which ones are not. I can't imagine your frame being so messed up that the holes don't line up, unless your frame is wrecked. It might be possible that the dude you got the sway bar from drilled holes into his frame to install his sway bar with the wrong brackets, which would just make you make the same mistake that he did.\

Just my .02

**COBALT** · 10-11-2002, 03:12 PM

Oh, and I would put the truck up on stands just to make it easier to get underneath, and bolt it up. The control arms are going to be harder to get to with the truck on its wheels.

jmil1974 · 10-11-2002, 03:53 PM

Thanks so far for y'all's help.

It's on stands now and it won't reach the rivets or the slotted holes, it's a couple inches away. The brackets are factory off the 3/4 ton I got it off of and they seem ok and the bar isn't bent either. Could it be that since it's on jacks, the control arms are hanging and that's why they won't reach? I'm beginning to wonder if they will reach if I put it back down on the wheels . . . which brings me back to my question: Do I install this thing jacked up or on the ground? I might just try it that way and see if it fits . . .

**MikeB** · 10-11-2002, 09:19 PM

Sway bar arms should be parallel with the ground when your truck is sitting on the ground. I added a stock front bar to my 69, and all the holes were in place already. It didn't matter if the truck was jacked up when I installed it. The only time it matters is when you are trying to determine where to drill holes for end link mounts, like on a rear bar.

Jeff M. · 10-11-2002, 10:43 PM

Leave it on the ground. Or, drive it up on some 2X6's. Keep the weight on it. Makes it much easier to install. With the control arms hanging down, the angle of the bar to the bushings is not correct.

Brad · 10-12-2002, 04:11 AM

Is your bar upside down? It will fit better one way over the other.

jmil1974 · 10-12-2002, 07:48 AM

I mocked it up both ways and they way it is now is much closer.

10-11-2002, 09:33 AM	#1
jmil1974 Ain't we cute? Join Date: May 2002 Location: Friendswood, TX Posts: 700	sway bar install ?? What's the proper way to install one of these for the first time? Control arm holes line up well but I'll have to drill frame/bumper bracket holes. I was thinking the truck should be on jackstands, drill the holes, insert, and tighten 'em down until it's pretty much where it should be and then put here on the ground. Is there a better way or is this good? Thanks! Jason __________________ 69 C10 2WD LWB Fleet 350/350 power front disc conversion (6 lug disc kit from gmcpauls) and new engine, PS, A/C, fresh fluids, SHE DRIVES! FOR SALE $3900

10-11-2002, 09:37 AM	#2
Eddie H. Registered User Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: Paradise TX USA Posts: 1,200	The holes are already there in the frame. You just have to remove a couple of rivets at the front frame crossmember then bolt the sway bar brackets up there. __________________ "Negative people always seem to have a problem for every solution"

10-11-2002, 09:49 AM	#3
jmil1974 Ain't we cute? Join Date: May 2002 Location: Friendswood, TX Posts: 700	There are a couple of holes and rivets that line up if I just lay the brackets over them but once I put the bar in the control arm brackets and try, I come no where near the holes. It may be because my truck was wrecked once and had to have the frame "straightened" or it could be I got the wrong bar? I got it off a 71 or 72 C20 that was converted to tow. Either way, it lines up ok enough with the frame to drill some holes, tighten down, and be out of the way of the idler arm and other parts. Dammit . . . my kingdom for a digi-cam! __________________ 69 C10 2WD LWB Fleet 350/350 power front disc conversion (6 lug disc kit from gmcpauls) and new engine, PS, A/C, fresh fluids, SHE DRIVES! FOR SALE $3900

10-11-2002, 12:10 PM	#4
jmil1974 Ain't we cute? Join Date: May 2002 Location: Friendswood, TX Posts: 700	So should I drill/install while jacked up or on the ground? __________________ 69 C10 2WD LWB Fleet 350/350 power front disc conversion (6 lug disc kit from gmcpauls) and new engine, PS, A/C, fresh fluids, SHE DRIVES! FOR SALE $3900

10-11-2002, 01:26 PM	#5
Yellow Cheyenne Registered User Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Eastern Kansas Posts: 488	I did one a while back. Left the pickup parked on the driveway, did not jack it up. Holes lined up without any problems. __________________ '72 Cheyenne. AC, PS, PB, Rear slider window, tilt. Light yellow (grapefruit yellow according to new sales literature from '72) '56 Chevy short step V-8 (My dad bought it new!!) '70 Olds 442 convertible '70 Olds Rallye 350

10-11-2002, 01:44 PM	#6
kaycee Registered User Join Date: Jan 2000 Location: Wyoming USA Posts: 2,445	NO DRILLING REQUIRED I JUST PUT ONE ON MY 69 SWB STEP and only 1 bolt did not line up very good but after some fudging around got it to bolt up.Can you take a longer bolt and get it or are you way off.I installed mine just like it sits __________________ 2001 Silverado K-1500 2005 FXDWG stage3 69 CHEVY Short/Step 327/4L60 373 posi 63 IMPALA 327

10-11-2002, 01:52 PM	#7
jmil1974 Ain't we cute? Join Date: May 2002 Location: Friendswood, TX Posts: 700	LCA mounts bolt right up, frame ones are WAY off. I know I could do it either way but which would be better? I was thinking mounting it on jacks so when it's on the ground, it would "load" the bar and make it tight. Would this unnecessarily stress things? I used original brackets, new poly bushings and hardware. Would it make any difference? __________________ 69 C10 2WD LWB Fleet 350/350 power front disc conversion (6 lug disc kit from gmcpauls) and new engine, PS, A/C, fresh fluids, SHE DRIVES! FOR SALE $3900

10-11-2002, 02:05 PM	#8
jmil1974 Ain't we cute? Join Date: May 2002 Location: Friendswood, TX Posts: 700	new grade 8 hardware, btw __________________ 69 C10 2WD LWB Fleet 350/350 power front disc conversion (6 lug disc kit from gmcpauls) and new engine, PS, A/C, fresh fluids, SHE DRIVES! FOR SALE $3900

10-11-2002, 03:11 PM	#9
COBALT Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: Seattle, WA, USA Posts: 5,817	I just put the sway bar I got off a '68 on my '69 to finish up my front-end. I would be very careful before drilling any holes. First, the rivets people are talking about are in the cross member. Those rivets (once you grind theheads off) pop right out. The slotted holes on the frame are not the ones to use (at least for me they weren't). You use the rivet holes, and the holes in front of the slotted ones. Mine did not have a sway bar stock, however the brackets bolted right onto the truck. I would give some serious thought about the brackets you're trying to use. Even if the front clip was damaged and the front forks had to be straightened you should still have some indication as to which holes are right and which ones are not. I can't imagine your frame being so messed up that the holes don't line up, unless your frame is wrecked. It might be possible that the dude you got the sway bar from drilled holes into his frame to install his sway bar with the wrong brackets, which would just make you make the same mistake that he did.\ Just my .02 __________________ '69 3/4 ton C20 2wd-350ci/TH400 '69 3/4 ton Custom 20 2wd-350ci/4sp Manual '99 2wd 5.7 Chevy Tahoe Seattle, WA.

10-11-2002, 03:12 PM	#10
COBALT Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: Seattle, WA, USA Posts: 5,817	Oh, and I would put the truck up on stands just to make it easier to get underneath, and bolt it up. The control arms are going to be harder to get to with the truck on its wheels. __________________ '69 3/4 ton C20 2wd-350ci/TH400 '69 3/4 ton Custom 20 2wd-350ci/4sp Manual '99 2wd 5.7 Chevy Tahoe Seattle, WA.

10-11-2002, 03:53 PM	#11
jmil1974 Ain't we cute? Join Date: May 2002 Location: Friendswood, TX Posts: 700	Thanks so far for y'all's help. It's on stands now and it won't reach the rivets or the slotted holes, it's a couple inches away. The brackets are factory off the 3/4 ton I got it off of and they seem ok and the bar isn't bent either. Could it be that since it's on jacks, the control arms are hanging and that's why they won't reach? I'm beginning to wonder if they will reach if I put it back down on the wheels . . . which brings me back to my question: Do I install this thing jacked up or on the ground? I might just try it that way and see if it fits . . . __________________ 69 C10 2WD LWB Fleet 350/350 power front disc conversion (6 lug disc kit from gmcpauls) and new engine, PS, A/C, fresh fluids, SHE DRIVES! FOR SALE $3900

10-11-2002, 09:19 PM	#12
MikeB Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2000 Location: North Texas Posts: 3,475	Sway bar arms should be parallel with the ground when your truck is sitting on the ground. I added a stock front bar to my 69, and all the holes were in place already. It didn't matter if the truck was jacked up when I installed it. The only time it matters is when you are trying to determine where to drill holes for end link mounts, like on a rear bar. __________________ Mike 1969 C10 LWB -- owned for 35 years. 350/TH350, 3.08 posi, 1st Gen Vintage Air, AAW wiring harness, 5-lug conversion, 1985 spindles and brakes. 1982 C10 SWB -- sold 1981 C10 Silverado LWB -- sold, but wish I still had it! 1969 C10 (not the current one) that I bought in the early 1980s. Paid $1200; sold for $1500 a few years later. Just a hint at the appreciation that was coming. Retired as a factory automation products salesman. Worked part-time over the years for an engine builder and a classic car repair shop. Member here for 24 years! This is the very first car/truck Internet forum I joined. I still used a dial-up modem back then!

10-11-2002, 10:43 PM	#13
Jeff M. Registered User Join Date: Feb 2000 Location: Pixley, Ca. Posts: 486	Leave it on the ground. Or, drive it up on some 2X6's. Keep the weight on it. Makes it much easier to install. With the control arms hanging down, the angle of the bar to the bushings is not correct. __________________ 69 C-10 CST Short Fleet, Factory Air, BB427-400 Auto-2400 stall-tilt-cruise-Tach & Vac Gagues, 4/6 drop, power one piece side windows, Eaton posi.

10-12-2002, 04:11 AM	#14
Brad Out of the carpool lane. Join Date: Jan 2000 Location: Clark Co, WA Posts: 5,673	Is your bar upside down? It will fit better one way over the other. __________________ 1968 C-10 SWB, 5.7 Vortec/700R4/3.73 posi, Torch Red 1968 Camaro, 250/Powerglide, all original (No, I'm not gonna drop a 350 in it!...Jeez!) 2000 Honda VFR in the faster yellow! 2008 Husqvarna TE-610 1967 C-10 SWB 'Six Appeal'-Gone but not forgotten...

10-12-2002, 07:48 AM	#15
jmil1974 Ain't we cute? Join Date: May 2002 Location: Friendswood, TX Posts: 700	I mocked it up both ways and they way it is now is much closer. __________________ 69 C10 2WD LWB Fleet 350/350 power front disc conversion (6 lug disc kit from gmcpauls) and new engine, PS, A/C, fresh fluids, SHE DRIVES! FOR SALE $3900



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