wheels rubbing lower control arm

[sparks427]

Well as it turns out that because I put the 2.5" drop spindles and the 3" drop springs on my 71, the wheels now rub the lower control arms on tight turns, and it seems to do it on the front and back on both sides.I'm running the factory 15x5" wheels and would like to continue to do so. Is there a fix for this?

[PGSigns]

There are a couple of fixes. Ad a shim to space the wheel out, this is the least recommended. Grind a little of the control arm, this is a better solution. And the best way to fix it is to change the wheels.
Jimmy

[sparks427]

Ya I figured getting bigger wheels would fix it, any idea as to how much I can bring off b4 I sacrifice the control arms strength?

[dec010974]

well sparks427, im glad to know that someone else is feeling my pain. i bagged my 1971 c10 and added belltech 3 inch spindles and the same thing occurred with the stock rally wheels and lower control arms. i didnt want to grind too much of the control because it may weaken the arm. im currently running a spacer which is ok, i but it wont be a permanent solution. you can always buy new control armswhich may be cheaper that buying wheels. that is an option if the stock rally wheels are dear and special to you. since my stock rally need new tires, im gonna opt for new wheels and buy new tires for the after market wheels. good luck. threads are worthless with out pictures.

[sparks427]

I have tossed getting tube arms since I'm going to be bagging it but I haven't fully decided...but no your not alone! Haha

[Tx Firefighter]

I've been cutting the gutters on the control arms for like 20 years now, on a lot of trucks. Never had an issue.

Why not trim yours until they clear ? Drive it, enjoy it, and if it makes you nervous, every time you're under the truck, look closely for signs of cracking. My money says it won't ever crack. Worst case, you're already leaning towards buying new aftermarket arms anyway. Its not like its gonna fail catastrophically. It would begin to crack if you weakened it too much.

[sparks427]

I might just do that and see how it does. I was hoping to keep the 15s and do white walls, I always liked that old school look.

[dec010974]

I can only speak for myself tx firefighter, this my first bagged vehicle. I'm doing all the mods myself. Threads and information I take with a grain of salt due to the fact that's have no prior experience. I'll attempt to grind more of the control arm, to fully clear the wheels. As it stands now, the inner wheel weight are trashed. It would be nice if we could see some pics of how much to grind or an an example of what's need to clear the inner wheel, so that nothing scrubs. And thanks for the knowledge mr. Tx fire man.

[Tx Firefighter]

Originally Posted by dec010974

I can only speak for myself tx firefighter, this my first bagged vehicle. I'm doing all the mods myself. Threads and information I take with a grain of salt due to the fact that's have no prior experience. I'll attempt to grind more of the control arm, to fully clear the wheels. As it stands now, the inner wheel weight are trashed. It would be nice if we could see some pics of how much to grind or an an example of what's need to clear the inner wheel, so that nothing scrubs. And thanks for the knowledge mr. Tx fire man.

First, if you've ground your wheel weights, consider having the tire shop use stick on weights next time for added clearance.

The way I do it is to put my jackstands under the control arms so the suspension is weighted (rather than hanging) and turn the wheels back and forth while I lay under there to see where it's rubbing and grind a little at a time, checking frequently, until they clear. Ironically, I have better than 10k pictures in my photobucket account of trucks I've built but I can't find one that specifically shows the process.

I suspect Keith has pictures of it though. He and I have discussed this a lot before. I'd imagine he will be along and read this thread some time.

[sparks427]

Lol isn't that how it usually works txfirefighter! But I get what your saying I think that will be today's project and it sounds like dec010974 are having the same issues. I can see where my weights are trashed as well, but a buddy of mine works at a Firestone a few blocks away so that makes it nice! Lol

[dec010974]

Thanks for sharing this information Tx Firefighter & Sparks427. i assumw keith is lolife, right?Please let me know how this turns out Sparks427. Thanks again.

[lolife99]

Originally Posted by Tx Firefighter

I've been cutting the gutters on the control arms for like 20 years now, on a lot of trucks. Never had an issue. Why not trim yours until they clear ? Drive it, enjoy it, and if it makes you nervous, every time you're under the truck, look closely for signs of cracking. My money says it won't ever crack. Worst case, you're already leaning towards buying new aftermarket arms anyway. Its not like its gonna fail catastrophically. It would begin to crack if you weakened it too much.

Tx Firefighter knows what he is talking about.^^^

I did my first truck lowering in 1986.
I always trim the "gutters" off the lower a-arms.
Even if you run large diameter wheels,... you never know when you might have to throw a set of 15's on.

These pics are of an a-arm already trimmed.
I used the blue tape to show the area that I trimmed.
Hope this helps,...

[lolife99]

Here's a set I did on member 72BlckButy's truck in his "Blank Slate" thread:
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=353633

I also remove the bumpstop but retain the steering stop for the spindle to contact.

[SCOTI]

Even w/bigger diameter wheels, this process might be required when using OE stamped a-arms ( I had to trim mine farther back when I switched from 15" ralleys to 18" TT2's). Just don't do 90° cuts or there can be a failure. Use a angle grinder w/a thick grinding wheel to get a gentle curve vs the point of a 90° cut.

[sparks427]

Well it looks like I did it right! Thanks for the reference pics lowlife99! Took it for a drive earlier and didn't seem to have any issues!

[Tx Firefighter]

Well there you go. Problem fixed for free and you didn't buy 1000 dollars worth of tubular control arms either. Win-win.

[dec010974]

I really want to thank you guys for chiming in. Lolife99, Scoti, Tx firefighter, and sparks427, you guys probably saved me a lot of coins. I guess I owe you all a couple of beers. I can't wait to get in the garage and start grinding. If you ever make it to Miami, Florida, rounds are definitely on me.

[sparks427]

Hey I'm down for that!! But likewise a big thanks to all the guys who responded! I'm always down for free fixes lol. I may get tube arms eventually but won't be for a while haha

[dec010974]

Good news. I wanna report that today, I followed the directions of Tx Firefighter, lolife99, & scoti and ended up with great results. Now my bagged 1972 c10 has the full turning radius from ear to ear. Guys I can't thank you enough. I saved at $1200.00. Thanks again.

[Tx Firefighter]

(A little rant here...)

I'm glad you're happy with the results and have that 1200 dollars still in your pocket. So many guys read magazines or read the Internet and get the impression that spending money on aftermarket parts to solve a problem is the only way. The magazines are supported by their advertisers, not the people who buy them. As an example, I pay 16 dollars for 24 issues of Hot Rod Magazine. That's 75 cents per issue delivered to my mailbox. Basically, all they are doing is delivering a catalog full of ads to me. So, therefore, they always push buying stuff from their advertisers rather than solving problems the cheap way.

Back in the late 80's I got involved in lowered trucks. Back then, you ordered your drop spindles and installed them and clearanced the control arms until you had full lock to lock steering. There were no aftermarket solutions so we used common sense and solved the problems. And we drove many miles and many years before the aftermarket ever thought of selling us expensive control arms that didn't need grinding. They wanted my money to solve a problem that me and a zillion other guys had already solved with a grinder years ago.

Same deal with cutting coil springs. We got a bunch of guys on here say to "do it right" and never cut a spring because its unsafe. They've read and heard that for so long that it's become gospel in their minds. The people who started that crap were the people trying to take your money and sell you a shorter coil spring. The last thing they want is to lose the sale of a set of springs because some guy uses a grinder to modify his stock springs. But, you got guys like me, Keith, and Scot and so many other that have been cutting coil springs for 20 plus years saying it works fine.

As I've gotten older, I have evolved to the point that I only believe what I have seen and done myself or the word of those around me who have proven themselves worthy of being a mentor to me. I am wary of any suggestion that I spend money on something until I prove it necessary myself.

(I'm done now, you may resume your regular Internet viewing schedule)

[oldman3]

Right on bro...Jim

[lolife99]

Originally Posted by Tx Firefighter

(A little rant here...)

I'm glad you're happy with the results and have that 1200 dollars still in your pocket. So many guys read magazines or read the Internet and get the impression that spending money on aftermarket parts to solve a problem is the only way. The magazines are supported by their advertisers, not the people who buy them. As an example, I pay 16 dollars for 24 issues of Hot Rod Magazine. That's 75 cents per issue delivered to my mailbox. Basically, all they are doing is delivering a catalog full of ads to me. So, therefore, they always push buying stuff from their advertisers rather than solving problems the cheap way.

Back in the late 80's I got involved in lowered trucks. Back then, you ordered your drop spindles and installed them and clearanced the control arms until you had full lock to lock steering. There were no aftermarket solutions so we used common sense and solved the problems. And we drove many miles and many years before the aftermarket ever thought of selling us expensive control arms that didn't need grinding. They wanted my money to solve a problem that me and a zillion other guys had already solved with a grinder years ago.

Same deal with cutting coil springs. We got a bunch of guys on here say to "do it right" and never cut a spring because its unsafe. They've read and heard that for so long that it's become gospel in their minds. The people who started that crap were the people trying to take your money and sell you a shorter coil spring. The last thing they want is to lose the sale of a set of springs because some guy uses a grinder to modify his stock springs. But, you got guys like me, Keith, and Scot and so many other that have been cutting coil springs for 20 plus years saying it works fine.

As I've gotten older, I have evolved to the point that I only believe what I have seen and done myself or the word of those around me who have proven themselves worthy of being a mentor to me. I am wary of any suggestion that I spend money on something until I prove it necessary myself.

(I'm done now, you may resume your regular Internet viewing schedule)

Well said!

[SCOTI]

I agree w/a disclaimer....

Aftermarket arms were originally made w/the same specs as OE stuff but carried the hefty price tag. Guys can now shop smart & get arms w/performance benefits OE arms can't match (additional caster, better camber curve, wheel base change). So not all arms are equal; some are just OE replacement, some offer improvements.

Same thing w/aftermarket truck arms. The orignal units worked because of their materials & construction. Aftermarket tubular arms came out @ higher costs & w/less deflection because of materials & construction. But, that deflection is kind of needed to minimize binding (because of those materials & contruction methods). It took a while for someone to come along, listen, & build T/A's that minimized deflection w/o sacrificing articulation. Again... not all aftermarket T/A's are equal.

[sparks427]

All wise words! Just one more reasons I like this page, all kinds of different views that get ya to the best spot for the one asking the question! Awesome advise guys!

[Beaumont@]

I ran into this problem with 3 in drop spindles and 15 in wheels so I had the gutters trimmed. For piece of mind I boxed them as well. If I could do it over I would have saved myself the hassle and just ran with 2 1/2 drop spindles, but hey it worked .

Trimmed for wheel clearance, boxed with 3/16" plate, all tig welded.