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Replacing Rear Lower Control Arms


kdml

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Thanks Tom,

That's what I thought, but I wanted to be sure that age and changes in shape over time would not have any negative impact on using different arms.

I did drill holes in the rubber, removed the center sleeve and burnt the remaining rubber out with a torch. All that was left was the outer sleeve, which I decided to press out. The sleeve got hung up right at the end and the arm started to bend. Before I realized that the movement I felt was not the sleeve, but the arm, it had bent more then I would like for reuse. The bad news is that I had just finished boxing the control arm and will need to box the replacement. For the remaining sleeves I am going to perform the same steps, but instead of pressing out the outer sleeve I am going to cut a slot in the sleeve and peel it out; which is how I did the lower bushing on the front suspension

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When you replace the bushings put a light coat of anti-sieze on the outer surface. It will help lubricate the pressing.

I asked some professionals to do that for me on some '55 T-Bird control arms and they told me those parts don't rotate. I said "Just humor me."

Doug, I made a neat driver to get those front lower inner bushings out. You an I may be the only ones riding on new ones.

Bernie

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I took my rear control arms to my local welding shop, and for $25.00 they pressed in the new bushings without damaging the arms. I did the rest of the front and rear suspension work myself, but the rears are certainly challenging. I have a press in my home shop, just not the right accessories to support the rear arms properly.

I don't see any issues in replacing just one arm at a time. If it were coil springs and or shocks, that would be a different story.

2002-12-31230000-384.jpg

Edited by Rob J (see edit history)
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  • 1 year later...

Wow, this was a helpful thread...I'd like to know about this mystery tool to remove / insert bushings on the 65 front/lower suspension like "60FlatTop". My rubber (front, lower control arm bushing) is rotting away. So I plan to drill out as much of the rubber as possible. Then what??? And how to get new ones in? Thanks folks!

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  • 2 weeks later...

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