Control arms and shocks/struts question

Different tools, different jobs.

The one Roboplex shows is to remove the STUD from the spindle (usually!) for the tie rod or ball joint.

The one TIM shows is to remove the BALL JOINT BODY from the control arm.

What you're supposed to do is take Roboplex's tool, get it tightened up to put tension on the stud, then give the spindle a whack or two ... the tension in addition to the pressure will pop that stud right out! Usually, anyway ...

THEN you use the tool Tim showed to remove the ball joint from the control arm. Unless you're like me, and replace both together.

RwP
Oh I see, I wasn't sure if in a dire situation I could use the press (Tim's tool) to remove the entire ball joint from the control arm (while it was still in the car) if I couldn't get the stud out any other way. I only say that because the tool I have wouldn't fit around the long stud on the ball joint. But after a about 1.5hrs of cycling through hitting it with the blowtorch, soaking in penetrant, and hitting with the pickle fork, I was able to get it out. Here's hoping the passenger side will be easier xD!
 
If it were stuck that badly, I'd take that as a hint to upgrade to 93+/Mk8 spindles, sway bar end links, and brakes so I could go PBRs :D:D

Which, strangely enough, I've done ...

RwP
 
Not a bad idea to change the LCA to strut rod bushings while you're at it. I don't believe any LCA come with them. The aftermarket bushings I've heard are fine. The problem is with the strut rod to frame bushings, those you want the factory Ford ones.

Joe
I've come to a dilemma with the strut rod to LCA bushings. I bought the ones from Autozone since they were the only ones that were made of rubber instead of poly, and they fit in the control arm, but it looks like they're too wide to fit on the strut rod. It seems to overlap the threads when I put it on. Did they give me the wrong part, or am I doing something wrong maybe? Either way, it doesn't seem to fit properly on the car. I've attached a photo of how it looks on the control arm. Its' part number is Duralast FA7193.
20180112_220914.jpg
 
Here's another pic of when it's on the car. As you can see it cuts off ALOT of the threads for the nut. Just want your advice on if it's normal or not for the aftermarket bushings.
20180112_225519.jpg
 
They will compress some when you torque the nut down; also, the old ones had probably shrunk.

As long as the nut gets enough engagement (depending on the year, your nut may be a through nut or a cap nut) you'll be OK - full engagement for the through nut, at least a diameter's worth of engagement for a cap nut (and yes, you SHOULD have some open space inside the cap nut; if not, the bushings aren't full enough!)

RwP
 
They will compress some when you torque the nut down; also, the old ones had probably shrunk.

As long as the nut gets enough engagement (depending on the year, your nut may be a through nut or a cap nut) you'll be OK - full engagement for the through nut, at least a diameter's worth of engagement for a cap nut (and yes, you SHOULD have some open space inside the cap nut; if not, the bushings aren't full enough!)

RwP
Ah I see, I just wanted to double check.

I'm now trying to figure out how to tighten the lower ball joint nut without the stud spinning. Any pointers? I might just go down to Harbor Freight and get a cheap electric impact gun to see if it works. I tried jacking up the spindle to hold pressure on the stud, no dice. Tried jacking up the control arm itself, same story, just kept spinning. And this is WITH anti-seize already on the threads, which should theoretically help the bolt go on easier. I don't really1 see any place where I could shove a pry bar without damaging the ball joint boot. If I can find a solution relatively soon, I should be able to finish everything up today and get it aligned tomorrow :D
 
Is your new stud with the castle nut, or a lock nut?

If the former ... it shouldn't be spinning at all, triple check you didn't cross thread.

If the latter - pull it out, clean the anti-seize off completely, and then use the impact to get it started down.

(I've owned a HF electric impact for, oh, eight or nine years now; it's never failed me save for one application, which took a 1000 lb/ft impact wrench to get loose.)

RwP
 
Is your new stud with the castle nut, or a lock nut?

If the former ... it shouldn't be spinning at all, triple check you didn't cross thread.

If the latter - pull it out, clean the anti-seize off completely, and then use the impact to get it started down.

(I've owned a HF electric impact for, oh, eight or nine years now; it's never failed me save for one application, which took a 1000 lb/ft impact wrench to get loose.)

RwP
Nope it's not a castle nut, but I don't think it's a lock nut either. Doesn't have anything that I can tell that would make it a lock nut (no nylon insert or a serrated base). Should I reuse the ones that came off the old ball joint just to be safe?
 
It's a lock nut if it's not a castle nut.

You should see impressions on it, probably 3 around, where something stamped into it deforming the internal threads.

Yah, I HATE those ...

Can't offer much help there.

RwP
 
no nylon insert or a serrated base

Those are two types...a third is known as a crimp lock, deformed to hold by grip alone, which is what you have. Where the two you mentioned are generally used to resist vibration and/or rely on clamping, a crimp lock is used where the manuf. is trying to save money on the assembly line and doesn't want to add a split-lock to the process. I try to avoid re-using them. New ones should be available at your local auto parts store, etc.

BTW, I would not substitute crimp lock w/nylocs. Nor with the ones w/serrated base....they offer no help once they're backed off a bit and that's not something you want as part of your suspension ;) Dilly, dilly.
 
Those are two types...a third is known as a crimp lock, deformed to hold by grip alone, which is what you have. Where the two you mentioned are generally used to resist vibration and/or rely on clamping, a crimp lock is used where the manuf. is trying to save money on the assembly line and doesn't want to add a split-lock to the process. I try to avoid re-using them. New ones should be available at your local auto parts store, etc.

BTW, I would not substitute crimp lock w/nylocs. Nor with the ones w/serrated base....they offer no help once they're backed off a bit and that's not something you want as part of your suspension ;) Dilly, dilly.
Okay, yeah I put the old ones on just because they were there already, but I might go out tomorrow and pick up a new pair of nylocs.

I'm also beginning to think the mechanic who transferred the old shock to the spring and mount aligned it incorrectly. I tried both struts on the passenger side, and once I got the 3 studs in the holes in the engine bay, the holes on the bottom were lopsided with the control arm. They lined up vertically, but were lopsided horizontally. Needless to say I'm a bit ticked off; I was hoping to get this done by tomorrow (I actually have to go to the hospital on monday), but since the mechanic is closed tomorrow I guess it'll have to wait another week. Would there be a safe way for me to change the alignment of the strut mount/spring by myself?
 
I might go out tomorrow and pick up a new pair of nylocs.

Pretty sure I just advised against that. I'd run the old crimp locks again before I'd substitute w/nylocs in this example.

Would there be a safe way for me to change the alignment of the strut mount/spring by myself

You paid to have it done right. Take it back. Unless you have the tools, etc. to do that job yourself, you'll have two reasons to visit the hospital ;)
 
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Pretty sure I just advised against that. I'd run the old crimp locks again before I'd substitute w/nylocs in this example.
Oh sorry, the original (old) nuts were actually nylocs, that's why I reused them instead of the new (different) crimp locks. The ones that came with the new LCAs were crimp locks.
 
You paid to have it done right. Take it back. Unless you have the tools, etc. to do that job yourself, you'll have two reasons to visit the hospital ;)
Yep that's a good point. I hope that the "good things come to those who wait" saying is actually true xD. At this point it'll be more than a week until I'll be able to touch it again (aside from tomorrow). Working on a car is probably not the best way to keep a central line sterile ;)

I'm trying to think of ways I might have screwed up, but honestly I can't think of anything. The LCA wouldn't have anything to do with the strut being misaligned, since it only moves up and down, not side to side. I can get the studs into the holes in the engine bay, but once I do the lower mount is crooked on the control arm. I tried both struts on the passenger side (haven't tried drivers side, but I'll try in the morning) and neither of them lined up. It only needs to be shifted <1in, and literally EVERYTHING else is done, that's the really annoying part xD.
 
I'm also beginning to think the mechanic who transferred the old shock to the spring and mount aligned it incorrectly. I tried both struts on the passenger side, and once I got the 3 studs in the holes in the engine bay, the holes on the bottom were lopsided with the control arm. They lined up vertically, but were lopsided horizontally. Needless to say I'm a bit ticked off; I was hoping to get this done by tomorrow (I actually have to go to the hospital on monday), but since the mechanic is closed tomorrow I guess it'll have to wait another week. Would there be a safe way for me to change the alignment of the strut mount/spring by myself?

Mount the shock at the top and just leave the bottom end hanging loose. Loosen that big nut as much as you can, leaving a thread visible. This is to relieve a bit of the tension on the spring. Then take a long screwdriver or pry bar, place through both holes, where it mounts to the control arm, and twist until it lines up. Thats actually normal.. Then as far as the through bolt going through the shock bracket AND feeding through the bushing, use your jack to raise the arm until 1 side lines up.. insert the bolt and tap on it to get it about 1" along the way.. use your jack to adjust until the other side lines up and tap the bolt on through.
When your' done with all that, then tighten up the topside nut until fully seated, and then the 3 nuts holding the assembly to the wheel well. :cool:
 
Mount the shock at the top and just leave the bottom end hanging loose. Loosen that big nut as much as you can, leaving a thread visible. This is to relieve a bit of the tension on the spring. Then take a long screwdriver or pry bar, place through both holes, where it mounts to the control arm, and twist until it lines up. Thats actually normal.. Then as far as the through bolt going through the shock bracket AND feeding through the bushing, use your jack to raise the arm until 1 side lines up.. insert the bolt and tap on it to get it about 1" along the way.. use your jack to adjust until the other side lines up and tap the bolt on through.
When your' done with all that, then tighten up the topside nut until fully seated, and then the 3 nuts holding the assembly to the wheel well. :cool:
Hey guys, sorry I've been away, I've been REALLY sick the past few weeks. But anyway, my dad took the struts back to the mechanic, and he seems to be under the impression that they're McPhearson-type struts that rotate, and that I could just stick a screwdriver through (after mounting it to the top) and it would rotate on the mount. I tried that just for kicks, and it ain't budging. He said he adjusted them again (to the diagram I provided from my shop manual), but it's still not lining up when I try to put it in. The arms on the bottom of the strut are fitting over the control arm just fine, but it's off like 1-2mm so that it's not sitting flush against the bolt hole through the bushing, and the bolt won't slide through.

I tried the method you suggested, but the threads on the top nut just keep spinning with the nut once I get it loose about halfway, so the spring doesn't decompress even a little bit. Really frustrated at this point, as I don't wanna injure myself by just re-compressing the spring myself (off the car), but I'm also not getting anywhere with the mechanic.
 
I tried the method you suggested, but the threads on the top nut just keep spinning with the nut once I get it loose about halfway, so the spring doesn't decompress even a little bit. Really frustrated at this point, as I don't wanna injure myself by just re-compressing the spring myself (off the car), but I'm also not getting anywhere with the mechanic.
A deep socket won't work for this task. You'll have to hold the top part of the shaft with a large adjustable wrench and loosend the nut with a separate adjustable wrench.
You might also consider loosening the lower arm bolt, at the frame, and see if it gives you enough play to get the shock attached. And, I don't recall if you did this, but remove the sway bar link at least from the spindle end.

Good luck with it.
 
A deep socket won't work for this task. You'll have to hold the top part of the shaft with a large adjustable wrench and loosend the nut with a separate adjustable wrench.
You might also consider loosening the lower arm bolt, at the frame, and see if it gives you enough play to get the shock attached. And, I don't recall if you did this, but remove the sway bar link at least from the spindle end.

Good luck with it.
Thanks for the help, managed to wiggle it in after pulsing the top nut with an impact wrench!

Just for clarification, does the strut rod to LCA nut need to be tightened while the car is on the ground? I know the UCA and LCA to frame bolts need to, but I'm just not sure about the Strut rod Bushing nut. It looks like it would be blocked by the wheel if I did it while it was on the ground. Could I just compress the suspension with a floor jack to where the weight of the car is resting on the jack instead of the jack stands to get the same effect?
 
Thanks for the help, managed to wiggle it in after pulsing the top nut with an impact wrench!

Just for clarification, does the strut rod to LCA nut need to be tightened while the car is on the ground? I know the UCA and LCA to frame bolts need to, but I'm just not sure about the Strut rod Bushing nut. It looks like it would be blocked by the wheel if I did it while it was on the ground. Could I just compress the suspension with a floor jack to where the weight of the car is resting on the jack instead of the jack stands to get the same effect?
I've always just tightened them with it raised. Haven't seen any issues. Good to hear you got it sorted out.
 
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