LCA pivot shaft removal

[rrockchrger]

Hello all. Can anyone tell me the best way to remove the pivot shaft on the lca short of having a mechanical press?  From what I understand it should be removed through the back side where the torsion bar hex is, right?  I'm trying to save the pivot and just replace the bushings. 

I'm still pretty new here and I couldn't find a previous thread on this.   Any help would be much appreciated.

[chargerbr549]

It should come out the front of the control arm and the easiest and the messier way to do it is to just burn out the bushing by just using a propane torch to get it started, make sure you have the garage doors open or do it outside at night so your neighbors won't see the haze.

I don't remember anymore but I think all you have to do is clean it all up when its apart and then just lube the polyurethane bushing and slip it together without having to use a press.

Kevin

[Mike DC]

   
Look very carefully at the K-frame's mounting area for those LCA pivots.  The K-frames are known for cracking/tearing out in that area.  The K-frame's tubes for the LCA pivots (welded into the K-frame at the factory) comes loose from the sidewalls of the K itself. 



Even if your K-frame is not cracked or torn (yet), it's a good idea to put some extra welds/gusseting in that area if you've got everything apart.  I suppose the O.E. show judges would complain, but there's no functional reason not to do it on an average street driver. 

There are a couple other areas on the front end that could use the extra metal work if you're so inclined, like the steering box mounts for example.  There are threads on this issue in the past. 

[rrockchrger]

Thanks for the tip Kevin.  I may end up burning out the rubber and just hammering away.

Mike, you wouldn't happen to have any pics of the gusseting/welds you were talking about would you? 
I planned on boxing the lca's, welding subframe connectors and a few other things that are sold as aftermarket bracing but I didn't know about the k-frame and steering box problem.  I'll search for the old posts first I guess to see if there are any pics there.  Thx. 

[Mike DC]

The common way to gusset the LCA mounts is to slip some washers (thick ones with wide diameters) over the LCA tubes in the K-frame, and then weld them into place.  You'd be welding the outer edges of the washer to the K-frame sidewall outside of the tube, and you'd be welding the LCA tube ends to the inner edges of the washer holes. 

Remember to get both ends of the tubes in the K, not just the rear ends.

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The steering box mount is integrated into the left side engine mount, and the whole mess will flex from side to side a little when the car is together.  That translates directly as steering slop.  the factory welds in this area are usually "boogered" to the extreme, and even then it's not the greatest triangulation to begin with. 

But you gotta be very careful with adding bracing in this area because the clearance is so tight when the car is assembled.  The motor, the steering box, the factory exhaust manifolds, aftermarket headers . . . all these things cram into this one tight little area. 

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Here's a weird one:


The passenger side engine mount can crush outward (bending out towards the passenger side of the car) if you happen to play "General Lee" with the car a lot.  The weight of the motor is too much if the suspension gets bottomed-out hard from the car getting into the air.  One of the surviving TV-series Lees has the motor literally hardware-store chained to the K-frame because the right side motor mount gave out. 

Of course this problem isn't very relevant for most of us.  But I thought I might as well throw it into the conversation since we're on the subject.

   

[rrockchrger]

Thx. You know your stuff!  I'm going to try to weld these areas as well after a little more practice with my welder.  I won't be jumping any creeks tho..I think this car is going to weigh about 3 tons when I'm done with her.