73StreetRace

Yes, it's the original L-82.

73StreetRace

I am aware of that possible issue and will pay attention to it. Thanks

LudemJo

As I stated earlier in the thread, this is one of my projects during the winter this year. How long did it take you to get it all done? I am doing some radiator work as well, but just trying to get a feel for how long this actually takes. I'm sure I will discover some "While I'm at it" things to do when I have everything taken apart and good access to many components. My plan is to take the car off the road after Thanksgiving, and get everything buttoned up and ready to go back on the road by the end of February.

Thanks for the info,
John

73StreetRace

It took me two complete weeks, about two hours a day, including cleaning, painting and building the "hydraulic press", so let's say 25 hours for both sides. ( two hours less if you exclude the press ).
Could be done faster, but IMO things should not be done in a hurry...

LudemJo

One more question...

I have read/heard that you need to torque the A-arm pivot bolts after the car is down off the jacks and the weight of the car is on the suspension. I had also heard somewhere that if you use poly bushings, you can torque them to specs on the bench. Are these statements true?

As I was looking at the front suspension on my 74 with A/C last night, I was wondering how in the heck you could get a torque wrench on the upper A-arm pivot bolts in the car. My radiator will likely still be out at that time, but jeez!!! I don't think I could even get a socket on my front bolt because the radiator is right there...almost touching the bolt.

If the two statements above are true, I may be convinced to use poly bushings, just so I don't have to deal with that frustration as a final step in completing the job.

I would love to hear from people who have done rubber bushings regarding your experiences with this. The majority of the job is well documented and achievable, this final step is what has me scratching my head.

John

gkull

73StreetRace - you did a nice job. Including the bar to keep from bending the a-arms when pressing.

One item overlooked when doing this rebuild is our lack of Castor adjustment. I machine out the mounting holes 1/4 inch on the upper bar. This allows a more rearward mounting point of the upper a-arm (More Castor) Modern vettes run 8 or more caster. My mod allows for about 6 degrees. Very stable running down the roads

Some of the vendors sell these upper bars to increase castor

73StreetRace

The answer to your first question is : Yes, you have to torque them to specs only when the weight of the car is on the suspension.
I don't know if it matters if the bushings are made of rubber or poly, I never heard that you could torque the poly bushings at the workbench.
Torquing the bolts once the wheels are back on the car is not a great challenge compared to the whole process, so why take the risk ?

73StreetRace

Thanks gkull !
Good info about machining the mounting holes. That's definitely smth I would like to try, we could hardly reach 2.7° caster on both sides at the alignment shop.
I would like to know if the mod has some influence on the camber. I like to set the front camber near -0.25°.
And if I install your mod, shall I need to add or to remove shims to keep the same camber ?

gkull

The camber and toe on mine stayed the same. It just allows mounting of the upper a-arm farther towards the rear adding Castor.

73StreetRace

Thanks a lot !