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First suspension rebuild- Im stuck please help!
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Author:  radarsonwheels [ Thu Sep 28, 2006 11:30 pm ]
Post subject:  First suspension rebuild- Im stuck please help!
1973 Swinger 198 cid.

This is my first try at restoring a car to be a daily driver, and it is going great, but now I'm stuck!

Background:
When I got the car it had BALD tires, and almost everything else was ready to go too! I replaced 4 ball joints, 5 tires, 4 shocks, torsion bars, tie rod ends and sleeves, all 4 brake drums, front wheel cyls, master cyl (manual type, made sure to get the one that locks in with a rubber grommet), all soft brake lines, some hard lines, shoes, brake hardware. I bought a stabilizer bar end link bushing kit with bolts and bushings, only to discover that my car doesn't have stabilizer bars. The drag link seemed ok and the bushing on it looked good. Now I still haven't had $ to get an alignment, but it goes straight and steers good. It holds a curve about as good as I expected it to, and ditto for bumps.

Problems and Questions:

The car has 10" x 2.5" drums in front, 9" in back- so I don't expect miracles, but I also don't know what is normal. When I stop hard the action is linear and smooth, and predictable, BUT under less than urgent brake pressure from my foot especially when slowing from 40- 60 mph the car has more of a pulsing or mild shuddering to it. I didn't expect anything but smoothness from new equipment. Is this how brake fade feels thru 4 drums? Is it normal?

Also, when braking while backing up for the first time after going in reverse, (or when braking going foreward after driving in R) there is a loud noise coming from the front end, from both front wheel areas. When I had the knuckles off the upper control arms I pried at the UCAs and they felt solid where they pivoted off the body- so I don't think its them. Ive been told that the car goes down the road a smidge crooked so that would explain why the noise is a little louder from the driver side.

Strut bars- I think these might be my problem!
My haynes manual shows them, and mine are worn to hell, butI don't see bushings for them for sale anywhere. Who has them? Id love to buy the whole piece if possible! mine are mighty rough. They are the only part I didn't replace and no one seems to sell them unless I'm just slow.

So in closing to this long long tale of woe and redemption, Who sells strut bars?, and could mine being shot to hell be the reason for the slack in my front ene when braking in parking situations (banging noise) AND the reason for the lack of smoothness in demanding slow-down situations?

Thanks to anybody for helping out a new guy!

Kevin in Philly
Author:  dakight [ Fri Sep 29, 2006 4:37 am ]
Post subject: 
Summit Racing has them in both urethane and rubber. Manufacturers they represent are Prothane, Energy Suspension, and Moog.
Author:  slantvaliant [ Fri Sep 29, 2006 6:18 am ]
Post subject: 
Mancini has an assortment of strut rods - steel and aluminum - and various bushings.

http://chucker54.stores.yahoo.net/suspe ... assis.html
Author:  Eric W [ Sat Sep 30, 2006 9:21 pm ]
Post subject: 
Sounds like you need to replace the strut rod bushings and also the lower control arm bushings. The only way to do this is removing the lower control arms and strut rods as an assembly. You need to have a machine shop press out and press in the new control arm bushings.
Author:  xwaynestaticx03 [ Sat Sep 30, 2006 9:41 pm ]
Post subject: 
eric is 100% right on the lower control arm bushings if you do them. the strut rod bushings arent hard to do at all, but you may need air tools. i purchased my strut rod bushings through year one for pretty cheap. maybe $10 -$15 for both if i remember correctly. you may have 2 different choices, a 2 peice and a 1 peice bushing. get the 2 peice, much easier to install. good luck!
Author:  Matt Cramer [ Sun Oct 01, 2006 10:59 am ]
Post subject:  Re: First suspension rebuild- Im stuck please help!
Quote:
Problems and Questions:

The car has 10" x 2.5" drums in front, 9" in back- so I don't expect miracles, but I also don't know what is normal. When I stop hard the action is linear and smooth, and predictable, BUT under less than urgent brake pressure from my foot especially when slowing from 40- 60 mph the car has more of a pulsing or mild shuddering to it. I didn't expect anything but smoothness from new equipment. Is this how brake fade feels thru 4 drums? Is it normal?
This seems to be more a case of slightly out of round drums.

Brake fade generally feels like nothing. You push the pedal and it behaves as normal, but the car doesn't stop.
Quote:
Strut bars- I think these might be my problem!
My haynes manual shows them, and mine are worn to hell, butI don't see bushings for them for sale anywhere. Who has them? Id love to buy the whole piece if possible! mine are mighty rough. They are the only part I didn't replace and no one seems to sell them unless I'm just slow.
Year One and some of the other restoration shops have rubber ones. I'm running Energy Suspension poly bushings that I got as part of a kit.
Author:  radarsonwheels [ Sat Oct 14, 2006 11:21 pm ]
Post subject:  Thanks Everybody!
Great, thoughtful responses. Good Info, great forum!

Thanks for the help!

Kevin
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