To anyone contemplating removing his front coil springs by himself...
I had never removed coil springs before, but was able to do it properly and safely today with information that I found by searching this forum.

I took photos of the process, and present them here...with step by step instructions...for anyone who is considering doing the job for the first time.

You'll need the front of the car supported by jack stands at the frame, with the wheels removed.
Make sure you have the jack stands extended somewhat high, because you'll need room to remove the springs.

1) First of all, the compressed springs have a lot of energy in them and need to be secured safely for this procedure.
The method I used was to secure the springs to the frame using a heavy duty chain.

I went to Lowes and got two lengths of chain, 3 feet long, and two 3/8 inch bolts with large washers and nuts...

http://img519.imageshack.us/img519/326/picture019.jpg


One chain probably would have been sufficient, but I decided to use two chains to secure each spring while I removed it.
Overkill? Probably, but I'd rather err on the side of caution.

I threaded each chain through 3 coils of the spring, then wrapped the chain around the frame and secured the ends together with the bolts, washers, and nuts...

http://img25.imageshack.us/img25/5659/picture025.jpg


2) Next, disconnect this nut and bolt holding the anti-sway bar to the lower control arm. Doing so will allow the lower control arm to fall away free after you have everything loosened...

http://img14.imageshack.us/img14/3164/picture027y.jpg


3) Now, you need to remove the shock absorber. There is one nut on top of it and two small bolts on the bottom of it, beneath the lower control arm.
The end of the shaft on the top of the shock absorber is flattened on each side.

http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/8854/pictureg.jpg

You need to hold that flattened area of the shaft with an adjustable wrench while you loosen the nut with an open end wrench.
If you don't hold the shaft, it will turn while you're turning the nut.
After you have the top nut removed and the two small bolts on the bottom removed, then remove the shock absorber from the bottom.


4) Next, place a hydraulic floor jack beneath the lower control arm.
Line it up so the lifting pad of the jack is just below where the bottom of the spring is setting.
Then, jack it up until the lifting pad of the jack just barely begins to touch the lower control arm...

http://img25.imageshack.us/img25/3277/picture028.jpg


5) Now, you'll need to remove the cotter pin that holds the castle nut of the ball joint.
Then, loosen the castle nut until it is flush with the end of the bolt.
You can do this on either the upper ball joint or the lower ball joint.
I preferred working with the upper ball joint because it was more accessible, and thus easier to work with.
However, for the purpose of illustration, here's a picture of the lower castle nut (because it was easier to get a picture of)...

http://img25.imageshack.us/img25/7865/picture029k.jpg

6) After the cotter pin is removed and the castle nut is loosened so it is flush with the end of the bolt, use a hammer and a "pickle fork" to break the ball joint free (a "pickle fork" is readily available at most auto parts stores)...

http://img25.imageshack.us/img25/3136/picture030.jpg


7) After you have broken the ball joint free, then slowly lower the hydraulic jack...thus allowing the spring to decompress.
The spring will not go anywhere because you have it safely secured with the chain...

http://img14.imageshack.us/img14/3368/picture031.jpg


8) Now, all you have to do is remove the chain and pull the spring out.
If the spring is binding, you may need to jack the frame of the car up higher to give you room to remove it.
This is why you want your jack stands extended pretty high.

9) Here is the spring safely removed, thus allowing one of the family dogs to avail himself of a sniff...

http://img14.imageshack.us/img14/5900/picture032g.jpg

Use common sense and think about what you're doing, and you'll be able to remove your springs safely.

Regards,
-Greg

Good stuff Greg, oh, :Dwhats with the shirt on the dog, is it cold down there.

Good stuff Greg, oh, :Dwhats with the shirt on the dog, is it cold down there.

The shirt is my daughter's idea.
But, it has been unseasonably cold down here for the past few days.

Regards,
-Greg

Good stuff, Greg. Thanks.
How soon do you plan to get the spring back in the car...I'd like to see your writeup on that?
Tom

Nice write up. :thumbsup: When done right removing springs isn't dangerous.

Greg, very detailed and well explained. Thanks for sharing your work.

Thank you for the great tutorial!

Perfect timing as I'm swapping springs this week and the pictures go a long way!!

Thanks!!!

Looks good, that exactly what I did except I used a different method than the pickle fork. There is a post under my name showing the installation. I used a spring compressor and installed with spring mounted in the control arm. Worked great. http://www.chevelles.com/forums/showthread.php?t=260085

thanks, the pictures definnitely help, i just finsihed doing mine, seeing this before hand could have really helped, good job with it all

I will soon be removing mine for frame painting, my concern is with no motor or transmission, when I jack up the lower a arm, will it just raise the whole car before compressing the spring enough??

I will soon be removing mine for frame painting, my concern is with no motor or transmission, when I jack up the lower a arm, will it just raise the whole car before compressing the spring enough??



you bet it will.... that was the scenario i was in a week ago. what i thought of and did was put the car up on jackstands as high as you can (or in my case cinderblocks) put the jack as high as it can go under the lower control arm. now you get a chain and wrap it around the bottom of the floorjack AND the top of the frame. the chain will make it as if the car had the motor and trans in it, and it will allow the jack to compress the spring without the frame going up in the air.. after you remove the castle nut, either hit the knuckle with a sledge hammer or use a fork. once the balljoint pops out, lower the jack slowly until all of the spring pressure is relieved. whe you put the new springs in it will be easier because they are about 2 inches shorter.

the other thing you can do is get some good spring compressors that grab the springs on the side and then they have a threaded rod going through the center that you tighten. with this technique i found that there isnt enough room to get the spring compressors in there.

hope that helps.

Thanks for the info.
I will not be replacing the springs, just pulling everything off for powdercoat.
I did replace all upper/lower balljoints, and did the disc brake conversion,so it has been out a few years ago.
I will try your tip and hope for the best.

good write up:yes:

Thanks for the info.
I will not be replacing the springs, just pulling everything off for powdercoat.
I did replace all upper/lower balljoints, and did the disc brake conversion,so it has been out a few years ago.
I will try your tip and hope for the best.

Powder coating the springs too? Be careful...I have heard of guys damaging their springs after this as the temp required to cure powder (I set my oven at work to 425F) will weaken springs.

No need to take upper ball joint off.

Great writeup, but now comes the fun part-grinding the rivets off to get the stock ball joints out of the control arms,pressing the new ball joints in the lower arms, pressing in the new bushings,etc,etc,etc! Not a fun day at the beach! :noway:

Not bad. However, with the lower ball joint nut just loosened and a floorjack underneath. The chain is a step thats unnecessary. You wont be in any danger especially with the floor jack there.

You won't be in any danger, especially with the floor jack there.
The chain is a step that's unnecessary.

Safety glasses are not necessary to grind metal, seat belts are not necessary to drive a car, a safety harness is not necessary to cut limbs high up in a tree, etc., etc.
However, those items become quite useful in the event of a mishap.

I think it is unwise to put your faith in and entrust your safety to the hydraulics of a floor jack.

There are a lot of people out here, who's opinions I value, with experience removing coil springs.
The majority of them recommend safely securing the potential energy of a coiled spring before working on it.
I believe that's sound and smart advice.

Regards,
-Greg

Well said, Greg. I work in a manufacturing environment, and because I have to wear safety glasses on the floor I now feel uncomfortable doing jobs around the house without them! Even mundane jobs like mowing the grass! I've seen too many "freak" accidents to take chances.

Well said, Greg. I work in a manufacturing environment, and because I have to wear safety glasses on the floor I now feel uncomfortable doing jobs around the house without them! Even mundane jobs like mowing the grass! I've seen too many "freak" accidents to take chances.
Hey Tom, I know a guy who was weed-wacking a couple of years ago with no eye protection.
A piece of debris shot up from the ground and hit him square in the eyeball, slicing the lens of his eye.
When he went to the local hospital emergency room, he was transferred to a large hospital where an eye specialist had to do surgery on his eyeball...all because he didn't have eye protection on while weed-wacking.

Regards,
-Greg

the way he did it, he tied the spring to the frame so that the spring doesnt shoot out when the balljoint is popped out. the chain does not harness the energy of the spring in a way that would cause it to become compressed within the chain.

if you are working with a frame that has no motor or trans on it, you DEFINATELY need a chain or at least some spring compressors(even WITH them i'd use a chain). i see no other way of doing it without the possibility of injury. i am not saying that there isn't always a slight possibility of injury, but taking safety precautions DRASTICALLY reduces it, and in many cases has saved people's lives

he is by all means smart in using the chain to restrain the coil, after all it can kill you without warning. i dont know about you but i wouldn't risk getting knocked out by an airborne coil spring, i value my health and safety. we all have different ideas, apparently yours and other's don't coincide.

As the spring pushes the lower A-arm down, the A-arm swings to an angle with the floor jack and starts putting a side load on the floor jack's wheels. I've had the floor jack suddenly slide sideways and release the spring at once. The jack could break or a dozen other oddball things. IMO the chain is absolutely necessary unless you like to gamble with your life. Once something unexpected happens it's too late to say, "It shoudn't have done that".

I can see a floor jack moving like Von mentions, that poses a safety problem too but the chain .Like I said in my other post. Because the spring sits in a pocket it has very little chance of popping out at you unless it bounces down and if by some miracle has enough tension left on the rebound you may get injured. Unless you layed down right underneath the lower control arm your not going to be injured with the belief that a spring is going to come springing out at you like some cartoon. The real injury here is preventing yourself from getting injured from a control arm that comes swinging down violently from the pressure of the spring. If you choose to use a chain to help contain that, by all means, im not against it so dont get me wrong, there is no problem with extra safety measures to prevent the arm from slamming down and either damaging you or the arm itself.

But if you really want to get technical, many service manuals call to remove the inside bolts on the control and not bother with the ball joint in the first place until the spring is out. Which ends up coming out from the frame side and all the tension is towards the frame instead.

Also keep in mind that if you have a painted frame and suspension, a chain can put some pretty good scratches in a nice detailed finish.

Alright I have been trying to separate the upper all joint since yesterday. I have a pickle fork and I'm still unable to separate the joint. It pickle fork is all the way in and I'm unable to wedge it apart. The parts aren't rusted and the boot is off of the ball joint so I can see that the pickle fork is all the way in. Any ideas?

pickle fork is all the way in and I'm unable to wedge it apart. The parts aren't rusted and the boot is off of the ball joint so I can see that the pickle fork is all the way in. Any ideas?

There are different sized pickle forks, you might be using one for tie-rods which is too small for a ball joint. You need to get the one that has the biggest "ramp"

What worked great for me. Jam a wood block between the upper control arm and the frame so the upper arm is not sitting on the upper rubber bumper. Loosen the upper and lower ball joint nut about 1/2 of the threads (DO NOT REMOVE). With car on blocks at the firewall part of the frame and motor in the car. Hold a big hammer behind the steering knuckle and hit the front part with a big hammer (3lb), both will probably snap loose, if not, go the the top with the hammer. After they snap loose, continue as indicated previously. This way you can save the grease cover/boot, expecially if they are original.

I've been working on cars for 40 years and I was taught and have always used a chain or cable on coil springs. Even when using a spring compressing tool. You never know what oddball or unsuspeced wierd thing might happen!
Always "better safe than sorry" if not for you, maybe then for anyone else might be around at the time!:thumbsup:

Concerning chains:

My '79 GM Service Manual, using the removal of the lower A arm bolts to frame method, which is probably the safest way to do it, states:

"Install a chain around the spring and through the control arm as a safety measure"

I hate removing springs but I always use a chain. Never say never when it comes to "freak" accidents.....

John

As the spring pushes the lower A-arm down, the A-arm swings to an angle with the floor jack and starts putting a side load on the floor jack's wheels. I've had the floor jack suddenly slide sideways and release the spring at once.

That is because the jack is in the wrong spot. It should be be under the lower ball joint with the wheels facing the travel of the arm. I also completely remove the spindle prior to lowering the control arm so as not to have to deal with the weight and mass of it while lowering the arm. If just changing the spring and nothing else it can be left attached to the upper arm and tied up out of the way. A chain wrapped through the shock hole in the lower arm, through the coil and attached to itself under the lower arm will give the safety required if something goes wrong, but honestly in 40 years of wrenching and removing springs from 50 or so cars and trucks none have ever "shot across the shop", most times after lowering the arm I had to pry them out of the arm and frame.
If you are removing original springs they are usually sagged enough to not pose a safety hazard. I removed the springs from my Nova this past weekend without the engine in the car with out any need to chain the jack to the frame. If you really want to safely remove the spring and it is not going to be reused cut a piece of the coil out before starting, now you do not have any tension to deal with. The spring in the photo was cut to remove the front suspension on a 72 El Camino with the body off the frame. Was it necessary, maybe not but it made the job easier and safer to perform. I can not stress safety enough in all we do, but there is a point where some have gone way beyond what is necessary and in doing so make the task harder then it needs to be. It would be like wearing 2 pair of safety glasses cause one might fail.

http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j199/64elcamino/rusty%2072/cutspring.jpg

In the next few months I will be changing the springs in 72. They are new, not sagging or weak, but did not give the ride height I was looking for. I'll have Mary video tape the procedure to show the ease of spring removal when performed correctly and safely.

I just changed my fronts last weekend. I own an internal spring compressor and used an impact to tighten the tool.... stripped out the threaded part of the tool. I went out and rented a tool - internal spring compressor - and used the ratchet to tighten it.

I compressed the spring after removing the shock. Once the spring was compressed, I then dismantled the lower ball joint and went from there using a floor jack to lower the control arm. At all times I kept myself out of the line of fire should the compressor fail.
The assembly was the reverse of the dismantle. I did not use a chain.

great thread.
It reminds me of the days of pulling springs to find that perfect ride height. Thank god for coilovers!

As for the chains, I was a young mechanic once, and was attempting to pull springs from a car without any chain, or method of holding in the springs. One shot out and hit me square in the chest, knocking me on my arse. Bruised ribs, and a bruised ego were my lesson plan, and I learned right then and there that isht happens. Now it's all about the safe way to do it.

I saw a guy grinding and welding without any protection once, while visiting Tijuana.
Think about it.

I leave the ball joints connected and remove the lower control arm bolts, then let the jack down. just as easy going back with the spring too.

very nice write up!!!!

very nice write up!!!!



Thanks.
I'm going to put up another similar thread when I reinstall new springs.

-Greg

Won't get into the chain debate, nor offer how I do it... but I will offer a time-saver:

In regard to removing the front shocks.... if you're not going to reuse them...
Up here in rust country, trying to remove the upper nut off the shaft will take longer than the entire spring change! Try this instead:
Get the correct sized deep-well socket (six-point preferred) and a 1 foot extension. Push it down on the nut & stud and just reef back & forth on it until the shock's shaft snaps off. It'll always snap somewhere under the nut inbetween the rubber biscuits!
Try it next time! It'll save you at least 1/2 hr. per side.

I used the threaded rod with nuts and home-made washer for the bottom method. Worked great, although after 2 spring installs, the threaded rod was just about stripped of its thread as it was regular every day allthread with no heat treating to make it harder.

As said, in theory this is a much safer method but as long as the other methods work and safety precautions are taken they will work as well.

Thanks Greg, very useful info. Perhaps the mods could make it a sticky thread. I'm in the middle of pondering whether to do it myself or take it to
a shop. Pls hurry with your installation thread :beers:

I write in this thread in stead of making a new one. One question when you put the spring back again it says in the Chevrolet manual (Chevelle -72) that the end of the spring should be over the hole in lower control arm. I have two holes in my lower control arm. How import is this and does anybody know witch hole it should be over. Take a look on my picture, it is right side of the car. Back is right on the picture. Hope you understand.

http://www1.garaget.org/gallery/archive/63086/697180_kbtdrv.jpg

you just want to get both springs somewhere between the 2 holes in each arm so they are close to the end of the pocket they rest in. If you were off a little and wanted to turn it in place, you could use a little oil on the lowest part of the tail and a good leather strap wrench around one of the middle coils. It looks like from your pic you are in between the holes already so if I'm seeing that right you shouldn't need to move it.

Thanks for the information Rickster182. A just found Tom Mobley stickey thread, he explain that the end of the spring should be between the two holes.

Complete noob question: in picture #8, it looks as if your brake lines are disconnected. Is this a mandatory step in the spring removal process?

FWIW, I have front power discs.

Thanks, and great thread!

I would add to this thread that removing, and especially installing, front coil springs can be vastly different with stock springs and shorter or cut springs.

In both my Chevelle and in Fox Mustangs, a shorter, cut, or performance spring will be much easier to get out and in than a tall stock one. Stock ones are a bit-h and may be best done with an internal compressor. Note that I have snapped a 1/2 in threaded rod in an internal style spring compressor, and upgraded to 5/8 rod.

When removing the front ones from the Chevelle, which I have done twice, I have not used the chain. Both times, after getting the lower arm down, the spring stuck in the pocket with the jack all the way down.

Some careful crowbar work will just pop it out and it flops on the ground.

I stand at arms length with the jack when going up or down. I also like some 2x4 blocks to catch the arm if the jack leaves town in a hurry.

I would suggest removing the shock, sway bar links, etc before the ball joints. I don't like fooling with that stuff with a compressed spring near my fingers.

Going back in, I was able to put the spring in the upper pocket and control arm by hand with no compressor, then jack slowly.

I have tried the chain technique, and would, if possible run the chain down through the center of the control arm if possible, if you use that method.

So you loosen the upper castle nut but never take it off completely?

So you loosen the upper castle nut but never take it off completely?

This is to use the spring and car weight to help pop the balljoint taper out of the spindle. Once the BJ is popped, then you remove the castle nut and move on with lowering the floor jack lessening the tension of the spring, ect.

Ahh thanks.

Gonna try this tomorrow.

Bottom line concerning using a safety chain on the spring (other than just a common sense safety procedure)...

1) I wrote this for guys doing it for the first time.

2) In the spring removal section of the Chassis Service Manual, pictures show that a safety chain around the spring is being used.
If GM engineers also recommended it, I suppose I'm in pretty good company.

Regards,
-Greg

I just changed my ball joints upper and lower. I also have a new set of springs to go in. While the control arm is still free, should I start installing the springs or should I hook the control arm back to the lower ball joint and then start with the springs? The motor is out of the car. Thanks,

insert the spring then jack the control arm up into position to put the nut on the ball joint. thing is, if you have the motor out of the car, you will end up jacking up the car before you are able to compress the spring enough to start the castle nut on the ball joint. I did the same thing. My solution was to wrap a chain around the fram and the front axle of the floor jack. be careful and watch the angle of the chain and floor jack or it will slip (ask me how i know this). anyway, when you are set up like that, you will be jacking the frame against the tension on the chain around the floor jack instead of raising the frame. not too tough to do really. I used a 1/2" bike lock cable instead of chain to secure the spring for safety, but same deal really.

I was hopeing I could do it without a spring compresser. I can get it lined up good in the frame, but there is no way I can get it in the lower control arm, without compressing the spring.

If you don't want to worry about using a chain and scratching your paint on your frame just goto autozone and rent a spring compressor. I just did my front springs, took them out and installed new ones. The compressor works great and is safer then taking a chance that the spring won't shoot out if you don't have it chained. Its why they make the tool. Its like trying to tighten bolts without a ratchet. They make tools for certain jobs for a reason. Why take your chances not using the compressor, it doesnt' cost nothing, autozone rents tools for free.

Found this just in time, prepping to replace A/C springs in '66 with non A/C springs. Car sits way to high up front, tail dragger (have to replace those too). Thanks for the great write up.

Does it help to have a big floor jack like the one in the pictures? I have a little 2ton floor jack from walmart. I have it straped with ratchet strap to frame, and I am still just jacking the car off the jack stands. I have the spring in the top perch just right, and nearly just right in the controll arm. Castle nut on the lower ball joint.
Can someone coach me throw this, or tell me what I am doing wrong? Thanks,

Good to have a reminder. I had a friend show me the same technique a few years ago.

Does it help to have a big floor jack like the one in the pictures? I have a little 2ton floor jack from walmart. I have it straped with ratchet strap to frame, and I am still just jacking the car off the jack stands. I have the spring in the top perch just right, and nearly just right in the controll arm. Castle nut on the lower ball joint.
Can someone coach me throw this, or tell me what I am doing wrong? Thanks,

Do you have an engine in the car? Without weight enough to compress the spring it will not go together.

Doing the front springs right now. Greg released the upper ball joint. My preference would be to release at the lower. It appears however in order to do this, the drum will need to be removed from its perch as it does not appear the LCA will clear the back lower side of the drum. Others with similar experience on this? Didn't read anything about this on any of the front spring threads here on T/C.

67 136 car - motor in.

Thanks,
Chris

Spent the last few hours working on busting a ball joint --- no luck. I opted to try the upper ball joint after all. Anyhow, was able to drive a pickle fork (15/16") all the way in and no 'pop' or release --- Yes castle nut is loosened on spindle. Once the pickle fork was solidly in place (fully seated actually), I even tried using a very long breaker bar and using my body weight with a few quick hops -- all to no avail. Throwing in the towel for the day -- Car has me beat on this one so far. Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks - Chris

With the pickle fork still in place smack the casting where the ball joint stud goes through with a BFH.

With the pickle fork still in place smack the casting where the ball joint stud goes through with a BFH.

Good suggestion - I'll give this a go. Shall I also heat the spindle up a bit with a propane torch?

NO.

Smacking it with a hammer will release the tapered stud.

Greg:
In your next post show installing a drag spring that's a bit taller than stock. I'm sure alot of guys have interest in that.:hurray:

The compressor works great and is safer...


No Lucky, it's not safer.
Having the spring secured to the frame with two chains, such as I did, is about as safe as it gets.

I don't use spring compressors because I won't entrust my safety and well-being to a threaded stud made in Taiwan.
I've heard of spring compressors letting go. Those two chains wrapped around the frame are not going to let go. It's that simple.

Regards,
-Greg