Hey! I am doing a frame off on a 1971 Chevelle. The body is off of the frame and I took all the control arms off to sandblast them. I also bought new bushings for all of them. On the front upper control arms, I pressed the new bushings in and I was wondering if the cross-shafts should have any play in them when you put them back on. Thanks for the help!

Just did mine and they had virtually no lateral play and there was a fair amount of resistance when you twisted the shaft.

Poly bushings? If so there may be some play until the end caps are bolted down. Once they're bolted down the bushing and center sleeve will be pushed into the outer shell of the bushing and the play should be pretty much gone. If they're rubber they should be pretty snug right off the bat.

Hey guys! Thanks a lot for all the help. I am going with rubber bushings because it is only going to be a daily driver. Thanks again!

Not sure about your car, but the 1969 gm manual said don't tighten up the end caps until all the weight is in the car, then bounce it up and down a couple times, then torque them to specs. Hope this might help you out. Rob.

That still holds true today for rubber bushings. Do not tighten the bushing down until all the weight is on the front end. The rubber is bonded to the shell and the center sleeve. If tightened up with the suspension hanging you will be twisting the bushings when you let the car down, referred to as pre-loading.