[John68]

Ok, a basic question I know but I have never done this... When removing the spindles do i need to use a spring compressor or can I just support lower a-arm with a floor jack? Will the jack and the shock keep the arms together so I can just swap out my drum spindle with a disk spindle?

 

[Jim Mac]

pretty simple swap. just leave the beer til after your done. What I do is loosen the castle nut on the upper and lower ball joint a few turns, make sure threads are about even with the top of the nut. with the car on jack stands and the tire off, just seperate both upper and lower ball joints, and take off the tie rod. Now that the ball joint is seperated, place a floor jack under the lower a arm jack the car up remove the nuts. You can just lift the upper arm out of the way then lift the spindle off of the lower a arm. then reverse the order to put it back together. hopefully someone else will chime in if I forgot something. Jim

 

[DG]

just seperate both upper and lower ball joints

This is with the castle nut on both ball joint loosened 3-4 threads showing, you need a pickle fork and a BFH. If the joint does not pop off in 2-3 good whacks, you can try:

• Lay a 2nd BFH on the side of the spindle, when you wack the other side.
• Rent the ball joint seperator tool, expensive.
• Whack over and over again
• Repeat the 1st step.

 

[Olle]

I never use a pickle fork, as it can damage the boots and the ball joints. I raise the car on jacks, take the wheels off, and with the A-arms unsupported I loosen the nuts a turn or two as described above and then hit the spindles with the BFH, right at the ball joint. It usually doesn't take more that two-three good whacks to pop them loose, as the spring pressure will help to push them out. If, for some reason, it doesn't work you can hold a second BFH behind the spindle as an anvil. It takes some practice and good aim, but it has always worked for me.

And as Jim Mac said, beer and spindle removal don't mix. It's a perfectly safe procedure if you do it right, but if you screw up while removing the spindle or while it's removed, you'll be in deep poo-poo. I ususally lower the car and let the A-arms rest on large wooden blocks while removing the spindles. Correctly placed jack stands will be ok, but I feel safer with the wooden blocks as there's no way for the car to slip off. It might be overkill, but I have had too many close calls to take any chances.

 

[jb2wheels]

I've done it both ways (jack v. compressor). Using the spring compressor made it easier for me to get the springs indexed correctly when I put it back together.

 

[1badss396]

Wow John68 must be using a BFH I can hear hime all the way over here smacking those spindles. LOL

 

[SS70ElCaminoOwner]

I do not like hitting the spindles. You can oblong the hole this way. Just my two cents.

 

[JWagner]

The Chev chassis manual recommends the two hammer method and it works pretty well.

 

[dittoz]

Remember that loaded springs are capable of removing large parts of your body and anything within a remarkably large are if they get away from you.

Put a suitably heavy-duty chain thru the springs when you're working with them to keep them from exploding out of the pocket atr an inopportune moment....

Saftey is a must!