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    Results 1 to 13 of 13
    1. #1
      Join Date
      Jul 2007
      Location
      Northern Virginia
      Posts
      85
      Country Flag: United States

      Compress Front A-Arms with Coil-Overs with No Motor

      Started progress again on my 1996 Impala SS.

      Frame is powdercoated and trying to install QA1 front coil-overs with no engine.

      Need ideas/tricks on compressing the A-Arms.
      Attached Images Attached Images  
      Ray
      1996 Impala SS aka MistreSS (7800 original miles)
      LPE LT4 Heads/Intake
      Powerdyne Supercharger\T-56 Conversion

      MistreSS Updates: https://www.pro-touring.com/showthre...light=mistress

    2. #2
      Join Date
      Jul 2002
      Location
      Mesquite, TX
      Posts
      4,901
      Country Flag: United States
      My initial thought before opening the thread was "ratchet strap"; I can't get the image to open larger to get a good idea on what one would hook to though.

    3. #3
      Join Date
      Nov 2006
      Location
      Mountain Springs, Texas
      Posts
      4,488
      Country Flag: United States
      This doesn’t make any sense to me. You are using up a lot of the shock stroke just installing it. Are you sure you have the right shocks? It looks like they are too long but hard to tell for sure in that pic.

      Remove the springs, install the shocks and see how much suspension travel you have.

      Don
      1969 Camaro - LSA 6L90E AME sub/IRS
      1957 Buick Estate Wagon
      1959 El Camino - Ironworks frame
      1956 Cameo - full C5 suspension/drivetrain
      1959 Apache Fleetside

    4. #4
      Join Date
      Sep 2010
      Location
      Beach Park IL
      Posts
      2,838
      Country Flag: United States
      Yeah, that's a looooong way to go. Make sure you have the right stuff.

      A strap or chain wrapped around the frame and hooked to a floor jack placed under the control arm will do the trick.
      Donny

      Support your local hot rod shop!

    5. #5
      Join Date
      Jul 2007
      Location
      Northern Virginia
      Posts
      85
      Country Flag: United States
      Sorry, the photos posted is just showing the suspension in droop position. When I pull the lower control arm and the coil spring is seated in pocket I have about 1-1/2 gap between upper ball joint and spindle. I did call QA1 and verify parts were correct.

      derekf - larger photo. (not sure why photo is sideways)
      Attached Images Attached Images  
      Ray
      1996 Impala SS aka MistreSS (7800 original miles)
      LPE LT4 Heads/Intake
      Powerdyne Supercharger\T-56 Conversion

      MistreSS Updates: https://www.pro-touring.com/showthre...light=mistress

    6. #6
      Join Date
      Nov 2006
      Location
      Mountain Springs, Texas
      Posts
      4,488
      Country Flag: United States
      I don’t know what your spring rate is but that seems like a buttload of preload on the spring.

      Don
      1969 Camaro - LSA 6L90E AME sub/IRS
      1957 Buick Estate Wagon
      1959 El Camino - Ironworks frame
      1956 Cameo - full C5 suspension/drivetrain
      1959 Apache Fleetside

    7. #7
      Join Date
      May 2020
      Posts
      29
      Quote Originally Posted by dhutton View Post
      I don’t know what your spring rate is but that seems like a buttload of preload on the spring.

      Don
      Actually, the way I see it is he seems to have it backed all the way off.

      I just installed these in my 68 Camaro. For some reason, the first time I tried I had a similar issue. I went to bed and tried again the next day and it fit right together. I was almost able to get them together enough without using the jack at all. If you are that far off, something is wrong. My 68 has a pocket the the tag end of the spring has to slip into. It was easy enough to find by rotating the spring until I felt it engage the notch. But, not all cars do. You springs may be flat on top. I noticed that with the LCA down that far, well below where it would ever be when fully install, the spring would interfere with the frame. Check to see if the spring is hitting the side of the spring pocket and preventing the LCA from coming up all the way. I think you should at least be able to get the spindle to meet the upper ball joint without any jack pressure at all. In fact, they claim you don't need a jack to install at all. And, that may have been true in my case but with only two hands it was just easier to hold it up with a jack.

    8. #8
      Join Date
      Nov 2006
      Location
      Mountain Springs, Texas
      Posts
      4,488
      Country Flag: United States
      Quote Originally Posted by Bruce1968 View Post
      Actually, the way I see it is he seems to have it backed all the way off
      Yes he does and when he compresses the spring to close that 1.5 inch gap he will have a significant preload in the spring, hence my comment....

      Don
      1969 Camaro - LSA 6L90E AME sub/IRS
      1957 Buick Estate Wagon
      1959 El Camino - Ironworks frame
      1956 Cameo - full C5 suspension/drivetrain
      1959 Apache Fleetside

    9. #9
      Join Date
      May 2020
      Posts
      29
      Quote Originally Posted by dhutton View Post
      Yes he does and when he compresses the spring to close that 1.5 inch gap he will have a significant preload in the spring, hence my comment....

      Don
      I see, I thought you meant he had the adjustment cranked up. I think he's getting spring to frame interference. It was possible on my when the LRA was all the way down because the arc the ball joint follow brings the spring closer to the inside.

    10. #10
      Join Date
      Jul 2007
      Location
      Northern Virginia
      Posts
      85
      Country Flag: United States
      Got the spindles to connect up to the upper and lower control arms by removing the upper control arm bump stop. I placed a piece of 1/4" thick rubber sheet between upper control arm and frame for now until I can get some weight on the front end. Thanks for all the suggestions.
      Attached Images Attached Images      
      Ray
      1996 Impala SS aka MistreSS (7800 original miles)
      LPE LT4 Heads/Intake
      Powerdyne Supercharger\T-56 Conversion

      MistreSS Updates: https://www.pro-touring.com/showthre...light=mistress

    11. #11
      Join Date
      May 2020
      Posts
      29
      I'm not sure that's the best solution and you should not have had to remove the bump stops. If there was no interference, it makes me think you have the wrong springs. Did you contact QA1 about it to see what they have to say?

    12. #12
      Join Date
      Jul 2007
      Location
      Northern Virginia
      Posts
      85
      Country Flag: United States
      Bruce1968, I contacted QA1 and we verified all part numbers on the components themselves. We even checked the diameter and to length of the front coil spring.
      Ray
      1996 Impala SS aka MistreSS (7800 original miles)
      LPE LT4 Heads/Intake
      Powerdyne Supercharger\T-56 Conversion

      MistreSS Updates: https://www.pro-touring.com/showthre...light=mistress

    13. #13
      Join Date
      Nov 2006
      Location
      Mountain Springs, Texas
      Posts
      4,488
      Country Flag: United States
      Is the spring indexed properly in the upper spring pocket?



      Don
      1969 Camaro - LSA 6L90E AME sub/IRS
      1957 Buick Estate Wagon
      1959 El Camino - Ironworks frame
      1956 Cameo - full C5 suspension/drivetrain
      1959 Apache Fleetside






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