Radius Bushings

[msmith65]

Y'all remember when drilling: The harder the substance the slower you drill. Otherwise heat ruins the drill bit.

 

[ma96782]

For an idea of prices on the RAB, checkout the Auto Zone site:

http://www.autozone.com/home.htm

put in your vehicle description and use the SEARCH for: Radius Control Arm Bushing


Mizzotch,

Here is a pic, of a RAB "set" you'll get:

http://www.partsamerica.com/Product...R1&mfrpartnumber=SHB1495K&parttype=76&ptset=A

The part in the middle (3rd from the left) is the nylon/plastic (looking) "spacer." Of course different mfns will be making slightly different looking parts...........or they may ask that you re-use certain parts.

My Auto Zone parts (bought a a local store) had the rubber bushings, spacer and metal washers/cup washer and nut..........it was a complete change over.

Aloha,Mark

 

[mizzotch]

Thanks for reminding me about parts america....I found a great picture of a RAB set on there:
http://www.partsamerica.com/Product...W&mfrpartnumber=HB1495KHD&parttype=76&ptset=A

So the nylon spacer is just a ring that goes between the backside of the crossmember and the rear bushing. Looking more at how the crossmember hole is punched through with a big lip, I guess you'd screw up the rear bushing over time if you were to just tighten it against the metal lip around the hole.

FYI, the Energy poly set says to reuse the nylon spacer, the washers and the nut. I just wanted to make sure I didn't start the job without all the parts and then start swearing at myself I even managed to find some 7/16' grade 9 bolts in my collection..now all I need is some nuts, washers, and lock washers to go with them. I got my grinder, air chisel, and drill ready. Fortunately, the passenger side is already bolted on mine.

Also, here's a trick I use for frozen fasteners- I get a can of that dust off canned air stuff with the little tube on the end, flip it upside down (so the liquid stuff comes out) and spray the fastener for a bit until it's really cold and then work on it quickly before the cold wears off. It gets it cold enough so the fastener shrinks just a bit to give you that bit of advantage. It works pretty well on bolts, now I'll have to try it on rivets.

 

[ma96782]

Mizzotch,

So the nylon spacer is just a ring that goes between the backside of the crossmember and the rear bushing. Looking more at how the crossmember hole is punched through with a big lip, I guess you'd screw up the rear bushing over time if you were to just tighten it against the metal lip around the hole.

FYI, the Energy poly set says to reuse the nylon spacer, the washers and the nut. I just wanted to make sure I didn't start the job without all the parts and then start swearing at myself I even managed to find some 7/16' grade 9 bolts in my collection..now all I need is some nuts, washers, and lock washers to go with them. I got my grinder, air chisel, and drill ready. Fortunately, the passenger side is already bolted on mine.

Yup..............the nylon spacer is just that............BTW.......mine were not re-useable........bent out of shape. The Auto Zone kit (beside the rubber bushings and nylon spacer) came with new metal parts..........much ticker than the original stuff..........plus, I needed the old cup washer to double up with the new cup washer............so, having a complete set of new metal parts was a blessing.......IMHO

Also, here's a trick I use for frozen fasteners- I get a can of that dust off canned air stuff with the little tube on the end, flip it upside down (so the liquid stuff comes out) and spray the fastener for a bit until it's really cold and then work on it quickly before the cold wears off. It gets it cold enough so the fastener shrinks just a bit to give you that bit of advantage. It works pretty well on bolts, now I'll have to try it on rivets.

I just sprayed PB Blaster prior to starting. Also, get the socket..........1 1/8" deep socket.......Harbor Freight set (on sale, about $17).................tried to find the single 28mm deep socket, no luck there.

Actually, having the set from HF, (could be) will in the long run, be cheaper.
Item#01676

http://www.harborfreightusa.com/usa/itemdisplay/displayItem.do




Aloha, Mark

 

[ma96782]

Mizzotch,

Sorry about that.............didn't notice til now................that you're in Honolulu, Hawaii..........there is no Harbor Freight there.

I used to live in Pearl City and Mililani..........until, last year when I moved to Vancouver, WA. Good luck w/ finding the correct socket.

Aloha, Mark

 

[StillKicken]

Mizzotch, I'm sure y'all have a Sears there. They don't have a 28 MM Socket, so I used my 1 1/8th combo wrench. Worked great!
Plus...grind the rivet heads. A lot easier than the air chisel I bought for them. The chisel worked well to knock the rivets out though.

 

[ma96782]

I didn't use an adjustable wrench............cause, how you gonna measure torque? I guess you could just tighten it down til it "feels" right.

But, I'm just **** about some stuff. I used the socket and torque wrench........... 105 lbs.

Aloha, Mark

 

[StillKicken]

I'm sorry. I meant combination wrench (open end / box end). I had to. My cat was in the way and could not pry it up out of the way to get a socket on there.

 

[ma96782]

StillKicken,

Yup........I had a hard time with taking it off..........clearance issues on the passenger side.

Hey........I agree.......IF you gotta, you gotta.

Aloha, Mark

PS.........Putting on the new parts, was easier.........angles changed a little, with the new parts.

 

[mizzotch]

I got the job done this afternoon. I got the 7/16" grade 8 bolts 3x 1 1/4" and 1x 1" along with 8 flat washer, 4 lockwashers and 4 nuts. I thought 3/4" was too short to go all the way through and still nut it on the end. I was right. I personally put the nuts on the outside of the frame which made it easier to tighten because the frame does a pretty good job of holding the bolt still.

I also got a 1 1/8 deep impact socket from Napa for 8 bucks which made the job much easier. The cat. converter was in the way a bit, but you could still finesse the socket off and on since 1 1/8" isn't a perfect fit, but good enough.

The nylon spacer was a bit deformed, but I ended up reusing it since I didn't have one readily available. I think it will be fine though.

I got the whole job done in a bit less than 3 hours for both sides including shop setup and cleanup. Mind you, the passenger side already had bolts so I only had to remove rivets on the driver's side. I must say though that rivet removal was the EASIEST part of the job. I used my 4 1/2" angle grinder on them and then an air chisel with a punch bit in it. It really only took me 20 minutes to knock out the driver's side. For me, the HARDEST part was getting the holes to line up so I could slide the new bolts in- that took a bit of hammer persuasion at one point. The next hardest was getting the crossmember brackets off while wrestling the axle (but it really wasn't THAT bad).

This job would have held some crappy surprises without the advice found in this thread. The Energy Poly bushings definitely made things firmer. The truck is more responsive now and "feels' the road better.

 

[DeRocha]

I'm sorry. I meant combination wrench (open end / box end). I had to. My cat was in the way and could not pry it up out of the way to get a socket on there.

Tip: If the CAT is in the way (or you can't get a socket on the RA nut) just jack up the TTB which will angle the nut down and the socket will slip right on

 

[Eraser]

i have some quick questions... where do you put your jack stands?
under the axle?
on the frame? if so, where on the frame? does the front suspension need to have no load on it?

i am going to do the bushings this weekend, and use the grinding method to get the rivets off. wish me luck!

also, it's perfectly ok to use a big crescent wrench / adjustable wrench to get the nuts off the RAB's, right?

thank you!

 

[DeRocha]

i have some quick questions... where do you put your jack stands?
under the axle?
on the frame? if so, where on the frame? does the front suspension need to have no load on it?

i am going to do the bushings this weekend, and use the grinding method to get the rivets off. wish me luck!

also, it's perfectly ok to use a big crescent wrench / adjustable wrench to get the nuts off the RAB's, right?

thank you!

Jack stands go on the frame rails back far enough so they support the vehicle and don't get in the way of the RA; For additional safety I use a second pair of jack stands along the frame. Yes the front suspension should have no load. I place a floor jack under the axle beam I'm working on so I can raise/lower it to make removal/installation easiser. You won't be able to torque the bolts down with an adjustable wrench, but it can be used to remove the nuts (provided you can get enough leverage with it).

 

[Eraser]

Jack stands go on the frame rails back far enough so they support the vehicle and don't get in the way of the RA; For additional safety I use a second pair of jack stands along the frame. Yes the front suspension should have no load. I place a floor jack under the axle beam I'm working on so I can raise/lower it to make removal/installation easiser. You won't be able to torque the bolts down with an adjustable wrench, but it can be used to remove the nuts (provided you can get enough leverage with it).

so just to clarify:
the jack stands will be right past the RAB's on the frame rail so they aren't interferring with the job but are still able to support the front of the truck off the ground (far enough so that the tires are at full droop).

thanks again

 

[LXNavajo_94]

I got my bushings from carquest price was like 35 bucks for both sides and it even came with the heat shield wish me luck this will be next weekends project

 

[Eraser]

i got the energy suspension ones, but since those don't come with the other parts i also purchased an el-cheapo version from napa that comes with all the parts. i am pretty sure the nylon thing will be bent because its been a while that i've had this radius arm bushing issue, and also i want to do the dual-cup washers as someone suggested earlier.

 

[DeRocha]

so just to clarify:
the jack stands will be right past the RAB's on the frame rail so they aren't interferring with the job but are still able to support the front of the truck off the ground (far enough so that the tires are at full droop).

thanks again

Correct

i got the energy suspension ones, but since those don't come with the other parts i also purchased an el-cheapo version from napa that comes with all the parts...

I did the same thing... the cheap autoZone bushings were $15 and came with all hardware while the expensive ES bushings where just bushings...

 

[Eraser]

well i tackled it today. took all day but i also changed the fluid in the front/rear diff's, and put new shocks all around.

hardest parts were:
-getting the rivets out (i grinded, but on one of the rivets the body mount bolt got in the way and made it difficult to get a straight blow with the center punch)

-getting the brackets mounted back up with the radius arms attached (had to play with the jack to get it to line up)

otherwise it was all good. also doubled up the cup washers as others have suggested, hopefully it will keep it all tight. will report back with the improved ride (should be substantial, with new shocks as the old ones sucked bad).

 

[MarksSC94]

I will be doing this and the ball joints and maybe even the tie rods at the end of this month. I am sure when all this is done, I will need an alignment.

 

[LXNavajo_94]

got mine replaced this morning thanks for all the help and good ideas