Are my upper control arms unusable now? 1973 Dart.

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dodgemahal

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Today I was attempting to remove bushing shells from an upper control arm and I got a little careless, and might have bent one of the "ears" holding the bushing just a little bit. Is it toast? Can it be fixed by a automotive machine shop. Can the front alignment process compensate for this?
 
A picture won't show anything. If it's bent, it's just a little, and a picture won't show it.

Best way I can describe it: if you look down one hole to the other hole, you can see they are not perfectly aligned. Just a wee bit off. Nothing drastic.
 
"Might"? So you aren't sure? I saw a thread recently where uca holes are not 100% in line with each other. Easier seeing a pic then trying to picture it in our minds.
 
eh, it'll push back the other way when you press the bushing back in. no worries.

ship it!
 
dodgemahal said:
Today I was attempting to remove bushing shells from an upper control arm and I got a little careless, and might have bent one of the "ears" holding the bushing just a little bit. Is it toast? Can it be fixed by an automotive machine shop. Can the front alignment process compensate for this?
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The easy answer is if you bent something to the point that it didn’t return to its original shape, it won’t be the same even if you “fix” it.

If this was a 50+ year old part to begin with that’s also a consideration

Of course it all depends on how bad the damage is, which we can’t see without a picture. If the bushing won’t sit straight in the arm that’s probably not going to work well for you. If this is a stock UCA it’s not like there’s much useful adjustment to begin with if you’re trying to run decent alignment numbers for radial tires. Lots of unanswered questions.
4spdragtop said:
"Might"? So you aren't sure? I saw a thread recently where uca holes are not 100% in line with each other. Easier seeing a pic then trying to picture it in our minds.
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They should line up

IMG_6155.jpeg
 
You ask for help and refuse to post pictures. You say you can "see it" but you won't post pictures. Yeah. ok.
 
Yeah. OK, Mr. 3R's. I'll post a picture and with your superior visual acuity you can tell me if it's bent. Are you incapable of answering my question under the assumption it is bent. I'll send it later today, when I get to it. Oh, you're a gold member....your special.
 
dodgemahal said:
Yeah. OK, Mr. 3R's. I'll post a picture and with your superior visual acuity you can tell me if it's bent. Are you incapable of answering my question under the assumption it is bent. I'll send it later today, when I get to it. Oh, you're a gold member....your special.
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Congratulations, you made the list. Nobody gets paid around here to help YOU and YOU asked for help. Punk.
 
People who ask questions about something and don't post pictures piss a "lot" of the members off. Just because you can't see the problem doesn't mean that some of us can't see it. We do not have a crystal ball, we can't see it from our house, and the list goes on. If you don't want the expertise offered here "for free", go somewhere else and quit wasting our time. Rant over!!!
 
I'm going to assume that if it won't come up in pictures then it's close enough and youre overthinking it. 1* one way or another probably won't affect anything, you don't plan on cruising at 200mph. These cars were never precise to begin with. The good thing is that each bushing is bolted individually to the frame so that the cam adjusters can do their job.
Now if it WERE so bent that it was obvious in pictures then you might be out of luck.
If you put it all together and find out it's impossible to get it aligned well then you know the first thing to look at.
There isn't much else we can tell you past that without making whatever assumptions we want with no pictures. This is all hypothetical.
Good luck on your project.
 
Not having the knowledge and the proper tools for the job is what bent it. So what makes you think you are capable of fixing it even if you did bend it. The rule of thumb for its repair just like USPS flat rate. If it fits it ships
 
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Oldmanmopar said:
Not having the knowledge and the proper tools for the job is what bent it. So what makes you think you are capable of fixing it even if you did bend it. The rule of thumb for its repair just like USPS flat rate. If it fits it ships
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I have the proper tools. It was at the end of of the day and I was tired. I got careless. No excuses, I messed up.
 
Projectile Dart said:
I'm going to assume that if it won't come up in pictures then it's close enough and youre overthinking it. 1* one way or another probably won't affect anything, you don't plan on cruising at 200mph. These cars were never precise to begin with. The good thing is that each bushing is bolted individually to the frame so that the cam adjusters can do their job.
Now if it WERE so bent that it was obvious in pictures then you might be out of luck.
If you put it all together and find out it's impossible to get it aligned well then you know the first thing to look at.
There isn't much else we can tell you past that without making whatever assumptions we want with no pictures. This is all hypothetical.
Good luck on your project.
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Thanks projectile! I gotta answer without being flamed, and a good one too. As I said earlier pictures are coming. Be patient please.
 
dodgemahal said:
Yeah. OK, Mr. 3R's. I'll post a picture and with your superior visual acuity you can tell me if it's bent. Are you incapable of answering my question under the assumption it is bent. I'll send it later today, when I get to it. Oh, you're a gold member....your special.
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If we're assuming it's bent, then I'm assuming it's junk. You want a simple answer to what could be a complicated question, so if you just want us to say "it's junk" or "send it", well, it's probably junk. You think you might have ruined it and you're looking at it, so why I should I say it's still good?

Like I said, if you bent it to the point it doesn't return to its original shape, then you have changed the metal. If you bend it back, you will have created more stresses/hardening in the material. Will that kill you tomorrow? Unlikely. Could it be a problem later? It very well might, but if/when will depend on a lot of other things.

But yeah, questions were asked too. These are factory arms? Are you using factory bushings? What kind of alignment are you even trying to set? All of that will have an impact on how successful you're going to be. And yeah, if you press in the new bushing and it sits crooked or is loose in the arm, well, it's junk.

Bottom line is you came wanting help, and you're being rude to the people trying to help you. We wanted pictures so we could give you a better answer, if you just want the easy answer buy new control arms.
 
72bluNblu said:
If we're assuming it's bent, then I'm assuming it's junk. You want a simple answer to what could be a complicated question, so if you just want us to say "it's junk" or "send it", well, it's probably junk. You think you might have ruined it and you're looking at it, so why I should I say it's still good?

Like I said, if you bent it to the point it doesn't return to its original shape, then you have changed the metal. If you bend it back, you will have created more stresses/hardening in the material. Will that kill you tomorrow? Unlikely. Could it be a problem later? It very well might, but if/when will depend on a lot of other things.

But yeah, questions were asked too. These are factory arms? Are you using factory bushings? What kind of alignment are you even trying to set? All of that will have an impact on how successful you're going to be. And yeah, if you press in the new bushing and it sits crooked or is loose in the arm, well, it's junk.

Bottom line is you came wanting help, and you're being rude to the people trying to help you. We wanted pictures so we could give you a better answer, if you just want the easy answer buy new control arms.
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Wow. Just wow. You sure told me.
 
dodgemahal said:
Wow. Just wow. You sure told me.
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Yup, I told you the truth. Clearly you don't understand what you're doing, so, you should probably just stop. Sorry I bothered trying to help someone that clearly is unable to comprehend the answers they need to hear.

RRR was right on, you don't deserve my time.
 
65TerrorCuda said:
Looks like he just removed the rubber from the shells to me
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The one shell is pressed about half way out and appears to be at an angle to the shoulder that locates it.

Could just be the shell is tweaked. But I'm not there and he thinks the whole arm is bent, so he can figure it out.
 
72bluNblu said:
Yup, I told you the truth. Clearly you don't understand what you're doing, so, you should probably just stop. Sorry I bothered trying to help someone that clearly is unable to comprehend the answers they need to hear.

RRR was right on, you don't deserve my time.
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How do you learn? You learn by doing. I'll fix it. This is fun for me. What, do you give up when you make a mistake? Kinda cowardly isn't it?
Yeah, please stop helping me.
 
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