Torsion Bar Crossmember Replacement

[smp2112]

Picked up a '72 Swinger recently. It has the usual rust issues (Quarters, Fender Extentions, Front Floors). The BIG issue, and the one I am going to tackle first, is replacing the torsion bar cross member. The original has a golfball sized hole rusted clear through it just inboard of the passenger side torsion bar socket, right about where the Tranny x-member is!!!! Luckily the car came with a replacement from a parts car.

My big question is how to jack up the car to perform the removal/replacement? I know I want to level the chassis but how do I support it?
Do I jack it up from the front and rear subframes?
Do I jack it up under the diff in back and put the front on ramps?
Should I remove the engine and as much weight as possible to unload any stress in the chassis or do I want it stressed.
I'm not worried about the cutting/welding end of the job, just not sure how I should support the car while I am operating on it.

Thanks

 

[rumblefish360]

You mean rusted like this; http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=10508&pp=20&page=6
Scroll down some. I just put the car up on ramps and went to town with the grinder for clearance and welded metal in to the sub frame and T-bar anchor.
Car sits fine now.

Since your not that far from me, 15 min. drive?

 

[smp2112]

Rumble thanks for the reply.

I have pics but can't upload them yet...technical issues .

When I mean clear through the x-member, I mean CLEAR THROUGH. We're talking the only thing holding the pass side x-member together is the bottom, the sides are gone and it is right between the torsion bar socket and tranny x-member connection.

I looked at your thread with the duster, actually I have been reading in bits and chunks over the last couple a weeks. Your damage looks like you made the right decision to cap it. I don't think I can cap this one, or if I did I'm not to sure I would be 100% comfortable knowing what is under the cap.

If I didn't have the spare member I might go for a cap but since I have a replacement handy and the floors need doing anyway, may as well go whole hog.

Actually i'm not far from you at all, I'm in Hauppauge off of Old Nichols Road. You might have seen the car in passing since I bought it from a guy in Ronkonkoma off Portion Road by the movie theater, practically in your back yard.

If I go whole hog do you think I should have the suspension loaded? That seems to be the consensus with sub frame connectors.

smp

 

[65s]

We did it to a '69 Valiant (whole front frame sections and crossmember as a whole piece) and had the car sitting on jackstands at the front corner of the rocker panels. Measure twice, level a few times....then weld.

 

[smp2112]

Great pics 65!

My gut says get all the weight you can out of the structure, put the subframes up on jack stands, level it, square it and weld away.

What has me questioning everything is that all of the tips on putting in subframe connectors say to dynamically stress the chassis by jacking up under the rear axle and under the LCA's (or use ramps).

Since the torsion bar x-member is at the end of the front subframe and is usually what you tie to the rear subframe with connectors i guess that is where my confusion is coming in.

What I should probably do is stop thinking, go with my gut and get the damn thing welded in!!

 

[FISHBREATH]

I seem to remember seeing some old assembly line photos at one time. The cars were assembled on jigs that moved along. The suspensions were added after the body was assembled. So, I would say that the bodies were not pre-loaded with suspension stresses. Anybody remember this?

 

[rumblefish360]

smp, your on Old N, I'm of Nich's, just south of Huestead Chevy.

The cap was purchased and in about 5 min.'s time, cut up to fit.

I ground down the OE subframes rusted out areas while the car was up in the air. Once the metal was of the same thickness, I made card board templates of the holes, cut out the same shape from the cap, welded them into the OE subframe.

You'll find the cap thicker and stronger than the OE frame. Which is nice when it came to welding it to the T-bars anchor.

My rot went clear through the subframe. The bennifit to mt disaster was the floor was way wacked and rotted. I was able to weld both sides of the patched in frame to the T-bar anchor and OE subframe.

IF yours is worse than I describe or that you can see in my thread, I would mark and remove the OE subframe and reinstall/replace it with the cap all together.

 

[RedFish]

Just a suggestion... If you were to purchase an Alterkation suspension package you could forget everything but suporting the trans tail. Add frame ties to that and you end up with better than original.
I believe a car is much like any structure, only as good as its foundation.

 

[smp2112]

Rumble:
Thanks for the suggestions. I'm going to take a look at the caps online and see if I can get the car up in the air this weekend and take a real good look-see.

RedFish:
I would LOVE to bypass all of this nonsense and go with the AlterKation but...the body is willing and the pockets are weak. No way I can swing the $4k right now.


I'll keep you guys posted, and hopefully get some pics up soon.

Thanks.