What Idler Arm is this?!

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fredsmedina

fredsmedina

6 Dart 7 MOPAR OR NOCAR
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I can't find anywhere what idler arm this is that I have here. you can see what I mean by the Pics. I can't find a similar idler arm anywhere. The car is a 67 dart. but since its not an original V-8 car, not sure what k member it has in it. I cant find the right idler arm anywhere though. I ordered one for a '67, and its not the right one, the one that i recieved is correct I believe for a '67, however I don't believe I need a '67 idler arm. I found internet Pics of a '67 idler arm, and that doesn't look correct either.. please help me ID what I have.

It has the numbers "1324" or "7324" on it. can't tell if its a 1 or a 7 for the first number..

I also attached pics of the '67 idler arm that I bought(the one in plastic) and a 68 idler arm off of the internet.

IMG00580.jpg


IMG00582.jpg


IMG00583.jpg


IMG00585.jpg


IMG00589.jpg


IMG00593.jpg


1968 idler arm. MOOG k7042.jpg
 
Does your k-member have the spool type or biscuit type engine mounts ?
The idler arm in the last pic looks Identical to My 72 model so one thought is you may have a 73 + spool mount V8 K-member ?
Just looked at your pick again and I suspect you do have the 73 + K-member as The centerlink mounts below the idler arm for improved clearance .the 72 - mounts the centerlink above the idler arm . Notice the direction the mounting bolt for the centerlink is pointing on the two different Idler arms .
 
jomoper said:
Does your k-member have the spool type or biscuit type engine mounts ?
The idler arm in the last pic looks Identical to My 72 model so one thought is you may have a 73 + spool mount V8 K-member ?
Click to expand...
gonna go out and take pics of my engine mount right now. i'm not sure which one it is..here are pics though.

IMG00610.jpg


IMG00609.jpg


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nevermind. I get it now actually. I think you're probably right about having a 73+ idler arm and k member.

tomorrow i'm pulling the engine, and i'll be able to take a better look at it.
 
Sorry if I'm not too clear It's getting late .( for this old dude)
Yup def looks like a spool type mount to me, If the whole suspension set-up was swapped with the centerlink and all that would require the 73 up idler arm IMO .Hopefully someone else will chime in for a second opinion .
Sorry if My earlier reply confused you, just trying to be helpful.
 
jomoper said:
Sorry if I'm not too clear It's getting late .( for this old dude)
Yup def looks like a spool type mount to me, If the whole suspension set-up was swapped with the centerlink and all that would require the 73 up idler arm IMO .Hopefully someone else will chime in for a second opinion .
Sorry if My earlier reply confused you, just trying to be helpful.
Click to expand...

I definitely appreciate it!

previous owner might have. the guy that I bought it from was selling his dads car. His dad had passed away, so he wasn't sure of everything that was done on the car. does this mean that I have the entire wrong front suspension kit? or is it only the steering that would be from a later model?
 
[. does this mean that I have the entire wrong front suspension kit? or is it only the steering that would be from a later model?[/QUOTE]

Hard to say really, does the car have the large 4.5" bolt pattern ? If so then the whole assembly was probably swapped from a donor car . Otherwise the p/o may have split it and swapped in the V8 K-member centerlink ,idler & pitman arms and just connected up the tie rods to the existing suspension .
Hang in there if your gonna pull the engine that may be the time to figure out what you really have and if you can just get a kit for a 73 up suspension rebuild or if your gonna have to do a little mixing and matching of components .post what you find I'll check this thread tomorrow afternoon .
 
Yep, you've got a '73 up spool mount K member. You will need '73 up steering parts but the control arm bushings and strut rod bushings are the same. The lower ball joint should be OK but the upper ball joint will depend on which year control arms you have and whether you have large bolt pattern disc brakes or not. Post a pic of the upper control arm so we can get a look at the socket size on the ball joint.
 
jomoper said:
Hard to say really, does the car have the large 4.5" bolt pattern ? If so then the whole assembly was probably swapped from a donor car . Otherwise the p/o may have split it and swapped in the V8 K-member centerlink ,idler & pitman arms and just connected up the tie rods to the existing suspension .
Hang in there if your gonna pull the engine that may be the time to figure out what you really have and if you can just get a kit for a 73 up suspension rebuild or if your gonna have to do a little mixing and matching of components .post what you find I'll check this thread tomorrow afternoon .
Click to expand...
grumpuscreature said:
Yep, you've got a '73 up spool mount K member. You will need '73 up steering parts but the control arm bushings and strut rod bushings are the same. The lower ball joint should be OK but the upper ball joint will depend on which year control arms you have and whether you have large bolt pattern disc brakes or not.
Click to expand...

thanks. its still a small bolt pattern drum brake front end.

previous owner did alot of "screwey" stuff on this car to say the least. and I honestly do not believe he would have taken the time to change over everything. It is probably only the steering link and pitman arm. to complicate this more though, the steering column is out of an 80's van. Which is another reason that leads me to believe That the rest of the front end is probably the actual '67 stuff..

thanks alot for your help tonight though.

also, off topic, but where in norcal are you located jomoper?
and grumpuscreature, I LIVE BY YOUR SIGNATURE! I always go for functionality when i do stuff. doesn't matter how pretty it is.
 
Looks like you have a spool type k-member. But I'd like to see the under side of the k-member to see if it has a hole in the middle for the sway bar to pass through.

I can tell that with this car (and any 40 year old car) don't assume anything.

Next. Just because you have a 73-76 K-member DOES NOT mean you have a 73-76 center link, pitman, idler, and large sector steering gear. Please take a picture of those from under the car. Does you zerk (grease) fitting on the top or on the bottom of the pitman and idler?

You can interchage the center link, pitman, idler, and steering gear as a unit between 68-72 A-bodies and 73-76 A-bodies as a unit with all those piece listed with the two style of K-members, 68-72 and 73-76. 67 is excluded and one year only because of the idler.

Also take a picture of the front of the lower control arm to see if you have 73-76 sway bar tabbed lower control arms.
 
autoxcuda said:
Does you zerk (grease) fitting on the top or on the bottom of the pitman and idler?
Click to expand...

what do you mean by this? I Know what the zerk fitting is, but not sure exactly what you're asking.

on the idler, the end that connect to the kmember has the fitting on the side of it, and on the end that connect to the centerlink it has the fitting on the top
 
fredsmedina said:
what do you mean by this? I Know what the zerk fitting is, but not sure exactly what you're asking.

on the idler, the end that connect to the kmember has the fitting on the side of it, and on the end that connect to the centerlink it has the fitting on the top
Click to expand...

Yep, zerk on top is a 73-76 Idler.

By the picture of idler you took off the car, you have a:

73-76 Idler arm
73-76 Centerlink
73-76 Pitman Arm
If you have power steering you have a 73-up large output spline power steering box.

Also, if you are adding a sway bar to the car, you will need a 73-76 style and the 73-76 lower control arms with the sway bar tabs in the middle. You can buy the sway bar brackets for $30/pr at Hotchkis and have them welded on.

The 73-76 lower control arm (LCA) is on the left. The 66-72 type is on the right.

LwrCntls.jpg
 
will take all of the pictures that I need today when I get home.

but also to complicate this even more, The steering column that I have is manual, and previous owner told me its from an 80's dodge van.. so how would I ID what centerlink I have? thanks
 
fredsmedina said:
will take all of the pictures that I need today when I get home.

but also to complicate this even more, The steering column that I have is manual, and previous owner told me its from an 80's dodge van.. so how would I ID what centerlink I have? thanks
Click to expand...

If the idler you pictured above one top of the blue rag/towel is the one out of your car, the only centerlink that would fit that is the 73-76 centerlink.

The steering column is a manual type or the steering gear is manual?
 
I just went through 3 different idler arms on a 70 Duster, trying to get one that fit. Original 318 from the factory. Nut up to the drag link.
Tried Napa, $57, nope. Advanced; nope. Autozone- close.
Autozone was the only one that I could even get close into going the Kframe brackets. Got it in, with no washers, like the original had- studied it, and decided that the bolt doesn't pivot, like it used to. Good to go.
Then can't get the bolt in both holes (5/8"). Found an old Ford 411 bolt, ground a point on it, drove it through, and it centered the idler, so I could use the bolt that came with the new idler.
Good, and tight.
 
Forgot to say; Napa had one washer.
But the lenght is wrong, too tall.
With the new stuff, bolt doesn't turn in the kmember. Friction tight.
But the Autozone still gave a grease fitting for it.
 
autoxcuda said:
If the idler you pictured above one top of the blue rag/towel is the one out of your car, the only centerlink that would fit that is the 73-76 centerlink.

The steering column is a manual type or the steering gear is manual?
Click to expand...

whats the difference? its manual steering(not power steering) if that clarifies what I meant to say.

so if the centerlink that I have is a 73-76, then the pitman arm would be a 73-76 as well? or is the pitman arm interchangeable on more years.?
 
fredsmedina said:
whats the difference? its manual steering(not power steering) if that clarifies what I meant to say.
Click to expand...

I thought you were saying the steering column (not the steering box) was out of a van and was manual type. My bad....

Diffrence in manual to power pitman in 73-76

The moog part number for
73-76 manual pitman: K7075
73-76 power pitman: K7076
From: http://www.bigblockdart.com/techpages/moognumbers.shtml

[/QUOTE]so if the centerlink that I have is a 73-76, then the pitman arm would be a 73-76 as well? or is the pitman arm interchangeable on more years.?[/QUOTE]

Yes, the pitman should be 73-76 manual part number but....

I'm a little cautious on the pitman arm yet since you said the manual steering box was out of a van. I don't want to assume anything. Van/C-body steering boxes have different output shafts than A-B-E body manual boxes.

http://www.bigblockdart.com/techpages/steeringbox.shtml has some great info but they ask this question:

"One item I'd like to know about is the possibility of using a large sector manual from a van to replace a late power box. This would make the power to manual conversion a bit easier, but I'm unsure about the pitman arm clocking to know whether the late a-body pitman arm will work on the van box."

I believe that is THE situation you are in now.

I think you need to measure the diameter of the output shaft of your steering box to be safe. Measure just above the splines as it exits the housing: 1.22" for large sector, 1.11" for small sector.

Before you took the suspension off, did your pitman and idler point roughly straight back? Did the centerlink look shifted to one side? Were the tie rods shorter on one side than the other?
 
Been very busy lately. Sister got married wednesday. and my grandfather has been in the ICU at the hospital since monday night..

Thanks everyone for replies. gonna get outside today and take good pictures of everthing and get everything identified hopefully.

I also have a question about the steering box. If the column was from an 80's van, does this automatically mean that the steering box was swapped in as well? or could the steering box have been the same one that originally came on the car?

the car was an original slant6..thanks
 
Now that its a year later, my project is definitely taking longer than I had hoped. So I've finally got my car all painted. and Front end taken apart.

I cant figure out exactly what I have though. I believe I have a 73-76 Kframe. based on the type of engine mounts, and by looking at a few different books and websites.

How am I going to identify what centerlink I have though?

My idler arm definitely isn't a '67 or '68. If I have a '73-'76 kframe, what idler arm should I try?

If the previous owners swapped out just the centerlink/idler/pitman, does that mean that the tie rod ends are not year specific? the tie rod ends will be the same from the '67-'76 abodies?
 
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