96 k2500 Front end rebuild

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White96k2500

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Okay so i am going to start rebuilding my front end in the next couple of day’s and i need some clarification and some tips, i know i have to lift the front of the truck completely off the ground and i have a torsion bar unloading tool and i am aware of how to use it but i have some questions.

1.after i unload the torsion bars do i have to take the bar out of the control arm or can i just unbolt the crossmember and knock the keys off and crossmember back and leave the torsion bars in the lower control arms?

2.when i do get to taking the control arms off, do i have to take the hub and everything off?

3. What is the best way for removing the upper control arm bushings and lower control arm bushings (lower is forged) without a press?

4. What is the best way to replace the lower ball joint(press in) without a press?
 

White96k2500

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Also i do raise the front of the truck all the way off of the ground then release the torsion keys right?
 

evilunclegrimace

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1)Are you re[lacing the bushings with new rubber ones or urethane?
2)Make sure that the T bars are marked left and right, front and back and clock them ( reinstall them in the same position in the CA,).
3)Remove the spindle and leave the hub in it.
4)Removing the lower ball joint with out a press is easy, support the end of the CA and beat the BJ out. Getting it back in with out a press is a real chore.
5)It does not matter if you raise the truck off the ground first or not
 

White96k2500

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1)Are you re[lacing the bushings with new rubber ones or urethane?
2)Make sure that the T bars are marked left and right, front and back and clock them ( reinstall them in the same position in the CA,).
3)Remove the spindle and leave the hub in it.
4)Removing the lower ball joint with out a press is easy, support the end of the CA and beat the BJ out. Getting it back in with out a press is a real chore.
5)It does not matter if you raise the truck off the ground first or not
1. I am replacing them with new rubber ones, it was hard to find the lower bushings in rubber but after a couple weeks of looking I finally found them, so I figured they didn’t make urethane lower bushings so i just got rubber top and bottom bushings

2. So they have to go back in at the same exact position they cane out?

3. Could i just take the lower control arm out first and leave the top connected to the spindle and support it from the bottom, then place lca back in and connect it to the spindle then take the uca out and just support the spindle with something from the top without having to take the spindle completely off?

4. Do you have any suggestion on getting it back in without a press?
 

Grayson B

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1. I am replacing them with new rubber ones, it was hard to find the lower bushings in rubber but after a couple weeks of looking I finally found them, so I figured they didn’t make urethane lower bushings so i just got rubber top and bottom bushings

2. So they have to go back in at the same exact position they cane out?

3. Could i just take the lower control arm out first and leave the top connected to the spindle and support it from the bottom, then place lca back in and connect it to the spindle then take the uca out and just support the spindle with something from the top without having to take the spindle completely off?

4. Do you have any suggestion on getting it back in without a press?

I'm interested to see where this thread goes! I recently replaced bushings, ball joints, inner and outer tie rod ends, sway bar bushings and end-links on a K1500. Now I have a 2000 K2500 that needs a front end suspension rebuild as well.

1) Rubber vs poly is an interesting debate. Rubber doesn't last as long (mine are 20 years old though) but poly will squeak and need lubrication every so often. I'm going to use rubber myself after I find the right sizes.

2) Your Torsion bars should go into the LCA the same way they came out. You can actually take the load off the LCA with the adjusting screw under the cab and leave it on the truck while sliding out the LCA.

3) I tried to leave the spindle/steering knuckle on the truck because I believed it to be easier to replace the bushings and balljoints without removing extra parts. I found this to be more difficult to work with as I was trying to work around a large bulk of parts that just got in the way. The axle nut on my K1500 was a 36 MM, so I'm assuming the K2500 is the same size (my 2500 has 8 lug axles, so I'm really hoping its the same, haha). Let me know what you find there. There's only 4 nuts holding it on anyway. UCA, LCA, Tie-Rod end, and axle nut.

4) Take it someone who has a press. Honestly worth saving yourself the headache.
 

Schurkey

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Rubber bushings are WAY harder to install as a DIY project compared to Polyurethane. The only way rubber bushings make sense is if you're replacing the entire control arm/bushings/ball joint assembly with a new part.

I totally failed to get the torsion bars to slide out of the lower control arms of my K1500. Ended up installing Poly bushings with the lower control arms detached from the frame, but still hanging on the torsion bar. Do-able, pain in the ass, though. 'Course those arms have bolt-in ball joints so that part was easy.

As said, you might as well remove the steering knuckle, rotor, and caliper. The caliper should get pulled apart for cleaning and inspection. Mine had sediment/crust on the square-cut seal that I peeled off with my fingernail. Cleaned-out the piston bore, scrubbed the piston with a wire brush. Sprayed everything except the rubber bits with aerosol brake cleaner, lubed the seal and piston with brake fluid, and slammed it back together. Lubed the slider pins with special brake grease. My brake hoses needed to be replaced, so this was a perfect time. Works great.
 
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