Don't forget, you will need a torsion bar unloading tool, or some other way to unload the T bars to do the lower control arm bushings.
I sold mine before i did those, but i did everything else. And still had some weird vibes. Make sure to do it all while its apart.
No you don't.
Disconnect shock.
Separate lower balljoint (I think I remember it being easier to do the lower first)
Lower A Arm will rotate down until the torsion bar key hits the top of the crossmember,
no torsion at all anymore
Unbolt crossmember from frame and smack with dead blow next to the tbars and the keys & crossmember will wiggle off the tbars
Replace the tbar crossmember bushings (1 on each side)
Installation is just the reverse process. I don't see what the tbar tool would really do to help you unless all you wanted to do was replace the key for a leveling kit. That crossmember is only held on by 6 easily accessible bolts and the bushings are a wear item anyway.
When you are removing the rubber bushings from the a arms, press the inner steel sleeve out (a deep socket and balljoint press or vise can be used). Then take a narrow flathead screwdriver and wiggle it between the OD of the bushing and the a arm. Pry one end back and spray a little WD40 or something in there, then repeat all around the circumference. Once you get everything slippery, you can push the screwdriver about 3/4 of the way down the bushing (still on the OD of bushing) and pry against the a arm so that the tip of the screwdriver collapses the bushing in on itself. With very little effort, the bushing will pop out and hit you in the face or hit your ceiling
. Mush easier than cutting or burning them out. I always replace them with urethane for the main reason that you don't have to press/cut the outer steel sleeve out of the a arm. You can just press the urethane bushings in with your palm, and they are easier to remove if they ever wear out. I have found that plain old anti-seize works best for keeping urethane things from squeaking, it works a lot better than the paraffin or silicone based stuff you get with the bushings.
Since your upper balljoints are original, they will be riveted in. They are a pain the the ass to remove, and my best advice is to go to a junkyard and get a pair of a arms that someone already drilled the rivets out of. Last time, I paid like $25 for the pair and it probably saved me a couple hours of frustration and wear on my tools.
It's all really very straightforward and pretty simple. You will probably need CV shafts BTW. Some of them come with the ABS tangs. They will not fit, but they are designed to easily be tapped off with a small hammer. The only big headaches you'll run in to are:
The lower balljoint doesn't have a good flat surface for the press. Make sure the lip isn't caught when you're pressing them out, and spray with good penetrating oil ahead of time. When you press it back in, the a arm has a groove for the grease zerk, make sure that you have it lined up correctly before pressing it in, and most press cups will damage the zerk if you try to put it on beforehand. That zerk is a pain in the ass to get in there and to get the gun on too.
The stupid sway bar endlinks are the worst part of the whole thing. They're way too short and are damn near impossible to ever hook up again, the preload system sucks, and there's no good way to lubricated them to prevent squeaking. If you come up with a good way to hook them up again, point it out, cuz I've done way too many and they always end up taking damn near as long as the whole front end took.
You'll notice while you're doing the upper BJs that the boot won't seat worth a damn with the tbars cranked. That's a big reason why the balljoints have a poor service life on those trucks. With the a arm straight like it's supposed to be, they last a long time. I have had 3 stock trucks that had over 150k on the balljoints before I replaced them, one has been a plow truck its whole life. If possible, I would recommend lowering the tbar crank as much as you possibly can. The truck will ride a million times better anyway.
