Token

spring compressors are so retarded. The one I rented from Murray's is the one that goes inside the spring. I found it impossible to get. It was too long, and then didn't work. I cut it, so I tried it again. Didn't work. I said F*** it and dropped the control arm. So much friggin easier. I will never use a spring compressor on my car again, for real.

I spent twice as long trying to use the compressor than it did to remove the strut, rotor, caliper, endlinks, and spring... After I gave up on that compressor everything went SO much faster.




The new springs are VERY stiff The stock is on the right and the Sportline is on the left. Holy crap is the sportline corner stiff. I love it.

BretD 88GTA

If you're installing lowering springs, you
A) don't need a spring compressor

&

B) don't need to completely remove the A-arm or totally disassemble the front suspension. Just pop the balljoint free — with a floorjack under the A-arm or leave the balljoint nut in place after you loosen it a few turns — and then SLOWLY lower the control arm with the floor jack until it is fully extended.

The stock spring should pop out fairly easily, but still, CAUTION should exercised. Then install the shorter lowering spring into the frame pocket, raise the A-arm to meet it and finsih by using the floorjack to compress it enough to reconnect the balljoint.

Done deal.

Camaroguy18

I had to use a compressor for my prokits....it just wouldnt go in right without one

PhLaXuS

Pretty easy...except when I was rebuilding my suspension, my supplier sent me Z28 fronts which were MUCH more stiff than stock. I spent half the day getting those things in and when I did, the control arm wouldn't compress at ALL. I drove it like that for a week until the new ones came in. hehehe...

Yeah -- I hate the compressors, too.

rad8tion

Speeking from dumb experance and a two week old limp:

BE VERY CAREFULL IF NOT USING A SPRING COMPRESSOR!!!

I don't know if it makes a difference that I have a convertible with the performance suspension option but.........

My springs (with straps tied around with them while compressed) when my A arm was lowered down hit the inner edge of the upper pocket and bound up. SO.... Then being the intellegent guy that I am I pushed down on the A arm with my left foot. Next thing I new I was face first in my car my left foot was aginst the wall of my garage and the spring that bounced off my foot managed to make it the long way down my car (some how without hitting it) and was outside my garage. WOW did that thing shoot out of there like a rocket.

3 hours in the ER several X-rays and a broken fourth metatarsel later I think buying and using a spring compressor would have been well worth my time and money

PhLaXuS

Wow...that really blows. I started off really careful because I knew bad things could happen -- and then about two days later, I watched a tech in an auto shop speed-compress a heavy duty front coil with one of those cheap $30 Autozone two-piece deals and an air impact tool. He had it on the ground between his feet and was just staring down at it and all I could imagine is if the thing let loose...he'd probably have died. Accidents do happen; just be glad that it missed your face.

Token

I've got all of my springs in as of the other day. I didn't use the compressor on the fronts and it took <1 hour per corner. That's not bad for a rusty michigan car.

83 Crossfire TA

iTrader: (2)

That sucks. But you did get lucky

Not to be an *******/beat a dead horse, but I’m going to repeat a few things that I’ve said here before about swapping front springs:
- be careful, it can be dangerous
- A spring compressor does not make it safer. It just gives you a way that you can get all that compressed energy in your hands rather then safely sandwiched between pieces of steel on your car, it also gives you a hard, heavy, somewhat pointy steel projectile to launch using the spring’s stored energy. These things cannot hold perfectly (you’re trying to hold onto a smooth, hard steel, ramp shaped piece, and every one has a different ramp angle so it’s not like you can make a head that will fit all of them perfectly), they do not hold perfectly (I’ve seen spring compressors fly off a compressed spring, and I know that I don’t have the ***** to loosen one while it’s holding a spring), and I’ve seen them break and shoot through things like cinder block walls.
- Do not lower the outside side of the a-arm to remove the springs. Remove the pivot bolts and lower the inside side… this keeps all the big steel parts between you and the spring while the thing still has any tension in it. it also works better with the geometry of the 3rd gen front suspension.
- Use a big, shop jack type thing under the spring pocket, this is by far the easiest/safest way to do it. I and I’m sure others have gotten away with some combination of small jacks, bottle jacks… but believe me, it works enough better that it is worth the $100 to go out and get one or at least the hassle to find someone that you can borrow one from
- I’ve said before that tying the spring down isn’t really necessary if you do it this way, but that being said, I’ve always tied the bottom coil or 2 to the A-arm before loosening any fasteners. If you’re going to do it, use a heavy chain, nut, bolt and washers. Assorted straps and similar stuff will not work if you do get yourself in a situation where the spring tries to get out.

The one time that I did get stuck with a spring hung up in the pocket on a car I pretty much made sure that I was nowhere near it when I knocked it loose (propped a steel broom handle in it so that it came out in front of the car so I was able to pry it out from the other side of the car and even then I put the front tires between me and it, and it was almost completely uncompressed and still chained to the a-arm when it popped loose. Probably overly cautious, but at least I was sure that I was safe.

kevinc

Thanks for sharing the story, I think it's the first actual account of a spring launch.

The head mechanic at my old high school job used to say that it was safer handling live rattlesnakes than compressed springs.

I've swapped three sets on my car, had a chain looped thru the spring and a-arm as a safety precaution every single time during removal and installation.

rad8tion

BTW

I finished up my polygraphite upgrade, complete front end rebuild, sphoon wonder bar, LS1 brake install before I got my girlfriend to drive me to the ER (couldn't push in the clutch)

Ryan

83 Crossfire TA

iTrader: (2)

It's good that you know what's important

Abubaca

iTrader: (3)

To properly use a compressor on our cars, you need a 5" pipe nipple to shorten it.

I agree, it takes ***** to loosen it, and I won't use a compressor again.

I did NOT loosen the A-Arm. I bolted up a safety chain and just lowered it still on the chassis. The old spring fell right out. This may not work if your springs aren't old though.

Mr Badwrench

Guy's, all you need is 3 big pry bars. One of those is to stick in the coil spring and then into the lower control arm(removing). That way when the spring lets go it stays right there!

When installing use the the 2 bars to push the spring into place and the third to keep from taking your head off(through the spring and into the control arm). This take two people.

I bust the lower ball joint free. Had many let go like this and never one accident.

Stay safe guy's. I've got tons of tips after working in dealerships for 24yrs.

89_fireform

wow good to know i dont need a spring compressor

KagA152

iTrader: (5)

i used one of these to get my stock springs out, but my pro kits were too short to get the tool in there, so i used the jack method, with a chain just in case, didnt need it, but for piece of mind. the tool kicks *** for mcpherson struts though

kaptinkafeen

iTrader: (2)

I used the jack/under the a-arm method to get my springs out, but this method didn't work to get the new lowering springs in Every time I went to place the spring in the spring pocket, the A-arm would not go up correclty and the spring would not index correctly in the a-arm. When I did the opposite, the top of the spring would not clear the top portion of the subframe.... In the end I had my springs banded and got the job done much quicker.
I have no idea why getting the springs in was so tough. I had plenty of room to swing the a-arms out of the way. Even when I used a spring compressor, I couldn't compress the spring enough to clear...
Ah-well, what ever works as long as its safe.
-Andrew

maroon88iroc

iTrader: (7)

i used a spring compressor to put my moms impalla ss springs back in after i changed the ball joints. pain in the *** is the least i can say.. i spent more time fooling with the compressor than i did with anything else. on my iroc i didnt need one i just put the jack under the lower control arm and had my bro push the control arm down as far as he could, then i fought like got the spring in and raised the jack to raise the control arm and the spring was seated good so i did the other side. but i am running 2" lower springs which as said b4 should not need a compressor.

kaptinkafeen

iTrader: (2)

The only thing with "wresling" with the springs, using the jack under the a-arm, using pry bars, etc, is that if you have painted your a-arms and brought them back to a nice shine, you end end scratching the hell out of the arms..... I had to re-paint mine once I figured that I couldn't compress the springs enough myself (and ended up getting the loweringt springs baneded instead) because I had destroyed the new paint job while attempting to instal the new springs. How do the pro's do it when they are restoring cars? All that work to get the suspension looking new, only to have it scratched and banged up? There must be some tricks to it.
-Andrew

83 Crossfire TA

iTrader: (2)

rubber pad or a wood block on the jack

ThirdGenLS1

those spring compresssors you rent do suck, but i was able to get my prokit on without using one.

kaptinkafeen

iTrader: (2)

Mark,
I did that but between the spring moving a bit (and scoring either the top or bottom pocket) it still made a mess.
-Andrew

3.8TransAM

Get a few of your car friends buddies together.

Buy the OTC spring tool.

Its gonna run u about $300, it aint cheap but the best/safest one I have ever used by far. Thing can usually be turned by hand except for really short/tight stuff.

I use a jack under it and lightly compress the spring absolutely no more than is needed. I also unbolt it at the body side and lower the entire arm down. Have lots more room to work that way rather than undoing it at the balljoint.

Also, keep your face out of the way and if any chance of having difficulty where u have to give it a whack or pop it out, chain the thing into place.

I have seen people get their hands smashed from the spring coming out and pinning their hand between the spring/spindle and the frame/body. He was an idiot and I laughed at him at work because his hand should have never been there in the first place.(yes he truly was an idiot for many other reasons) He got stitches and amazingly no broken bones. Just a giant swelled up hand for a couple weeks.

If its not going right, just stop and unhook or redo everything until you are satisfied.

Last time I checked no one here is big enough or bad enough to catch a compressed 250+ pound inch compressed spring :-) when it lets go.

Also, if u have to persuade it out for any reason, take 5 sec and chain it in place and make sure your face/body is out of the damned way.

later
Jeremy

TheMysticWizard

iTrader: (1)

Yesterday I pulled my springs out... no compressor. I had all this in mind before I did it, but mine wern't any big deal. I was stripping everything down, so I might have done it differently than other people, I had the car up on jack stands (under the frame right in front of the transmission x-member) and I took and put a jack under the ball joint part of the a-arm, pumped it a good 1-2 pumps after it was compressed and loosened the strut bolt. then I lowered it down enough to get the strut out of the mount, then i pulled the nut off the balljoint and seperated it from the knuckle, removed the whole strut/spindle assembly, then went back to the spring.

I was nervous doing it, because I had heard that they can fly out and damage near by things, so I lowered it down slowly figuring it would go low enough to relieve all pressure... no go, even all the way down it was still in there on the a-arm. so I pumped it back up and tied it to the frame, then lowered it again. This time I took a pry bar and jamed it between the a-arm and sping from under the hood, so I was clear of the spring. I gave it a good nudge and it poped out. I was surprised because it seemed to be under very little pressure, it didn't seem to even want to go that far. I did the other side the same way and same thing, no big pressure. Maybe it was just my car as the springs were original and it has almost 195,xxx on it.

83 Crossfire TA

iTrader: (2)

It’s good to know that no matter how many times I repeat myself someone has to do it the harder/more dangerous way.

PhLaXuS

You did your part in saying it. If people refuse to listen -- it's not your fault.