Can someone tell me what the radius arm bushings consist of? My radius arm is clanking when I go over a bumpy road, and do not have time to do a full repair but also do not want to egg out the bracket or damage the arm.
Can I pull the nut off for now and just replace the part that keeps the arm centered (arm is lower than it should be) and the back portion of the bushing, until I can do a full repair?
are these bushings available after market or do I have to go to Ford for them.and is there an easy way to remove the bolt on the arm, I tried with a box wrench and a jack...all it did was lift the vehicle (I was afraid of either snapping the end of the radial arm or bending it)
I would really appreciate any help on this.
This is on a 1995 F-150 4.9L 2wd (fire engine red)

 

Not recommended. I have seen people take the nut loose and pull the axle forward with a come-along to change to the bushing. It can't be good for the front end and god help you if something breaks while you are doing it.

 

If you've never done this type of work, the best thing to do is have a shop replace them. Your front end will need realignment. There are aftermarket polyurethane bushings that will last longer. The forward bushing is the one that keeps the arm centered, so replacing the rear one won't really help your situation. Some people remove the rivets on the bushing brackets and install bolts. That is the easiest way. The other way, you'll have to remove the IFS pivot bolt and drop it down to allow the wheel and arm to be pulled forward. This way is a 2 man job.

 

Im not sure what you guys are talking about with the rivets and all that. If its just the outer bushing, you just have to take off a large nut. To get to the bushing(s) behind the bracket you do have to lift up the truck or something. But I replaced the frontward bushing on my pickup with a 1-1/8 inch wrench and alot of force. I think the book says to tighten them back up with about 80 ft-lbs. Also the parts (which included the bushing for both sides of the bracket) cost about $11 and took 15 minutes to replace. NTB wanted $200 to fix it!!

 

the rivets they are talking about are located on the radial arm drop down at the point where the bushing sit what you need to do is get an air hammer or grinder remove the rivets remove the radial arm drop down replace the bushings and then reinstall the drop down with bolts

 

note of caution...I did my bushings while lifting my bronco and even with the front end tore apart, the radius arms still kicked my butt when I was trying to seat them in the bracket. it is better to drill out the rivets on the bracket, remove it, then unbolt the radius arm and pull your front axle fwd about 1 or 2". then bolt the bracket back on and guide everything back to its proper place and bolt down

 

I might be out to lunch but, my truck (92 flareside) had this constant clunkity clunk in the front end anytime I went over rough spots on the road. I had the radius arm bushings changed for about $400 and on my way home from the shop I heard the same noise again. (I was just a tad dissappointed to say the least) Next I purchased a new set of front shocks and when I was installing them I noticed that the bolts were all crankshafted. I got new bolts and installed the new shocks. No more noise. A $500 clunk. You win some and you lose some. I agree that Radius arm bushings are best left to service shops.

 

heck with 40 to 60 bucks an hour when a guy can get a good chisel and hammer at the very least and cut the rivets off the radius arm bracket and replace them with bolts after changing out the bushings...easy enough to do...just make sure you get bolts that will give a good tight fit...and don't go with anything less than grade 8's...

MontanaFord

 

Can anyone tell me where to purchase the aftermarket bushings (the polyurathane ones) and how much they cost. Am I at risk of breaking the radius arm if I apply to much torque trying to get the large end nut off ? I used a jack and a box wrench
and it didn't budge.
if there is no chance of breaking it I can use a torque multiplier with a 1" ratchet.

 

I just rebuilt the entire front end of my '92 F150 HD 2WD- everything! Every- friggin'-thing! I didn't go with the polyurethane bushings due to ride quality. I don't do the "off-road" thing, and for what it's worth, when I purchased all of my parts at NAPA the counterguy actually talked me out of the polyurethane bushings they sell. He said your ride will stiffen-up considerably, as he makes a bit of cash on the side working on trucks and knows what he's talking about. I went to Ford and got the OEM black rubber ones, and I'm smilin' ear to ear as I go down the road!

Not too sure about the chisel/rivet stuff, as I took both I-beams out when I did mine. If it helps, I can't see how a guy is supposed to replace the bushings without taking out the springs, the axle bolt, and all that. Perhaps the chisel idea is a good one, and would be much safer. Also, if you snap the radius arm bolt you'll have to replace the whole thing, which WILL require removing the springs, the bolt, etc. Use alot of heat, and work the nut backwards, forwards, backwards, etc, until you get it free. Lots of "luber-slider" will help, too.

Lastly, replace both sides, and have your truck aligned.

 

A couple other things- as you probably already know, the threads/bolt on the arm is part of the arm, and as such, is not replaceable individually. Secondly, the front bushing centers the arm, not the rear one, so a temporary fix with just the rear bushing would be a waste of time.

Remember the old adage: If you don't find the time to do it right the first time you'll be forced to find the time to do it right the second time.