79 F150 2wd
Going to replace original i-beam & radius arm bushings with some nice Energy Suspension bushings. Any installation tips?

I guess I have to pull the coil spring out and drop the i-beam assembly i-beam end first to get the radius arm stud out?

 

Right. That's just how I did it to mine. I first thought that I could just loosen the top of the coil spring, but I had to totally remove it in order to get the correct angle with the axle. Then it was easy. I noticed a huge improvement with poly bushings, of course my old ones were shot...


Marty

 

I was wondering if those poly kits come in a kit for just the frontend? Or would I need to buy the pieces seperately? Also how much do they cost? And finally what is the ride and steering like compared to the stock rubber bushings?

 

I could not find them in a set so I bought the radius arm and axle pivot bushings seperately, came to $50 together. I noticed a huge difference in driving. It went straight down the road again, don't have to work to keep it between the lines, and it corners better. But my old rubber bushings were shot, almost fell out when I took it apart - not sure how new poly compares to new rubber...

Marty

 

I replaced both sets on my 79. I noticed that the truck holds a straight line better and the suspension rides alot smoother. A little problem that I ran into is that I had to burn the old piviot bushings out, which made for a nasty mess.

Ryan

 

Thanks for the input guys. Unfortunately I won't be able to get around to it for another month (stupid vacation ) but I'll let you know how it works out.

 

i did my old mans radius arm bushings for him on his 84 and i didnt have to drop the coil at all i was able to pull the i beam forward enough to get stud out of the hole..you'll need a helper to do this.
it took me maybe an hour to do this...i did have it on a hoist though.
used a bar and a come-a-long and a hammer.
no problems...no more rattles for his old girl anymore

 

Stop. Do not pull the whole axle/radius arm assembly. Following advice from this board, I removed the pivot bolt and dropped the axle to replace that bushing, and unbolted the radius arm bracket from the frame to replace the RA bushing. Simply unbolted the axle pivot bolt and the axle should drop out of the bracket. One bushing I was able to knock out with a hammer, the other had to be burned out. (The burning rubber is toxic, so be careful.) The Pivot bracket has two pieces which had to be alligned with a ratchet extension before the pivot bolt would go back in. I must add that a nice floor jack is quite helpful in this operation. For the Radius Arm bushing, loosen the RA retaining nut and unbolt the three bolts of the bracket. There is a rivet in the middle of the bracket which has to be ground off, you will later replace this with a class 8 bolt. One of my rivets had already been removed so that side was much easier than I expected (took <30 minutes). I ground off the rivet on the other side with my dremel tool. This took a while, as I had to keep changing the grinding wheels. My father-in-law lent me a 7" grinder, but I could not fit it into the tight space to work on the rivet, a 4 1/2" grinder would fit. A little work with the hammer and the bracket will pop off. Doing it this was was pretty simple and it broke up the project into four shorter tasks which left the truck driveable for most of the time it took to complete. The truck will also hold its own weight so jackstands are not needed. If you have any specific questions, e-mail me.

 

 

My '78 F-100 two wheel drive makes a popping kind of sound from the front end, I suspect it the radius arm bushings are shot (have never been changed and they don't look too hot). On a two wheel drive, are there any other bushings to consider on the front end? I noticed in LMCs catalog the Energy Suspension polyurethane RA bushing set sells for $19.95 for the 73-19 F-100, are these OK, and is it a matter of simply removing the retaining bolt on the end of each RA, working off the old and putting on the new?

 

Also check for wear/ deteriorated bushings at each end of the shock. Look at the tie rod ends to see if they have any play in them. The coil spring could also be loose or not in its seat correctly. Look for any place where the dirt/oil/rust is rubbed off the metal indicating unwanted contact.

As far as the radius arm bushing is concerned, the RA must be removed from the bracket because the bushing has two pieces. One piece goes on each side of the bracket. I got the a full Prothayne bushing kit, which includes replacements for the front and reat suspension, and the body mounts, from Summit for about 100 bucks. I called them, the cataloge I had did not have exactly what I was after, but with them on the phone they found what I needed. Hope this helps.