I installed what appear to be the correct bushings in my lower control arms and the A Arms will not slide into place in the frame.....not even close...I shaved some rubber off of the ends and pushed the bushings back out about an 3/16" each and now they will just slide into place. Same problem on both sides, so I doubt I have collision damage. Reading thru all the threads I can find on Ford front end work and it looks like the the lower A Arms should pop right into place and may even need some shims to take the slop out. The arms came out fairly easy initially and there were no shims to be found. Contacted the bushing vendor and he ***ured me I had the right bushings. I don't think running the bushing when they are not completely seated against the control arm is a good plan and I'm out of ideas....
Did you try tightening the bolts to see if the gap closed up? Maybe they sprung in when taken out? On my 56 I had to persuade them in. They did just the opposite of yours.
Not enough rubber left on the old ones to measure , but thewhat is left of the metal bushing is pretty darn close.
It's been a decade or more since I did my '57's control arms, but I see 2 posibilities......the bushings should have had 4 raised ribs that indicate the depth to which they are pressed in. Any chance you exceeded that depth indicator? Also, how were the bushings installed? were they drawn in with no pressure exerted on the arm itself? It's easier to distort the upper control arm with upper bushing installation (on a '57)because they install from the outside, but I believe I've read that '58's have screwed in upper bushings, to help with caster alignment???
My '59 is similar. When I did mine, I did one of the lower bushings backwards, so make sure they are in the right way. The rubber could be proud on the new ones. My lower arms dropped out easy and each had a shim towards the front of the arm and no room to put them back in. I saved them. Mine took some force to get them back in, back in 2014 so I forget what the answer was. It may have been a big pry bar and muscle. I got the back bolt started, the fronts were the big shoulder bolts. Ask on the main HAMB board, lots of '58 and '59 owners there. This is one case where it is smart to jot down some dimensions and take some pictures before you start. I'm as guilty too.
Btw, just reread your opening posts. The pic looks correct to me, what do you see as the problem? Your last sentence said you didn't think the bushing should be installed not seated against the control arm, but at least in '57 that was the way Ford designed them, and thus the reason for the raised ribs I talked about. Those ribs, if '58's have them, should keep the bushing's flange about 1/4" away from seating.....as you aproximately show in your pic.
Thanks for all the replies! I made an tool out of exhaust tubing, all thread, washers etc. to pull the bushings in to avoid pressing on them. The bushings were originaly pressed all the way in, No gap. I would have measured the old bushings, but there was no rubber left and it was metal on metal, with the ends of bushings rusted off. By the time I got them out of the a arms there was not much left to work with. I'm going try another set of bushings and compare them to what I have...
New bushings, same problem, going to run them as is and see what the guys at the front end shop think when I drop it off for alignment. BTW Texas 57, the upper control arm bushings do screw on a 58....And they were another issue of ill fitting aftermarket parts. Apparently India is the new China when it comes to front end parts.
I may be wrong, but if I remember correctly, India was traditionally a source for parts with rubber components. That is a good thing. So, China had become the new India and we all know how that worked out. I'll do a inquiry on the '57 forum as to the lower bushing to see what I can find out for you. We have lots of '58 owners there as well.
This is what I posted on the '57 forum...did I get all the info correct? "Hey guys.........'58 owners...........a Hamb member is having trouble with lower control arm bushing installation. I know the uppers bushings on a '58 are different that '57's, but what about the lowers? The '57 bushings have raised ribs on them to indicate when to stop pressing the bushings in, about 1/4" from fully seating. Apparently the bushings he is getting do not have those ribs, but if he presses them all the way in, as he initially did, the control arms will not fit. Are the '58's suppose to have those depth indicators? Any info I can p*** along would be appreciated."
I had trouble getting new upper shafts with the bushings for my '59, so went with just the bushings and it worked out well.
Pulled bushings out, hit em with the bench grinder and filed them flat....numerous times until I got one side to fit perfect and then made the bushings for the other side the same length..What a PITA!
I really forget how I got mine it, there was zero room for the washers that came out with the old ones.
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