I bought a jamco front sway bar from shoebox central to improve handling on my 1951 Ford Custom. The installation is not hard but I had to enlogate the lower hole on the U plates to be able to install The U bolts that hold the Poly bushings in the D bracket that holds the sway bar to the frame. I placed a 1/4 inch spacer between the lower A arm and L bracket to get mine to align the Poly bushing link with the hole on the sway bar. Here are some pics. Juan
Juan - 1. The anti-sway bars short arms should be parallel to the ground at ride height for the best performance of the bar. Hard to tell in your pictures how the bar is attached, angle wise. 2. Might be too late now, but did you make sure...that your ant-sway bar is of a proper spring material before you bought it ? Many places will sell you a plain, low carbon steel and call it an anti-sway bar. If it not made of a "spring" type material, it's just adding weight. Mike
My gut feeling is that if Shoe Box Central sells it, its not a plain old low carbon steel bar posing as a sway bar. JMO
Hello Mike I just followed the advice of guy that I read in the HAMB on shoeboxes. Jamco has been in buisness for a long time according to their site since 1957. The hardware that came in the box was made by Hellwig Here are their sites. Juan https://www.jamcosuspension.com/products/front-suspension-and-steering/mercury/sway-bars https://www.hellwigproducts.com/
Juan, I am sure your sway bar is a sway bar and not a mild steel rod since it was sold by a reputable dealer and is a name brand, Jamco. My concern is your safety in the pictures. I do not see any jack stands or means of support for your vehicle other than the floor jack if it should fail. If you had stands or supports under the wheels great. We just cannot see them in your pictures. Please use a safe means of support other than the pictured jack when working under your hot rod because we want you around here for a long time.
war - I've seen it happen..! You shouldn't be so certain...without ACTUALLY knowing..! Juan - If your bar was actually made by Helwig, you'll be fine. THEY do, and have for a long time, made reputable parts. Mike
Having the same one on my own '51 I am speaking from reality and not making something up to intimidate a new member.
Hello Mike W and and Warhorse I take precautions and use jack stands in conjunction with my Hydraulic jack. The car is resting on concrete blocks up front and a set of jack stands in the back. I followed the installation instruction which mentioned that the weight of the car had to be on the tires to install the sway bar. I bought a few concrete blocks from the nearby hardware store and using some 1.5x1.5 aluminum angle bolted to the blocks with tapcon screws so the car could not roll off. but as a precaution I had the hydraulic jack on too. I always work on a level surface so the car is not going to roll on it`s own. I`m new to old cars but I used to do work on my 1971 Camaro that I would race locally in the NHRA Super stock division in the late seventies. Thanks for caring guys I really appreciate it. I`m taking care of my self but I`m hoping to Hit a 100,Years that is! Juan
Concrete blocks are not safe for holding your car up. They can crack and crumble. Please find something safer. Russ
Concrete blocks laying on their side have very little strength. They are designed to be used upright. A set of ramps would be a much safer option in lieu of jack stands.
Juan, you are trying but please heed the posts above for your own safety. Yes we have all seen cars supported on concrete blocks and everything worked OK. I and several others have seen the unfortunate ending of safety gone wrong. We all want you around here and for a long time. Do not take these posts as people picking on you we are just trying to help you along the Hot Rod highway safely. It has enough dangers in place already.
Hello warhorse I will heed and I will buy some stands for under the tire in steel. I had the hydraulic jack under the car at the same time to protect myself. Thanks. Juan
Juan, with some 2X4 wood you can build your own stands that will keep the weight on the suspension and easily support the car without fear of it dropping on you.. Search around here for jack stand threads and you will find some examples.
Not sure how these brackets are held in place? Is this installation finished in this photo or more bolts to be put through these brackets horizontally ?
You cannot see it but the U Bolts go over the top of the cross member and down the back through the other hole in the sway bar bushing. If my car was sitting not propped up on it's side for body repair I could take a picture and show you.
Hello loudbang Here are two photos that show how is bolted with the U Bracket and U clamp to the frame Juan
Thank you for the pics Juan. I could not get those views of mine right now as I have the drivers side jacked up and supported.
Hello stefan I haven`t being able to give the sway bar a good test because I`m doing work on the car and have not driven the car much. I bought it after reading on a thread here that it was an improvement in handling. I`m doing a rear end change,brakes and engine on mine so I wont be able to drive it for a while. Juan
I appreciate your response. It just looks like the mounting points on the front crossmember aren't too substantial. I'll most likely be going with it due to the factory bar being about a half inch in diameter
Hello Jimmy Now that you mention it I looked at the picture of the bracket I will add a tube spacer to avoid bending the crossmember if I need to tighten the clamp some more. Juan
I actually slipped a piece of pipe in there over the U bolt to stiffen it up. 1/2" if memory serves. It does prevent bending the front cross member if you really squish down. Go ape strong tightening it. Yes it does help in the cornering and control but it is still no corner carver. Tire squeal is greatly reduced with the heavier bar during spirited driving.
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