I acquired some Total Chaos upper control arms and though it doesn't mention much (if anything) about it on their site, the spindle has to be enlarged to fit the uniball bolt.

Have any of you guys done this? If so, what tool did you use to enlarge the hole? If not, where did you take it to have it done?

I searched on this regarding the 4th gen., but the only info I found so far was a user mentioning that he was planning on installing them.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks.

 

anybody?

(Lance suggested just taking it to a shop - and I very well might - but I also just wanted to understand the process, in case it is something we could do ourselves.)

 

I suppose it depends on how much larger the hole has to be made and whether it is tapered or straight. If a straight sides hole, then a drill press or similar tool might work. If the hole is tapered, then it'll need to be done on a vertical milling machine with the proper tooling.

 

i don't think that it is tapered ... i haven't had a chance to look at them yet in person (i've been keeping them wrapped up to prevent damage while they're riding around in the truck with me), but from the website it appears that the bolt needing to be fit is straight. the hole has to be enlarged to 3/4" ...

soooo ... i suppose it's a machine shop that i'd need to seek out ... do you think most machine shops would accept jobs like that?

getitdone wants to do it with a handheld drill to save money ... i'm thinking it's not worth the risk of things not coming out straight.

 

It shouldn't be a big deal. I have seen people enlarge them by hand. For instance when you convert to heim steering, you need to enlarge the centerlink and steering knuckle holes to 5/8" as well as the upper mount on the spindle. As long as the hole is straight and not ovaled you should be cool.

I too would be too afraid to enlarge it by hand without TC's approval. I'd call them and see what they suggest. Otherwise a local machine shop could knock it out while you wait, I'm sure.

I wouldn't worry about saving money, this is one of those things that you want to do right.

 

I'd use a 1/2" drill with a 3/4" bit and you should have no problems enlarging the hole....

 

Lance suggested a dremel ... but the trouble with that is that the one I have doesn't have any 3/4" attachments.

The TC website mentions a tapered ream to help in the installation, so I emailed them to get a little more info. They also have an adapter type thing that would allow me to run the upper arms without enlarging the spindle hole ... but I'd rather enlarge it to run the stronger hardware.

 

Definitely enlarge it.
I wonder what they mean by a tapered ream? Maybe a step drill bit that goes to 3/4"?

 

Tapered reamer:



http://www.discount-tools.com/lav-557.cfm

 

Cool, thanks Roger ... so what kind of tool does that attach to?! Hopefully TC will email me back as well, and perhaps they have a specific one they sell/recommend.

 

DAMN!! Those are pricey!

 

I know!!!! eeeks!

 

One of these:


Or one of these:


Or one of these:


A tapered reamer is for making a tapered hole. If the hole needs to be straight sided, then a drill bit would work fine. And no need to have a 3/4" bit for your Dremel, you use a small carbide bit and work it around and around to open up the ID of the existing hole as needed.

 

Oh, well, since I have all of those huge shop tools, I guess I just have to decide which one I want to use this time.

(just kidding, don't have any of those)

I'm coming to see it'd be best to let a shop do it. Just for speed and accuracy. Probably wouldn't cost too much either.

 

Well, I emailed a place around here to see if they'd enlarge the spindle for me, here is the reply:

WE WOULD BE HAPPY TO DO THIS FOR YOU. I WILL NEED TO SEE THE
SPINDAL BEFORE I CAN GIVE YOU A PRICE ON LABOR, BUT FIGURE AROUND 500.00 OR
SO PLUS AN ALIGNMENT. PLEASE CALL US

I'm thinking $500 plus an alignment is a little much ... !

 

Are you guys talking about the same thing? Holy crap!

 

Rocky,

First verify with TC whether the hole is straight or tapered. This makes a big difference. If it's straight then definately do it yourself or find a someone to help you.

 

ummmm no seems about right for machine tooling....

 

To take a few seconds to enlarge a hole? Wow! I will definitely be doing this myself.

 

snap-on was referring to the tapered reamers