s-10 ball joint any body got them figured out yet

[peterpan]

i just spent about an hour reading posts on the s-10 ball joint swap and it seems like the lower shoud be moved inward 1/4 inch and i'm lost on the upper allmost all the threads on the s-10 ball joint swap have ended up in going with the adjustable upper arms


i figured out how to put the ball joints in but i'm not sure on there possition

i don't want to pony up the cash for the adjustable arms for my starfire i just plan to sell it so i want to keep the build costs down
and i think the s-10 swap can be done with good results

did i miss a thread or has no one finished it up yet

[ColinOpseth]

I had the original holes in the upper control arm welded shut. I hogged out the original vega hole and put in S10 ball joints. Looks OK so far.

[peterpan]

i got a good understanding how to put them in but i am not sure on where to put them

does the upper one need moved one way or the other and is the 1/4 inch inwared right for the lower ones

[ColinOpseth]

I thought it was outward for the top and inward for the bottom. My alignment seems to be OK so I didn't stress about it much.

[peterpan]

ya its probably easier than i'm thinking but i just don't want to ruin a set of deep pocket arms by welding them up just to find out they should of been moved one way or the other

and the top ones too but they are easier to get than the deep pocket arms so it wouldn't be to bad to ruin the top arms

[v8astregt]

Out of all those threads, I could SWEAR I've answered this at least a few times. Someone needs to sticky it.


ANYWAYS, I do have the S10 conversion, with STOCK UCA's, and S10 upper balljoints. It's very simple. Just weld the bolt holes shut. The main hole is too small, so when you hog it out, just hog it back, and out towards the fender of the car... fixing the camber issue. 1 hour job, tops. Got it aligned with ZERO issues. Car handles fine at speed, straight as an arrow, and it's just as good braking.

[peterpan]

with all the different threads they never really got a straight answer they all ended up talking about the adjustable upper arms

so to make it clear at least to me
the upper ball joint gets moved back and outward
the lower gets moved inward about a 1/4 inch

i don't imagine there is much room to move the top to far any idea how far you moved it each direction josh

[v8astregt]

Just as far as I could move it and fit the balljoint in. If you get what I'm saying, the front/inner radius of the hole will be original. The outer/rearmost portion of the hole will be ground out, probably about 1/2" either way. I know camber was within 1/2*, and he was able to lean the spindle back for good caster... like I said, it's really good going down the track, even with a loose steering box.

[peterpan]

ok its as clear as mud now
thanks i'll go get started

[v8astregt]

Got a top-view picture of a control arm w/o a balljoint installed?

[NixVegaGT]

Josh, I think you've got an anomaly there. It is possible that it would work out without doing anything but most guys have had a problem with it.

I also set up a set of UCAs in the way you're talking about. I, not knowing about the difference in the BJ location, put mine here:



BAD IDEA! That exacerbated the problem in my case. You can see that I moved the UBJ back a little to add some more caster.

The facts are: that the S10 spindle has a different location for the lower BJ than the H-body. The centerline of the lower BJ stud retention hole is about 1/4" farther from the spindle location. SO the LBJ has to be moved inboard 1/4" to make up the difference.

Here's where I put the lower sleeve:



Here's where I SHOULD have put it:



I think Tom had the best idea: From a post in response to a thread I wrote about this very issue:

I appreciate the comments.... I started a thread some time ago about the S10 spindle swap without the negative camber.
I didn't really get as many replies that talked directly to a solution as I had hoped.

The negative camber issue (with junkyard S10 parts) is the only thing that the Dirtmod thread left out. I believe that if you do the same swap, but do the UBJ first, attach the spindle assembly and let it dictate the location of the LBJ in the LCA, the camber problem will go away. (You have to consider before and after ride height also).

I plan on doing this swap within the next couple of months: I'll verify your suggestions and will post a reply.

Tom
_________________
75 Vega, 406sbc/t350, street/strip, no tubs

[peterpan]

ok now no one bring up the adjustable uppers as a fix for this problem this thread is all about the stock arms with the s-10 ball joints

i know the adjustable arms will fix it but some people won't have the cash for them

[peterpan]

this is the best picture i got josh i think it was one of dirtmods pictures

[NixVegaGT]

I just edited my post. The LCA pix I put in will illustrate better what I'm trying to say.

[peterpan]

so if the bottom goes in the 1/4 inch does the top still need to be moved

i was cutting up th s-10 a arm and it gave me a idea mixed with dirt mods lower control arm how he grafted the end over his and an old idea from bigwheelbigdeal back on v8monza he built plates to move it out and back

i took and cut out the upper balljoint hole basically the end of the upper control arm it could be welded on to move the ball joint out and back


i'm not sure what picture will show it best so here are the 3 i took