I need new bearings my rear wheels wobble wondering if I should send in my trailing arms for a rebuild or just have a local shop do the bearings, 76 with 130k

 

The bigger question is do you have a shop that has any clue how to do corvette rear wheel bearings...

 

Yes there is a good year shop that has done a lot of corvettes it is owned by a corvette enthusiast

 

that is cool...I am rather jaded as I believe I am down to thinking only one vette shop in the country is worth a flip,

So if you have the toad pelts hire it done if you wanna save a few bucks have them rebuilt or save more rebuild them yourself...

 

Might be more than I want to tackle I want it to be right

 

If that is the case and you can budget it then by all means hire it done...

Between life and health and bs i have been dragging so hard on progress on my 69 I have considered popped around to the shops that seem to be on every corner where we just moved, not vette shops but some look like they know the stuff...and a few have old classics sitting around.

 

I highly recommend sending them to Gary@vtech.com
Easy to find on internet.....he did a gr8 job on my trailing arms...
he does this every day...

 

You say the Goodyear guy is an enthusiast. The real question is: Do his techs have significant experience in this sort of repair?

C3 Corvettes don't roll into tire stores every day anymore.

Ask the local shop if he has recent experience with this sort of repair. Also ask if his techs (any of them) or the shop have the specialized tools to do this job. Last but not least, ask for a reference.

If his shop has done this work recently, and the customer was satisfied, should not be an issue.

I have seen a LOT of shops try to do this, and mess it up. It ain't rocket science, but is is not the standard every day wrench turning either.

This is a BIG TIME safety issue. Get it done right the first time.

Good luck.

 

I thought Gary sold Vtech.

 

There is a special tool for the rear bearings, so you need to make sure they have that before they start.

 

Sounded more to me like the op wanted to hire it done...


Your warning are well founded as most shops do not know c3's and the shops who claim they do and charge extra are not always the gurus they boast they are, finding a shop is hard,

Here is a fun true story,

when the 69 was running before the frame swap I rebuilt the front end and needed the aliment, knowing I would be on the rear soon I only wanted the front done to save a buck,

The places like tire kingdom and pep boys even the service managers who was some kid who quit his job as head of drive thru at KFC to work there would act like a deer in headlights when I said 69 corvette and the fees were way way up there,

So I recalled the oldest tire shop in Orlando on lee road, and the young man who answered the phone was another admittedly clueless to a 69 corvette but asked for my number and said the owner would call me back, I thought yeah sure,

Within the hour the owner calls and he started waxing about how long it's been since he did a corvette and all their special needs that he would have to be there, not that his techs are not good they wouldn't work there if they weren't, so I meet him there and he walks a tech through it, he did all the gauging and readings and told the tech what to do, this cat was not in the best health and in at least his 70's.

Another example is the crappy looking gas and goo place with a small shop on the side where the owner has a mid 70's c3 and knows more about the cars than a lot cats here,

My point is, just because most shops do not know c3's do the homework look into it and then decide It would be way too arrogant for me to say this OP's shop is no good as I do not know that shop or the owner.

The worse part of swapping out trailing arms is getting that mounting bolt out, then if the shock mount has become one with the spindle, many vette only places just want to cut and torch and let the customer pick up the costs of new parts. ( in the interest of saving time / money of course )

 

Vansteel in Florida is the best. Great workmanship and limited lifetime warranty. You can send them yours for a rebuild, or buy a reman and send your back later for the core credit.

 

The owner of this shop is the only one who will look at my car he is semi retired and I was referred to him by someone that just had his 1980 front and rear rebuilt and is happy

 

I would call any of the corvette places here on the forum that rebuilds the trailing arms.get a price .then talk to the owner of the shop.You will save a lot of labor cost if you take out and replace the arms your self.you also will spend more time checking everything and cleaning.I did this job it took time but I was glad I did it myself.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7LV...mpaign=npjun16 just got this see if it helps

 

I tend to have more faith in such tales even though I have had a hell of a lot of bad experiences with shops, this sound like a great place to have it done and it's your choice if you do some of the work or none, but I admire you not wanting to bite off too much I wish I had thought that way a few zillion times....

 

If you have a 130 K on it, you should just go ahead & replace the Trailing Arm bushings & shims replaced, along with the bolts. I had a shop rebuild a set of trailing arms W/bearings & complete hubs, Emerg. brakes, & rotors. shipped for 1200.00 W/warranty, I sold my old sets for 250.00. I installed them, so any shop should be able to do same. Have a great one. Gene

 

I hope that the shop you choose or have chosen DOES have the correct tools to do the rear wheel bearings and or the trailing arm bushing.

I do this type of Corvette work for a living and I know I could not do it without numerous specialty tools.

DUB

 

Sounds like he is well covered but I am sure he will ask if they have the correct tools for the task....

 

As he should ask if they have the tools..because people ask me from time to time and I go get them and show them..because just being a 'Corvette enthusiast' does not necessarily cover it...especially in this area of the suspension/drive line....in my opinion.

DUB

 

as I said sounds to me like he is on it and will ask...he seems pretty savvy to me...