Heat the area around the bushing housing, not the bushing, when the rubber melts/bubbles, pry the bushing out with a screw driver...[/QUOTE]

see pic above. once that rubber starts to burn you dont have a lot of control as to what heats and what doesnt.
it was interesting and fun to play with fire.

 

Fire to remove. Press to install.

 

I burnt out the old rubber bushings with a heat gun .
Then ground off the outside flange of the shell with a angle grinder
Then cut through the shell (at a angle) with a angle grinder careful not to cut the shaft ,then a couple of wacks with the hammer and chisel and out they come

 

Here's the quickest way to remove control arm bushings for you guys hammering on this for the first time. Corvette Forum posts have been a great help.. Thanks guys!

This was my first experience, with front control arm bushings. And after reading up and you-tube-ing.. Using air tools is the only way to go. It's like cutting butter if you have the right tools. Skip renting the hand powered C-Clamp bushing compressor tool at the parts store... I did this to start with and it's a bad experience..

Note: My control arms were not on the car.

Tools needed:
An air compressor (pancake size is big enough)..
An air hammer with a chisel and and round punch (about 1/4 - 3/8 dia.
Also, two hole saws 1 1/8" and 1" diameter (with drill bit center removed).


Remove bushing bolts and washers on the sides of the control arms.
Then, use a 1 1/8" hole saw to auger out the larger, rubber bushings and a 1" hole saw for the smaller ones. They will ream out easily. Once the rubber is removed, you can crush the outer metal bushing shells with a round air hammer punch (round). The lowers with the shaft inside take a little more time.

I cut a couple (scored), the outer metal bushings and collars, with an oscillating air saw (or battery powered) but discovered that just crushing them from the sides and pushing them out all with an air punch was much faster. Worked like a charm.

See this You Tube video..
FR

 

hole saw on a drill, next size down from bushing diameter, takes like 5 seconds, oil it while cutting and they will fall out, then just beat out the shell with regular hammer

 

Spend about $60 and get the right tool for the job. It presses the old bushing out and presses the new one in without damaging anything or setting your garage on fire. I have one and it did both sides in about 20 minutes.

 

Does it work on upper and lower bushings? Looks a lot easier and you can get it cheap. I might just get that. Thanks!

 

The only really critical element in removing and reinstalling the bushings is to not bend/damage the control arms in the process.

I have done it with a press in the past (under the supervision of my much more experienced Dad,at the time) and it can go smoothly if you are careful and support the control arms correctly as you press them out and the new ones in.

When I don't have access to a press of my own to use I take them to a competent machine shop and have them do it. As long as they know what they are doing it doesn't take long and the cost is not expensive. Particularly when compared to replacing a damaged control arm.

Good luck... GUSTO

 

 

It's all in experience , the first time is always the hardest ... I use an air chisel , die grinder and white lithium grease ... it's knowing where to place the chisel that makes all the difference . .. I put in plenty of bushings with just grease and a flat round chisel in the air hammer ... just tickle the outer edge moving around the whole circumference driving the bushing in.
sometimes the bushings come off leaving the sleeve on the arm that's where the die grinder comes in you grind a slice in it then spread it with the chisel .

 

I chose the best way. I took them to a garage down the street and had them do it for me. I have done everything else on the car, but I don't have a press for that.

 

Get the Snap-On ball-joint press, I can change the 1 ton BJ's on my truck with ease with it, if your going to spend 600, then buy the best tool for only a 100.00 more.... and it's half again as big as the OTC ball joint press

 

This tool is good for upper control arm bushings and 1 of the 2 lower control arm bushings. It does not have the right pieces to reinstall the larger bushing on the lower control arm from my experience. Missed it by that much.

 

I did mine on my '80 last year and the ones on my '79 Z-28 (sold it) a few yrs ago. It's not a fun job. I used an acetylene torch, a sawzall, a hammer, and a chisel.