So would I. It would make my decision easier and thanks again, 55 Tony, I appreciate your input.
*Front end A-arms
Good morning to all. I have a question, has anyone worked with Ridetech Suspension? I am looking at their strong arm tubular control arms. Any good or bad reviews? Thanks.
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I put the tubular arms on mine with Viking coil overs. The only reason I did make the change was to upgrade the A-arms (bushings corrosion, and worn ball joints) as a set and not mix and match old and new components. I had absolutely no expectations of improved performance, just an upgrade for me. I put A-arms, sway bar, and coil overs on all at once. The reason for the Viking coil overs specifically was that I could set the compression and rebound to my liking and be able to adjust as I like, again not a performance direction although it did help dramatically and is what I wanted and I have no regrets.
Had the system on for 7 years now and absolutely not looking back or regretting the choice I made.
My suggestion to you would be to make your own choice, listen and consider all this advice, you will not be disappointed in what ever you choose to do. Have fun, remember this is only a hobby. enjoy the ride.
Gary S
Had the system on for 7 years now and absolutely not looking back or regretting the choice I made.
My suggestion to you would be to make your own choice, listen and consider all this advice, you will not be disappointed in what ever you choose to do. Have fun, remember this is only a hobby. enjoy the ride.
Gary S
I don't see much discussion of tubular control arms other than Ridetech. There are many others out there.
Can't comment on the track width, except to say that I have no clearance issues (Heidts spindles, C5 discs, 18 x 8 wheels, 225/40/18 tires, inner 45 degree fender lip straightened vertical).I currently have 15 x 7 wheels with 4.5 backspace on 215/65/15 tires. They clear the fender by about an inch. I hope with this new setup I am planning on doing that it doesn't widen the track width.
The taller ball joints help with clearance as the top of the wheel will pull in under compression (increasing clearance), whereas the original arrangement pulled the wheel out under compression (reducing any clearance).
You can also gain clearance by adding a bit of -ve camber. It is surprising how much difference a little -ve camber makes.
It's wording like this that really gets people confused about control arms. Just what does "performance" mean? It doesn't mention anything about extra caster. For all you know, they may be the same as the old stock ones. Just for the heck of it, I asked the seller ""exactly what does "performance" mean?""
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Tube A-arms on your streeter are nothing more than the entry fee to the whizzing contest @ your local watering hole + the poly bushings will squeak.
They are "pretty" on flip nose rides with a detailed chassis & they are standard fare on aftermarket chassis as they can be fabricated in house.
They are "pretty" on flip nose rides with a detailed chassis & they are standard fare on aftermarket chassis as they can be fabricated in house.
I tried to build my cars to look like 60s/70s hotrods and therefore tubular stuff would look silly and out of place on them.
Good Tubular a-arms , like Global West, are far superior than stamped factory, which deflect and may Crack. Again, caveat being "good". If you are just a street cruiser, may be overkill. Autocross or track course, that's a different story.
QA1 and CPP aren't bad and if you are looking to upgrade from your originals, they would be fine.
Do NOT use poly A-Arm bushings...get the delrin type or stick with OEM rubber. Poly cold flows and is not meant for friction areas (movement).
There may be some that disagree, but I can point you to many publications that cite what I just said.
Good luck.
QA1 and CPP aren't bad and if you are looking to upgrade from your originals, they would be fine.
Do NOT use poly A-Arm bushings...get the delrin type or stick with OEM rubber. Poly cold flows and is not meant for friction areas (movement).
There may be some that disagree, but I can point you to many publications that cite what I just said.
Good luck.
I'm no expert on front suspension but my own personal experience with tubular control arms is this. My last build a frame off restoration on a A body 1970 Monte Carlo that I bought as a partially done project had a full Detroit Speed front suspension (one of the reasons I bought it)& it drove & handled better than any A body I have ever driven & Ive had several & drove a lot more The 56 was a big improvement over original suspension but I do not contribute that solely to any change to tubular arms as I changed so many components at the same time & because funds available at the time I didn't buy the best parts available.CPP tubular uppers (stamped weren't available then anyway) Summit lowers (Global West knockoffs) 500 box sway bar front disc & PB kit. Since then I've done two cars for others using the CPP +5* stamped uppers one with 500 box one with factory PS both drove a lot better.The 57 convertible with 500 box had better road feel. All three cars have different enough tires & wheels to not have a good comparison.I agree that the CPP & others need a quality ball joint added my uppers boots split within 6 months & one of the lowers was popping last summer being replaced with .5" ridetech taller uppers Moog lowers soon as I make myself go out in the garage to do it. So if I just wanted to improve road feel with radial tires the Stamped +5* do the job at a lot less cost but they might make it hard to steer without PS. Just my opinion
The lower control arms take about 90% of the abuse, and there is no reason to replace them unless they are bent or something from an accident or from hitting a 10" deep pothole at a little speed. The uppers don't take much abuse, so tubular ones are either for good looks, to fit some other suspension components, or to look cool.Good Tubular a-arms , like Global West, are far superior than stamped factory, which deflect and may Crack. Again, caveat being "good". If you are just a street cruiser, may be overkill. Autocross or track course, that's a different story.
QA1 and CPP aren't bad and if you are looking to upgrade from your originals, they would be fine.
Do NOT use poly A-Arm bushings...get the delrin type or stick with OEM rubber. Poly cold flows and is not meant for friction areas (movement).
There may be some that disagree, but I can point you to many publications that cite what I just said.
Good luck.
I've never seen/heard anyone in this group set on making an autocross car out of a trifive. Maybe you have? But if so, I would imagine they would be changing a lot more than the upper control arms.
I haven't heard of anyone with cracked original arms, maybe I missed it?
The difficult steering would depend on how you adjust the +5 arms. +5 caster doesn't mean that your car will automatically have +5 caster, it just allows it to be set up that way under good conditions. Many have zero caster, or negative caster and with the originals you may be stuck with that and you are constantly moving the wheel back and forth to go straight. Adding 1 or 2 degrees positive with manual steering shouldn't be a problem with a big wheel.t. So if I just wanted to improve road feel with radial tires the Stamped +5* do the job at a lot less cost but they might make it hard to steer without PS. Just my opinion
I wasn't singling out UCA or LCAs, but you are right about LCAs being load bearing. Nobody here, that I have seen, has built an auto cross 55...but ...The lower control arms take about 90% of the abuse, and there is no reason to replace them unless they are bent or something from an accident or from hitting a 10" deep pothole at a little speed. The uppers don't take much abuse, so tubular ones are either for good looks, to fit some other suspension components, or to look cool.
I've never seen/heard anyone in this group set on making an autocross car out of a trifive. Maybe you have? But if so, I would imagine they would be changing a lot more than the upper control arms.
I haven't heard of anyone with cracked original arms, maybe I missed it?
I would listen and trust this guy over anything else. His books are very good too
Sorry for the late reply. I talked to George at Heidts for their 2" inch drop spindle and he assured me that their spindle # SP-002-A would work with with the ECI, EC-735-K disc brake kit. I than called ECI and talked to Mark about their disc brake and he in turn, also confirmed what Heidts said.. This is the set up I am leaning towards. Right now, I am considering the CPP tubes over the stamped type, simply because I like the look of the tubes. If I feel that for some reason I don't like the way they perform, I can always go back to the OEM control a-arms once I clean them up. Erick at CPP told me that I could use the stock springs and stock shocks which I want to use. I want to thank all who participated in this conversation. Very much appreciated. I hope to start this project in two or three weeks. Thanks.
That's fine, but remember that SC&C is selling his own high $ control arms as well as tall ball joints - so there's a sales pitch there. You have to consider whether you need either one, just as with the rest of the discussion.
So far no one has posted one of the positive aspects of tubular control arms - they are lighter weight and this has its own advantages with no performance negative whatsoever. Again it's a matter of results vs. money spent.
So far no one has posted one of the positive aspects of tubular control arms - they are lighter weight and this has its own advantages with no performance negative whatsoever. Again it's a matter of results vs. money spent.
I think you are making a good choice here. I've purchased the ECI kit with their hubs and 13" Corvette rotors. Nice stuff.Sorry for the late reply. I talked to George at Heidts for their 2" inch drop spindle and he assured me that their spindle # SP-002-A would work with with the ECI, EC-735-K disc brake kit. I than called ECI and talked to Mark about their disc brake and he in turn, also confirmed what Heidts said.. This is the set up I am leaning towards. Right now, I am considering the CPP tubes over the stamped type, simply because I like the look of the tubes. If I feel that for some reason I don't like the way they perform, I can always go back to the OEM control a-arms once I clean them up. Erick at CPP told me that I could use the stock springs and stock shocks which I want to use. I want to thank all who participated in this conversation. Very much appreciated. I hope to start this project in two or three weeks. Thanks.
Thanks Rick_L. I just want to get parts that are all designed to work together. I have to rely on someone else to do the work for me and I want to make sure that I have the right parts. Thanks.
Yes I have spoken to him two or three times. That's who I got the .9" taller ball joints from. That guy can talk and talk and talk... Wanted to sell me a coil over system but it's just not in my budget.I would listen and trust this guy over anything else. His books are very good too
During my second call I swear to God that he told me newer cars have memory foam in the suspension and that's why they handle so great. Unfortunately I had just got a new bed and disposed of my old Tempurpedic.
Mark wanted to sell me some coil overs that I posted here and a few people pointed me to some other similar ones that were a LOT cheaper, but still not in my budget. The thing is, that I don't drive my 55 like I used to. I used to go off a certain off ramp faster and faster until the tires started squealing then I would jerk the wheel to oversteer a little to see if the front or rear would slide. Those taller ball joints make a difference, I know that for a fact. As does more caster. I don't know how a coilover setup would help unless I was making right and left turns quickly? Would it? And if my front end got any better, the stock rear would be a very weak link. So then I'd need mo money.That's fine, but remember that SC&C is selling his own high $ control arms as well as tall ball joints - so there's a sales pitch there. You have to consider whether you need either one, just as with the rest of the discussion.
So far no one has posted one of the positive aspects of tubular control arms - they are lighter weight and this has its own advantages with no performance negative whatsoever. Again it's a matter of results vs. money spent.
I asked for advantages of tubular arms and weight is the first I've seen. Thanks. Although with a BBC up there I doubt a pound or two is going to make much of a difference.
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