I've only ever done them all apart too, but I'm sure the brake must swing far enough out of the way to press it out? I would think the C clamp press should work.
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1966 Strato Chief 2 door, 427 4 speed, 45,000 original miles
1966 Grande Parisienne, 396 1 of 23 factory air cars (now converted to a "factory" 4 speed)
support the body as high as you can, use the jack under the A-frame, drop it to the limit, then up a bit. split the ball joint with a pickle fork or good old fashioned hammer. squeeze the backing plate to the rotor and pull towards you, should come up at an angle and off.
press or hammer out the ol ball joint. same for the new one.
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later...rog
AADD supporting member !!
I'm a collector...not a builder!!Located in sunny central Saskatchewan at the lakehead!
Thanks, I should mention that it is Drum front brakes, i think there is a bit of a clearance issue, but like you say, perhaps a slight pry will squeeze it out.
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Beaumontguru
MY BEAUMONT HAS 4 STUDDED TIRES AND 2 BLOCKHEATERS......AND LOTS OF OIL UNDERNEATH. The other one has a longer roof.
The backing plate will slide by, it might give you a better angle if you pop the top ball joint off first. and the tie rod end .
I've done it this way countless times...never have pulled the drum or backing plate..
yes , removing the backing plate would make it easier, but that means stripping down your brakes and removing all the pieces to get at the backing plate bolts.
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later...rog
AADD supporting member !!
I'm a collector...not a builder!!Located in sunny central Saskatchewan at the lakehead!
I put the car on jack stands and let the suspension hang. Then the floor jack goes under the lower arm and I raise it til it makes contact then drop it .25-.50" so the a arm will drop when the balljoint breaks loose. I always leave the nut on with .5 clearance til the joint is loose. Then smack it with a bfh or a pickle fork. Once you break it loose raise the the spindle off the joint and tie it up. Now you can knock the rivets out and bolt the new 1 in. FWIW I ended up using 2 forks stacked on my 55 and 68
BTW it helps to have a motor in the car. Tried doing my Bird with no motor and couldn't compress the spring with just the body weight.
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Canadian 55 Pontiac with an American Pontiac power train. Best of both worlds!