Mancini, Lower Control Arm Stiffening Plates

[nothingbutdarts]

How about an opinion on the lower control arm stiffening plates Mancini Racing sells? Is it worth doing it to the arms when doing the    thing?

  Or not?

[Joe-Dokes]

Firm Feel also recommends the stiffening plates if you plan to install a front sway bar.  Considering how poor the Mopar front end is, I think it couldn't hurt and might help a great deal.  Think about it, if you install urethane bushing, a nice sway bar, and tubular upper control arms, you basically throw much of the advantages away when the Lower Control Arm deforms under load.

Considering that they are 22.95 plus tax and shipping I think it would be a good investment, particularly if you are a skilled welder and can install them yourself. 

As a side note, I would inspect your suspension components thouroughly, Hot Rod built a hemi car about ten years ago and found cracks in some suspension components.  They had them all bead blasted and magnafluxed, on a drag car that might see 150 mph, it seems to be cheap insurance.  For a cruiser, a good cleaning and careful inspection might suffice.

Best of Luck

Regards


Joe Dokes

[dartracer]

Just get some steel and make your own, Not very hard at all.

[MVRCorp]

Not worth the hassle for $25.00 to make your own. I bought them and had them welded before changing up to an alterkation. Gave them to a friend. The important part is to postion the holes in them to where the torsion bar adjustment bolt is so you can adjust the bolts (don't forget the pre-load). The other thing is if there is any play, side to side, on the torsion bar socket assembly clamp the sides of the LCA down until the play is eliminated then weld them   .

[andyf]

I highly recommend them!  Actually I've been shocked how many of those kits we've sold since I started making them.  I sell a few hundred plates every year.  I never thought a weld on part would sell like that but they do.

[wild383]

I had Bill "AAOUTLAW" add the plates to my LCA's and he did a great job. I like the extra stiffness that they bring to the control arms.

[attachment deleted by admin]

[oldkimmer]

Has anybody installed these while the arms are still in the car?  Do u welder guys+gals suggest a mig or the good old arc?.........Kim....

[nothingbutdarts]

I had Bill "AAOUTLAW" add the plates to my LCA's and he did a great job. I like the extra stiffness that they bring to the control arms.

   Do they come already comformed to the LCA or do you have to bend them to fit the curves?

[MVRCorp]

You bend them, nothing to it. I just started in the middle with 2 visegrips and worked out to the ends.

[Jim_Lusk]

How poor the Mopar Front end is?

The best handling front end of the big three from the musclecar era.

That said, I also recommend them, but you can add a sway bar tab to them for a nice one-piece solution to non-sway-bar-tab LCAs.

[nothingbutdarts]

                       

[Two Lane]

Has anybody installed these while the arms are still in the car? 

 

Excellent question!! 

[Jim_Lusk]

I didn't install in the car, but I don't see any reason why you couldn't.

[flyboy01]

you should jack up the front end and let the control arms hang to take any pressure off them, then weld them, otherwise they might warp and bend.

[Prodart]

The only restraint to on car application would probably be make sure there's no wieght on the arms when you put the heat to them.

[flyboy01]

  I think I just heard an echo...   

[Prodart]

  I think I just heard an echo...   

You just type faster then i do !!!!

[flyboy01]

by 18 seconds, about as fast as a Ram does the 1/4 miles.

[Two Lane]

Thanks for the helpful replies! 

[74swinger]

Just get some steel and make your own, Not very hard at all.

I made my own as well.  Not hard at all. 

The price goes up big time for the Northern igloo dwellers such as myself   

[b569rr]

Use the left over 2" flat bar from your subframe connectors.



See the T bar bolt. I forgot that the bolt sits inside the LCA when adjusted. The carbide rotary file ovaled the hole. 


took about an hour for both.

[urchinhead]

Tom -
  did you fabricate those sway bar mounts from scratch, or did you buy them and weld them on?

[jamesdart]

if you do them on th ecar you have to watch you dont melt your lca bushings.

[flyboy01]

Wow, those are some beautiful welds. Mine look like chicken shit.

[nothingbutdarts]

Wow, those are some beautiful welds. Mine look like chicken shit.

 

        On the welds that is! They look very strong.

[b569rr]

Thanks guys. Those are the factory sway bar brackets. I have repaired most of the factory welds on the car. Those are true "hammered dog shit" welds.

The steel  bends without heat. Tack one end, hammer it down, tack it another inch and repeat.

[74swinger]

   Did mine soft of the same, but I pre-rolled them to get the shape close.  The heat of welding makes it easy to get it nice and tight.  I was lucky and had access to a metal roller.  Also, I did not use 1/8" plate - I used 0.050" thk cold rolled plate (left overs from other stuff).  Don't need to go crazy with the weight.

I did not fix any iof the factory welds, because those welds tend to look better than my "chicken shit".  Just when I think I did some nice welding, Tom posts another photo.....   

Can you come North and weld my stuff up?  I suck at this welding gig.............

You do great work and you should be very proud of your accomplishments.     

[flyboy01]

Wow, those are some beautiful welds. Mine look like chicken shit.

 

        On the welds that is! They look very strong.

YOU CAN AGREE ON MY CHICKEN SHIT WELDS TOO!   

[flyboy01]

that has to be a TIG weld? 

[b569rr]

No it is my Mig. I'll use my tig torch on the 8pt roll bar.

'74swinger: I'll come up north and weld for all the Elsinore and jelly doughnuts that I can consume. 

Tom