Quote:
Originally Posted by chasrrr
Man loving that you are starting your build with a frame clean up and restoration. I will be doing the same. Thanks for all the detailed posts on what you are up to. All in all was the LCA rebuild worth the time instead of just buying new LCA's?
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Thanks! The frame cleanup is still underway, I just wanted to see how the POR15 held up after all my experimentation. After painting the LCAs, I decided that POR15 might be more hassle than its worth and want to give a shot at Rustoleum Rust Reformer. I'm getting back at it soon enough and am planning to some cutting and welding soonish. My welding isn't that good right now, but I've got metal to remake that front skid crossmember piece which isn't structural so it should be okay.
I really like making the tutorials for the bigger projects, so I'm glad others like them too. It feels like a valuable use of my time. Eventually, I'll have covered enough topics, combined with the other ones out there, to make a 4th gen specific DIY maintenance thread.
All in all, rebuilding the LCAs was definetly worth it to me. As a college student, I like saving money and have more time for projects during breaks. I needed to remove the LCAs to properly paint the frame behind them, which is what got this started. I was also working from home and wanted a tangible project to keep from going insane, so this fit project the bill. It ended up costing about $220 in materials and about 13 hours of time. Time would definitely be reduced following the tutorial, instead of trying a million things like I did lol. Once I perfected the method for removing the bushing shells, they came out without fuss. If you're lucky like Hi-desertT4R, the shells might come out with your bushings as
shown in his attached pictures. After the install, I was able to get a legitimate alignment and it now feels more planted on the road. It used to wander decently when transitioning over the crown in the highway, but now everything is great. Could be just getting a real alignment, but it did stiffen up in a more controlled way up front from the bushings.