Torsion Bar Crossmember Replacement 70 B-Body

[67rayson]

Need to replace Torsion Bar Crossmember ends on my 70 Superbee!
Who Sells Best Replacement Crossmember?
Anyone Grafted in Just the Ends?
difference between OER and AMD, Whos better?
Any Tips or Help Would Be Great!
Thanx !!!

 

[sam dupont]

upper right corner of this page it says: search
That will give you a drop-down that looks like below.
I chose for sale Mechanical Parts, but people post in various places

 

[davek]

Torsion Bar Crossmember - 66-70 Dodge Plymouth B-Body

It is important this item be in good shape as it is a major component on the front of the body. Has the same metal thickness as OE and the area holding the torsion bars will accept stock size bars as original.

www.autometaldirect.com

 

[davek]

if both ends are bad replace the whole thing. JMO

 

[eldubb440]

I did one end on my GTX........ I used a donor piece

 

[PurpleBeeper]

Need to replace Torsion Bar Crossmember ends on my 70 Superbee!
Who Sells Best Replacement Crossmember?
Anyone Grafted in Just the Ends?
Any Tips or Help Would Be Great!
Thanx !!!

I suggest replacing the whole piece with a used one. Try moparmarks (?) on this site

 

[Don Frelier]

I did one end on my GTX........ I used a donor piece

View attachment 1814281

Looks like you need a donor piece for that one finger

 

[64 Sportfury]

68 Coronet Longroof

Posts 25, 26 and 27 are pics of what my crossmember started out as. Posts 42 and 43 have a few pics of the finished product. Used the AMD crossmember and used the ends only. I added "fish plates" and sub frame connectors (just 2"x3" rectangular tubing). I hope you plan to remove the floors as access to the entire area is necessary IMO. I needed to replace front floor sections as well. The nice thing about only replacing the outer sections of the crossmember is locating the new pieces is easy. I did have to massage the AMD pieces a bit. I was not at all interested in maintaining the factory appearance. I also made new inner rocker panel and front frame rail sections. I modified the center hoop as well to allow for an A500 transmission. Eldubb440 is the master at these things. Take any advice he gives.

 

[cosgig]

I replaced just the end on my 70. The rest was still good, so I bought a stub from Derrick Fettig on Marketplace for $50 and replaced it from the front rail . Of course I gusseted the inside as well, and after 5 years and many happy miles, it’s still in perfect shape, despite the guy who posted on a picture I included in a post somewhere that it would fail, I would die in a fiery crash, and he would buy the remains of the car from my widow!

 

[67rayson]

68 Coronet Longroof

Posts 25, 26 and 27 are pics of what my crossmember started out as. Posts 42 and 43 have a few pics of the finished product. Used the AMD crossmember and used the ends only. I added "fish plates" and sub frame connectors (just 2"x3" rectangular tubing). I hope you plan to remove the floors as access to the entire area is necessary IMO. I needed to replace front floor sections as well. The nice thing about only replacing the outer sections of the crossmember is locating the new pieces is easy. I did have to massage the AMD pieces a bit. I was not at all interested in maintaining the factory appearance. I also made new inner rocker panel and front frame rail sections. I modified the center hoop as well to allow for an A500 transmission. Eldubb440 is the master at these things. Take any advice he gives.

how do i find your posts 25 26 27 42 43

 

[67rayson]

68 Coronet Longroof

Posts 25, 26 and 27 are pics of what my crossmember started out as. Posts 42 and 43 have a few pics of the finished product. Used the AMD crossmember and used the ends only. I added "fish plates" and sub frame connectors (just 2"x3" rectangular tubing). I hope you plan to remove the floors as access to the entire area is necessary IMO. I needed to replace front floor sections as well. The nice thing about only replacing the outer sections of the crossmember is locating the new pieces is easy. I did have to massage the AMD pieces a bit. I was not at all interested in maintaining the factory appearance. I also made new inner rocker panel and front frame rail sections. I modified the center hoop as well to allow for an A500 transmission. Eldubb440 is the master at these things. Take any advice he gives.

did you leave your torsion bars in when replacing crossmember ends? how do you stabilize the front frame and old part of crossmember from moving while cutting the bad out? it has me puzzled? where do you place the jack stands so it wont move ect.?

 

[64 Sportfury]

Click on the link in the above post "68 Coronet Longroof". Each thread has the post #'s at the upper right hand corner. This post # is 12

 

[64 Sportfury]

I took a variety of measurements before I started. Both with the vehicle on the ground, then also with it raised. I measured the front fender wheel-to-ground height so I could return the car to its normal stance. I measured mutiple areas around the frame and torsion bar section of both sides. I recorded these measurements to determine the initial "squareness" of my front frame section. I removed the torsion bars after welding in square tubing supports. I marked the torsion bars both left and right as well as front and back. My frame was only out of square by 1/8" when raised. It's possible these old vehicles could have misalignment from the the factory, previous accidents, etc. I would suggest doing one side at a time to minimize flex. The driver side torsion bar crossmember has the both the hydraulic and emergency brake lines to deal with. As for the cutting, fitment and welding, make sure you're skills are up to the task. Floor pans that need replacement make the job so much easier. These vehicles have a lot of factory welds that provide strength and engineered flex. Because I was not interested in the factory correct appearance, I added a ton more welds and strengthening pieces to my project.

 

[67rayson]

I took a variety of measurements before I started. Both with the vehicle on the ground, then also with it raised. I measured the front fender wheel-to-ground height so I could retrun the car to its normal stance. I measured mutiple areas around the frame and torsion bar section of both sides. I recorded these measurements to determine the initial "squareness" of my front frame section. I removed the torsion bars after welding in square tubing supports. I marked the torsion bars both left and right as well as front and back. My frame was only out of square by 1/8" when raised. It's possible these old vehicles could have misalignment from the the factory, previous accidents, etc. I would suggest doing one side at a time to minimize flex. The driver side torsion bar crossmember has the both the hydraulic and emergency brake lines to deal with. As for the cutting, fitment and welding, make sure you're skills are up to the task. Floor pans that need replacement make the job so much easier. These vehicles have a lot of factory welds that provide strength and engineered flex. Because I was not interested in the factory correct appearance, I added a ton more welds and strengthening pieces to my project.

where did you place jack stands to hold up car while doing this?

 

[64 Sportfury]

Depending on what area I was working, I used a combination of 4 jack stands, my two-post lift and 2 hydraulic jacks with wood pieces. When I removed a rusted section, I used any of these tools to maintain the proper fitment and location during welding. There was very little movement so returning the uncut sections back to factory position was not difficult.

 

[67rayson]

Depending on what area I was working, I used a combination of 4 jack stands, my two-post lift and 2 hydraulic jacks with wood pieces. When I removed a rusted section, I used any of these tools to maintain the proper fitment and location during welding. There was very little movement so returning the uncut sections back to factory position was not difficult.

thanks im just Not wanting any Movement!
for a guy my age shouldnt be a Problem!