Agreed. I've done it once and hated every minute of it. Too many fully-assemble-then-torques just to measure and find you gotta disassemble and add, remove or relocate shims. Granted this was on a Jeep (Chrysler era axle) and I was installing an aftermarket locker. Still, we have a few shops in the area that specialize in all things driveline. Mine has 3.73 gears but I want a Detroit Truetrac diff. It'd 100% be worth it to me to pay a pro for this.
With the oil and chemical industries here, there are an abundance of fab shops. It's easy to "get someone that knows someone" to make something so simple. I've outsourced small precision projects before, but this was years ago. Of course, this is only when necessary. The part I'm working with can have slop when being assembled cuz, once it's bolted down, it doesn't move. The bushing rotates around the sleeve. I could wrap some shim stock around the bolt and it'd be good. I haven't compared the factory bolt sizes and the sleeve IDs yet. It might be as simple as drilling the sleeve slightly bigger to fit the bolt. I'll invest in a specific size of drill bit (12mm, 14mm, etc.) for that.
The adjustable ones are expensive and I can make my arms for about $70 at most. That's with me buying the forged rod ends (~$25 each). I could make 'em for as little as ~$25 if I make the rod ends and only have to buy the tube adapters (~$12 each). I have the steel and poly bushings on hand already- leftovers from other projects. Also, the adjustable ones are designed so that you leave them installed and turn the centers or adjusting nuts. While convenient, it's extra specialized parts (left- and right-hand threaded stuff, etc.) that aren't necessary, IMO. I'm not gonna be adjusting these things all the time. My idea is simple bushed ends with one end being adjustable. I'll remove the bolt, swing the end out of the tabs, twist the end in or out to shorten or lengthen the arm, lock the jamb nut then slip it back in the tabs and reinstall the bolt. A half turn is plenty fine enough adjustment. Once it's set, I'll never mess with it again. Paying for the extra parts to make adjusting them a little easier is a waste. I also don't want or need rebuildable Delrin ends. I wanna minimize the things I do that degrade the ride quality. When I make the lowers, they'll be new factory arms with their factory rubber bushings, cut in half, lengthened, spliced and boxed. Also, bcuz kustom.
Behave yo self.
@pwtr02ss and
@randeez are jealous types.
I'm pretty sure. I know the shock extender has a single vertical bolt.
...Shit. Now I gotta go check. Which means I gotta go out to the shop. Which means I gotta get dressed. Which means you read a lot of words that I typed while almost naked. And your pants got tight. You're welcome.
