i am an idiot and did not put jackstands under the axles when i disconnected the torsion bar, shocks and drums now i am in the predicament below

the axle is being held up by a tire, 2x4, and a mini van jack...luckily i kept the wheels under when i was working to save my life but unluckily i have no idea how to get the axle and sturdy ground. will the axle fall to the ground or does it have a stopping point? i am afraid of destroying something major haveing it all fall, i got jackstands everywhere keeping the car up but i cant figure out how to reach something near the axle

please help!

Bad pics, but if the torsion bars, shocks and spindle is disconnected then it's not an issue, you should be able to move it by hand.

bigger pics:

go ahead and jack it up,then back off the torsion bar adjusting bolt.after you get everything back together adjust bolt back.

Hopefully you have jack stands under the body of the car itself....and as well you let the tension off the torsion bars (undid the adjustment bolt) before doing everything else..

In that case, as said you should be able to move the lower control arm up and down by hand basically.

If the only thing holding the front of the car in the air is the contraption of support you have in the pic, get some stands under there without putting yourself in harms way for sure.

thanks for the fast replys...which one is the torsion bar adjusting bolt?

it is currently also under 2 jack stands and a jack in the front but i cant raise it any higher and for some reason there is a ton of weight on the wood where the axle is coming down and that thing is not budging

torsion bar and shock were already out, i was wondering why the back plate of the drum was so hard to get out and after a struggle i got the back plate bolts out and then the whole axle fell

Looks like you popped loose the upper balljoint without releasing the tension off the torsion bar . the bolt that release the tension is on the underside of the control arm near the pivot point loosen that to take the tension off the T bar.

i think he still has tension on the bars. Looks like he removed the front brakes and undid the upper balljoint and it came down. Otherwise i am not sure why he has the scissor jack under it.

If the torsion bars are still under tension, make sure you have jackstands under the frame of the car first. Then slide under and back off the adjustment bolt for the torsion bars until they are loose. Then you will be able to bring the lower control arm up enough to reinstall the balljoint.

I see now. you didnt undo the upper balljoint. you removed the bolts that hold the lower balljoint and steering knuckle to the spindle. yeah back off the t bar adjuster and you will be able to move the lower control arm by hand. wont have tension on it anymore.

for some reason I dont see this ending well.
I hope I am wrong!

ok i am now trying to figure out which bolt is the adjuster...anyone have a pic of one?, if not i can probably figure it out

i think i may have been mistaken on having the torsion bar out for some reason i think i was thinking of the center link

it will be on the lower side of the lower control arm just outboard of the pivot point which is where the t bar goes thru the control arm. The lower control arm is shaped like a c channel and the adjuster is inside the channel.

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ok i am now trying to figure out which bolt is the adjuster...anyone have a pic of one?, if not i can probably figure it out

i think i may have been mistaken on having the torsion bar out for some reason i think i was thinking of the center link

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I am not on my pc right now so this is the best i can do. see the adjusters in the channel near where the t bars go in?

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ok i am now trying to figure out which bolt is the adjuster...anyone have a pic of one?, if not i can probably figure it out

i think i may have been mistaken on having the torsion bar out for some reason i think i was thinking of the center link

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Large bolt here will take the tension off of the torsion bar....

ok i think i see what you are saying so if i loosen that bolt i should be able to move the axle back up? where will all the weight be shifting too?

heres a few more pics the bolt i am assuming we are talking about is the one inbetween the torsion bar near the pivot point and the bumper in the photo, you can just make out the end of the bolt threads in the pic

And MAKE SURE you have jack stand under the body of the car when you loosen those off....if the car's weight in on the lower control arms still, it will come down as you loosen those adjuster bolts..

Yep, the bolt head will be about here....

You can try and count the number of turns you loosen it as well, if you want to try to get things close when you put it all back together again (or easier to just measure how far it sticks out..)

Turn this bolt left to loosen the tension. You should really get a service manual before you do some of this stuff, you can really get hurt or killed ya know!

Again, make sure you have jackstands under the framerails just behind the front wheel wells before you loosen those bolts. A floor jack will not cut it as they can leak and drop while you are under the car crushing you. If you have all the weight from the front of the car on the lower control arms and you loosen those bolts, the car will drop. Make sure you have jackstands under the front of the car. Dont want to read about you in the obits.