Need torsion bar help!!!!

[true95w/t]

I replaced brakes, rotors,calipers and upper and lower ball joints. Then I also replace upper and lower control arm bushings. Couldn't get torsion bars out of keys so I beat the control arms off the torsion bar. When I reloaded the bars I had the front suspension at full droop with the frame in jack stands. I lined the bars up and the bottom of te key was right at bottom of cross member. I pushed the bars forward with crossmember attached and then used torsion key tool to push key up and put the key retainer in place. Then I took tool off and then put bolt in retainer and cranked the bolt to we're it was before. Was fine last night. This morning I went down and the frontend was completely sunk down. The drivers side fender was tucking tire. What did I do wrong? There is no pressure on drivers side key. The key is completely loose from adjustment bolt.the passenger side sank a little but it just looks like it needs cranked. Should I undo crossmember and pull it backward and try loading bar into a arm while maybe the key is clicked at around 5 o'clock and then use a c clamp and torsion bar key to get it pushed back up in? Any suggestions ?

[MarkEagleUSA]

Did you re-install the t-bars in correct orientation?

[true95w/t]

That's what I was asking. No we're says how to reinstall really. I ended up going and getting bars, keys and crossmember from a 2500. I was told to re use my keys and then use the 2500 bars.

[MarkEagleUSA]

There's a left side and right side t-bar and each one has a front and rear. They need to be installed in the correct orientation. Unfortunately I'm not exactly sure how to tell... you could look for some sort of markings on them. You can also check this thread to see if there's any info that can help you.

[mudbuddy]

Sometimes it is cheaper to pay a pro, you installed the bars incorrectly in the control arms.

[mudbuddy]

Jack up the front end remove the keys and let the control arms drop all the way down, now reinstall the keys and adjust the bolts about 1/2 way in. Set truck back down on tires and then adjust the keys for ride height desired.

[true95w/t]

Sorry mud buddy but I probably have more wrench time then most pros. Ive built multiple motors both american pushrod and also imports with my best being a stroked 383 putting 684 hp to the wheels on a mustang 2 dyno.I also shoehorned a m5 motor jnto my 87 bmw and twin turboed it. Please dont think every time someone asks a question its because they are not capable. I did not install the bars incorrectly. I posted the question to make sure I didn't miss anything. The bars actually snapped inside the control arm. I went to a pick and pull salvage yard and got bars out of a 2500. Here's a pic

[true95w/t]

To add for muddbuddy for anyone reading this in the future. When you readjust for correcting ride heighth you have to jack the truck back up , with the jack positioned on the frame to get all the weight off the torsion bars or you run the risk of breaking the adjustment bolt.

[true95w/t]

Markeagleusa thanks for your response. That reminded me to add for anyone else doing this in future.... The bars are marked with numbers on one end and then numbers plus left or right and an arrow. The bar end marked L plus arrow goes in drivers side with the end marked left going into control arm. The one marked with an R goes into passenger side control arm.

[mudbuddy]

Pretty hard to tell but the fracture looks fresh, no signs of rust. I am thinking it was damaged during the removal and then when the weight of the truck was applied it was more than it could stand. One good thing was it didn't fail while going 70 MPH.

[true95w/t]

They were rusted into the keys and also into the control arm. I had to drop the control arm down and then beat the control arm forward and off the torsion bar. My thought is they were rusted so bad that when I beat the control arm off enough heat was produced to weaken the tensile strength of the bar. It may not seem like that would cause a lot of heat but I do remember them being warm to the touch and I didn't touch the drivers side bar end until I went around and beat the passenger side off the same way. So the heat even if it was minimal plus the rusted condition of the bars and then you add in my bad luck equals broken bar after everything was put back together. I did inspect them before I put everything together and even used a wire brush to clean up the bar ends to make reinstalling them easier. There was no visible cracks or gouges. So most likely they were weak and once everything was put back together and then the constant pressure of the torque action caused it to become brittle and all but explode into pieces and the tight fit contained the bar until I unbolted the key crossmember and pulled the bars back out of the control arm. So long story short, removal of the bars fubared the dang things. Oh well. Because of all the dicking around I got to spend extra time with my dad at a time when I could use it. I have a major spinal surgery coming up and we had not talked about the most likely outcome and well there's no better a place for a father and son to have a deep conversation than at a junkyard struggling to pull parts! He had two major strokes a few years ago and even though to a unfamiliar person he seems to be ok, it takes me explaining things more thoroughly and at a greater length to kinda drive home the message so he can fully grasps concepts. So a bunch of hard work may have costed me dearly in wear and tare but spending the time was priceless to me!

Mudbuddy I am sorry if I came off as a dick replying to your "pay a pro" comment but you must admit it, it came off as a major douchebag statement. This forum is here so that we can all learn from each other and the only way is by asking questions. I truly do have most likely more wrench time than most pro's, but I tried to spell out the steps I had taken to make sure I did not miss a step. I am absentee minded at times but wearing two 100 mg and 1 25 mg fentynal patch plus having to take up to 18 Percocet 7.5s a day (2-3 every 4 hours) just to be able to walk can kinda do that to a person. I try not to take that many Percs but I am now told as of last Monday that I must because the pain is stressing my heart to the point my enzymes are like those of someone that had a near fatal heart attack. So please accept my public apology for calling you out like a douche bag.

[mudbuddy]

Hey no problem, I know I come off as a douche sometimes, it is just my personality. I say what I think and it gets me some chit a lot of the time but hey we are all big boys here and if I couldn't take the repliies I wouldn't say what I say. For the most part I try and help people out with my 39 years of experiance as a professional technician, LOL I used to be a mechanic but now the vehicles I work on have made me a Tech. It's all good and I carry no resentment to anyone here.

[grayblazer]

I really don't think the little bit of heat generated while pounding out the bars would have any affect on the temper of the steel. They would have to be heated to at least 200-300F which is quite a bit more than "a little warm". Typically to make a steel part brittle you have to heat it up very hot and then quickly quench the part, which is simply not possible in this situation. Assuming the bars were still stuck in the keys and thus attached to the rear crossmember, removing the front arms and letting them hang put a lot of leverage on them and then combined with beating on them caused a stress fracture. Not saying you did anything wrong as they needed to be removed, but the heat played no factor in this.