Here's what we started with, an extremely worn (and extremely rusted) suspension system. The front ball joints and tie rods were completely worn out, and the rear leaves had lost their arch. If there ever was a vehicle in need of a suspension overhaul, this was it.
Disassembly was by far the worst part of the chore, even though I talked my pal Javier into giving me a hand-hey, somebody had to work the camera.
Forty years had taken its toll. I honestly believe the Nova sported its original ball joints and tie rod ends, and they didn't want to budge-hit it harder, Javier!
The Real Deal kit components are much higher quality than parts store replacements, as Just Suspension has them manufactured to meet its strict specifications. Not only are they better than most replacements, they're also manufactured to higher standards than OE components.
Luckily, the pitman arm popped off without too much of a fight. The correct tool also helped.
With the tie rods, center link, and spindles removed, it was time to dismantle the control arms.
A bit of Liquid Wrench-actually, a lot-helped with the frozen mounting bolts. We were aided a bit by the narrow six in the engine compartment-it made it easier to get at and free up the upper control arm nuts a bit.
Here's the pile of parts from the driver-side front. The control arms took a long while to scrape and degrease-since I was calling in a favor from a friend (to press out the old and put in the new bushings), I wanted them to be cleaned up before I brought 'em over.