I've always read that the ball joint is only impacted when you are dropping the control arm more than 1 inch.  For the normal 1 inch drop, I haven't read about any added stress on the ball joint.

Regarding the time it takes, have you ever removed your front coil springs before?  If you have, then you basically know the most difficult part.  If you haven't removed them, then choosing your favorite spring compressor is a good question.  I made my spring compressor using the design by Daze.  Other folks have different favorite spring compressors though.

If you work slowly like I do, you can still do this in a day.  Fast and experienced people can probably do it in a couple to a few hours.

Last edited by Rufus68 (10/16/2021 9:13 AM)

No downsides to the drop if you keep it at 1 inch. The drop will lower the body about 1/2" so if you have tire clearance problems it could become worse.

Springs are the hard things to remove. Once they be out of the way drilling the holes can be difficult if you don't have the proper equipment. Some just use drill bits, I drill the pilot hole 1/8" and then use a step drill to open it up.

MS wrote:

I have had many Mustangs, every one with Shelby drop. I have never heard of extra ball joint wear.  If one WAS going to wear, it would be the uppers, but have not experienced any problems.

This is very reassuring. Thanks.

lowercasesteve wrote:

Toploader wrote:

I wanted to start a new thread and ask what the pros and cons are to doing the Shelby drop.
I've heard discussion about lower ball joint wear. Is that a big concern? How bad is the wear and how quick does it wear?
How long would the procedure take on a car that is running and driven regularly (not in pieces)?
Thanks!

I did my Shelby drop about 30 years ago.  Now after about 100k miles they are still in and work perfectly.  Even with GT 1" drop front springs.

I have tried to change my own sprigs, but have always had trouble with spring compressors.  I let a good mechanic do that work for me now.
 

I have the 1" lowered springs too. What size rims do you have?

Actually have one more thing you need to worry about and this is probably the root of the ball joint bind problem talk.  The upper balljoint.

All manufacturers are not created equal.  Over the years, ball joint design has changed somewhat, and the potential problem you may encounter is replacement ball joints may not have the same range of travel original style ball joints did.  I've read of this being a problem on lowered cars.

Check your clearances and travel and such and it should be good to go.

If you haven't already read this article that Daze wrote, it is a good read:
https://dazecars.com/dazed/drop.html

Some wheels don’t have enough back spacing to start and the 1” drop may cause contact problems.

American Racing and Cragar are two companies that I recall with known clearance issues.

They have wheels that are offset towards the fender, not centered.

That is the only con I can think of.

Don’t know why I procrastinated for over 20 years to do mine.

Last edited by Nos681 (10/16/2021 9:16 PM)

Rufus68 wrote:

If you buy or build the Daze spring compressor then you will be safe when you're removing the springs.
https://dazecars.com/dazed/spring.html

Thanks! That looks like a much safer spring compressor.

Toploader wrote:

These are the rims that I have on my car -

https://www.summitracing.com/parts/sdk-lw20-50754b

They have 4.25" back spacing.
At this stage, the only thing that would put me off doing the Shelby drop would be tires scrubbing.

You will NOT have rub issues with those wheels and the tire size you stated.  That is perfect size for that car.  If there is some previous body or frame damage, that could affect things, though.

6sally6 wrote:

Bullet Bob and I have talked about (maybe) one down side issue with the Shelby drop that needs to be mentioned.
When the upper A-arms are repositioned   in the Shelby drop it tends to put the A-arm studs in a slightly angled position. When its angled and not flush/square with the new holes that have been drilled, the nuts 'could' have a tendency to back off and allow the A-arm to become loose. IF it becomes severe enough.....it could allow the alignment spacers to fall out!
It would be wise to occasionally check the big old nuts on the A-arms to insure they are still tight. (I squirted a dab of lock tite on mine hoping that would help keep it tight.)
6sal6

 
Sal, that simply is not true.  The thing that causes the problem is when adding excessive shims in the front hole vs the rear hole. That has zero to do with the shelby drop. The exact same thing happens if you add extra shims to get more caster without the shelby drop.

Yes, Bullet had an issue, but it was not related to doing the drop.

Still a valid issue when doing an alignment on cars that use shims on the UCA, no matter what.  If there is a difference in thickness between front and rear shim packs, it is difficult to get the nuts tight enough, and the tighter you tighten them , the more it tries to bend the UCA shaft and put the bushings in a bind.  Just something to consider.

Thanks everyone...
It sounds like there shouldn't be any issues and I should have done this a long time ago.

Last edited by Toploader (10/18/2021 4:42 AM)