Cheap tubular control arms- my take on them.

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

UPDATE: I spoke w/ GW. They knew exactly what I was after and why. They said they’ve received many calls about replacement parts for the knockoff arms- problem is that the machining is all over the map, so people are not getting good results: some holes too big, some too small, some too narrow, some too wide. I decided to return the uppers and source some USA arms.

[@OpenRoader]

Thanks for taking the time and making an honest video of what you have experienced with these. I'm in the middle of a Chevelle build and have come to a few conclusions. First, you absolutely get what you pay for. Chinese knock off parts are inferior, in varying degree's. YES, American made parts cost more, sometimes significantly more, but I have made a personal decision to save my money a little longer and get the better, American made product AND sleep well at night knowing I kept a fellow countryman at work! I have recently replaced my entire exhaust system, headers to exhaust tips. I had to make decisions based on price, availability, looks and quality. I could have picked up a set of $175 Chinese headers, but I went with Hedman 3/4 length. They were $710, BUT they also had ceramic coating, not available on the Chinese headers. I went with a set of Borla resonators and S-Type mufflers. Again, made in USA with American steel. I personally feel these are better parts, even though the whole system cost more. I hope there is a steel worker, welder or tube better out there drinkin' a cold beer thanks to my purchase. Good luck with your Pontiac. (sub'd)

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

I hear ya, 100%!! I wish American made wasn’t so expensive, but when we do the R&D, source US components, pay US workers, etc., it’s just how it is… then along comes China to copy w/o any idea why things are done the way they are(like a press fit for the aluminum bushing) and the market ends up flooded with inferior, unsafe garbage 😡 I put my money where my mouth is and bought GW lowers for my 74 Firebird, even though it was a 2 month wait- it was SO worth it! The quality of the parts is night and day vs. the cheapies. Thanks for the sub- I’m working on more stuff right now :)

[@OpenRoader]

@@CrawdaddyCustoms I have watched so many reviews on channels like yours secretly hoping the $150 Chinese option would be viable, but almost all the time they state what you said. I hope you keep making these side by side comparison video's, people need to know. Rock on!

[@puddleduckist]

I bought a set of these to use on my 69 Pontiac gto. After reading some more bad reviews of ball joint failures and not fitting correctly I sent them back. I bit the bullet and bought a set of front UMI tubular arms with the tall joints. Much more pricey but made in good ol USA and much better quality and ball joints. UMI makes great suspension components!

[@johnkelly6942]

For my 1955 Chevy project the original plan was Global West uppers, rebuilt stock lowers and coil overs. I talked to Global West about this and their opinion was the stamped original lower control arm was not designed to take the “point loading” of a coil over mount. It was painful but I ponied up for GW lowers. I really don’t like buying something only to find out it didn’t fit/work and have to tear it out, buy the good stuff and install that. Time and money wasted.

[@warrenlucier5796]

It' been decades (I'm old 😆), as the transition from the bronze grooved bushing to steel and rubber bushing was happening and if memory serves me, the zerk fittings were on the ends of the pivot shaft. The solid bushings worked great as long as you greased them at the same time you performed an oil change. Yup, I used to replace king pins and install new bushing with a ream to fit too.

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

Yes, the trick is to grease them, definitely! Thanks for the comment.

[@apachebill]

I put these on my 70 Pontiac in 2019 before seeing this. They have about 5k hard, miles on them. Work perfect. Aligned perfectly with 6° of positive caster. No complaints. Tight with no noise. Not too loose. Not too sloppy. Paid $268 for all 4 to my door. Did install new Moog ball joints before installing. Others results may vary.

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

That’s good to hear. Hopefully you checked the upper arms’ bushing sleeves carefully… because if they’re loose n sloppy like the ones in this video, it’s only a matter of time until they fail. Honestly, I don’t know why they couldn’t get the bushing tolerances/pressings correct- they ripped off @GlobalWest design, so why not copy their tolerances too?

[@apachebill]

@@CrawdaddyCustoms. Maybe not quite that loose but not UMI tight. Keep feeling and listening for that clink, tink, ping, pop creak or movement of any kind. Checked align in Sept. Still right on specs. But! I’ve not dragged, auto-crossed, rat raced, hooned or slid the car yet. Much! 😂. They may well get loose and turn to poo when/if I start hammering on them. I’d put on a beater El Camino all day long. But I wouldn’t recommend them for 700 horse/race/hard driven applications. Get real stuff if’n you’re gonna do real stuff. I’ll likely upgrade one day soon as we are making power now and don’t need bad things happening.

[@peckstarthestooge3772]

Thanks! I'd like to see wheel alignment figures once fitted. Positive castor & neg camber.

[@WilliamYaughn]

Many - many thanks for doing the work for us! It is a sad commentary about the American dealers passing this crap onto their customers!!

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

Dealers, yes, very sad they foist this crap upon us. American manufacturers- no, not their fault. They got copied/stolen from.

[@mazdaspeed6jg]

I have been looking at these for the past few days and was curious what the price difference was. Look forward to see if the uppers can be used with updated hardware! 72 olds cutlass s here!

[@sheldonminto3872]

I bought a pair of the ebay ones a few years ago. I was doing a drum to disc brake conversion and couldn't separate the old spindles from the original control arms. Yes be I tried a sledge, ball joint separator and fire. After 45 years they where not coming apart. Anyway, had to buy these just to keep the project going. Is already spent a lot on the conversion kit for all four wheels. One of the ball joints failed. I took all of the arms off and pressed out the old ball joints. i then replaced them with Moog ball joints. No problems since.

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

Good to know it worked out. Unfortunately, they were a fail for me :-/

[@victorwelder]

I hope you could slap that Global West Shaft in and it Works like a Charm, thank💪you 4 putting it out there, All the Best on your Build✌

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

Thanks, I appreciate it. I ended up sending them back... too many issues for me. I think I’m gonna go with either GW or UMI Performance.

[@victorwelder]

@@CrawdaddyCustoms GW is the way to go, check out there website, Bless Season

[@jimmylee8459]

Thanks for the video. I think I'm going to be safe and redo my stock Control Arms, and for better handling I will add a rack & pinion to my 70 chevelle. I'm not road course racing, just driving to the local cruise in hangout spot

[@brad286]

I have these control arms and my bushings are pretty tight in there🤷‍♂️

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

Glad to hear! I was wanting to use them, but you saw the video. There’s no way I would run the set I received. My life, my family’s, other people’s, and my car are too valuable for me to trust the garbage I received. I’d keep a keen eye on your ballpoints too. I’ve received lots of feedback about people having to change them out. Good wishes on your project! 😎

[@americanpool]

Fantastic. I’m glad I bought the real ones however I paid 600$ a set or something. Pricey.

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

Yes, you definitely get what you pay for. For me, these are a cheap, temporary fix until I can buy some SPC lowers. Thanks for the watch/comment!

[@cameronmarks83]

You are correct you get what you pay for ,,, old saying but right ,, I wanted those for my 72 skylark cause definitely would be nicer but if you want some good ones your going to pay close to 1000 dollars sometimes more ,, good luck

[@hotrodswoodshed7405]

I have also purchased a set uppers and lowers for my 57 Chevy. I strongly suspected that all of the Chinese arms were made by the same company. They all look identical. I struggle to find good solid reviews like you gave. I will surely be alert of anything unsatisfactory on my A-Arms. Thanks for the video

[@andme9408]

They are I work for that company, all the big name company's buy from us and put their name on it. You are all buying the same shit with a sticker name and mark up

[@55chevyman4u2nv]

were you able to get the front end alignment ?

[@hotrodswoodshed7405]

@@55chevyman4u2nv I aligned it a few days after A-arm install... the technician said it was good. It drove very well after... and with 20,000 miles on them since... it still is doing/ driving fantastic...and those "so-called junk" ball joints are still tight as far as I can tell.

[@Soulsniper2050]

I think I’ll stick with the ones that gm supplied and have them powder coated

[@GlobalWestSuspension]

Real Global West for the Win! thank you for showing people that there are copies out there!

[@danw.8180]

Good review and info. Thanks for posting this video.

[@arlenewolf5260]

I thought the Delalume was a soft aluminum bushing. I was always concerned about that. for a driver.

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

Del A Lum stands for Delrin and Aluminum. The inner and outer sleeves are aluminum, but the ‘bearing’ surfaces are all Delrin (a slippery, hard plastic)- this is what gives it a no-friction pivot as the arms move up and down.

[@andyxxgerico]

Looks like I'll just buy from globalwest. Thanks for the info.

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

Absolutely! That’s what I ended up doing.

[@mikesapp3241]

Aside from the wind being a pain in the ass for the mic. Good review. So those nice lower arms are from Jegs? I’ve got B2200 ans ain’t trying to spend $2k on uppers and Lowers for a truck with hydraulics.

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

Yeah, I gotta get better equipment- it’s all on an iPhone, at the moment. The arms were purchased off eBay, but Jegs, Summit, etc. all sell the same parts. I have no idea who sells arms for a Mazda truck, but I’m sure someone does.

[@vdrivevideo]

Good info brother! Thanks for the vid!

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

Thank you!

[@jrm4408]

Any followup to this? I'm looking at these for a 1970 Impala B body and it's pretty tempting based on the price. I'm a little leery on the upper bushing slop and curious what you found out about the fitment of the global west shaft/bushings.

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

I returned them- this stuff is junk. GW or UMI Performance will get you good parts.

[@CP3IGIN]

Hi, what’s the update on getting the global west shaft? Were you able to order them and replace on the arm? Thanks

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

See the first comment listed- it explains it all. Thanks!

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

See the first listed comment- it explains everything. Thanks!

[@arlenewolf5260]

Do you have a shop. I am in the Foothills of the Great Smokey Mountains. I want to make a nice handling car out of my 1970 Impala 4 door sedan. They never made a 1970 Impala SS. My Impala is like new, it has 30K actual non rolled over miles, original shiny paint, original vinyl top 350 2bbl (for now), 350 trans, 10 bolt rear 256:1 (I think).

[@cartracer64]

good observation i have been researching the top brands and although they are all similar i would not buy the cheap stuff as you can not tell by just looking at a picture. i have heard that using the taller spindle with the correct upper a arm will help camber during turn in. umi suspension suggests using a 1/2 taller upper ball joint with the stock spindle and there upper control arm will also help on turn in. do you have any experience with the taller ball joints working. this would be for street performance only.

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

I haven’t used them yet, but I may end up on that road. From what I understand, a 1/2” taller lower BJ will correct the bump steer A bodies are known for. The 3/4-1” taller upper BJ will (when combined w/ an aftermarket upper A arm) will correct the stock camber curve issue. This was gleaned from a conversation with Mark at SC&C, so some info may be more specific to his upper arms, but from what I’ve read with others’ experiences, it seems to be common.

[@cartracer64]

umi seemed to be the only company that offers the taller upper bj setup for a stock spindle. they also offer taller upper and lower bj but uses an adjustable upper arm and taller spindle.there are so many variables like poly or delrin bushings. stock springs or coil overs and so on. every manufacture has there own recipe. taller spindle, drop spindle and so on along with cost. hotchkis , global west, detroit speed, umi, spc, speed tech.

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

Agreed… that’s why I try to find a middle ground. I know the 1/2” taller lower BJ will lower the car 1/2” and has received a lot of positive response from all I’ve known who tried it. The taller upper is basically the same as using a taller spindle. I prefer Delrin bushings because they rotate. I’ve had bad ride quality with poly. No matter what, your ride and handling will improve over stock by a great deal. Personally, I’m either gonna go GW or UMI for my 64.

[@cartracer64]

@@CrawdaddyCustoms agreed. thanks for the info, i also think middle ground for my usage with original coils spring setup and bilstien shocks for my 65 a body chevelle.

[@jeffu7783]

good info thanks!

[@KevinRoadrageGarage]

So did you find out if global west parts interchange

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

I spoke w/ GW. They knew exactly what I was after and why. They said they’ve received many calls about replacement parts for the knockoff arms- problem is that the machining is all over the map, so people are not getting good results: some holes too big, some too small, some too narrow, some too wide. I decided to return the uppers and source some USA arms.

[@protector326]

Good to know thanks.

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

protector326 You’re welcome! Thanks for watching.

[@maldo72]

I truly think companies like globe west and others make these cheaper unit's or send over thier designs to these Chinese factories to make more money on their designs. And by doing this they can pump out cheaper parts at volume without the liability... of branding ....

[@RoddyDa]

#maldo72 If you were a business owner is this something you would do!?

[@maldo72]

@@RoddyDa NO.... but that said definitely, some do because they can have someone else do it they pay them a fee per unit to use the design without all the liability or labor involved .... don't think for a moment companies don't do this ... example: think about it every time you walk into auto parts 99.9% of the parts you by are made by some other company that's licensed to reproduce the part in hand.. why would it be any different for the aftermarket .. in fact have held parts in my hand that are so close the only different sticker... (and yes there are complete knock-offs that steal the design without paying)

[@arlenmartin8672]

Do you know if POL is a good quality brand

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

If they’re selling control arms, it’s the same as these. My advice: wait for Black Friday on @umiperformance

[@arlenmartin8672]

Crawdaddy Customs they don’t have control arms for my vehicle. Any other recommendations

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

@@arlenmartin8672 Sorry, I missed your response. What type of car?

[@drumrooster]

DO NOT USE THE BALL JOINTS get a new set before you install tubular arms. The ones they come with are Dangerous junk!!

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

I appreciate the comment. I returned the uppers- they’re just worthless junk, to me. I’m gonna try the lowers (using new ball joints!) and see how they do.

[@kennethalbert4653]

Demand a refund...Ebay will always screw the seller, ask me how I know !

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

The seller had no problem refunding me my money. My thought is “How many people bought this junk and didn’t know better, and are now driving around with it on their car?” That’s why I made the video.

[@kennethalbert4653]

@@CrawdaddyCustoms Yes ! You gotta wonder. Thanks for the video.

[@Tigerchevelle77]

You were better off saving the money you spent on the upper shafts and spent the money on the real arms. I bought the complete speedtech arms,with the afx spindles and the quality is night and day compared to the cpp parts I had. Which I found out by chance are made in a small shop in Corona ca. Where I live. Owner said the ball joint cups come from china,I saw with my own eyes the tubing is not dom as there ads say. I'm going to find my receipt and start a class action lawsuit for it. But I will say the mexican guys welds that them do a very nice job.

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

The upper shafts were from a rebuild kit for my Firebird, they were only used as a comparison between a USA part and a China copy.

[@GlobalWestSuspension]

Not our arms! copy cats !

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

@globalwestsuspension DEFINITELY NOT your stuff!!

[@apachebill]

No they are not! I got them. That slop in the upper bushings makes the front end pop when backing out of drive and on tight turns. They work. But they’re not good quality. I’ll be buying the real ones shortly. Never do business with Communists. Lesson learned. This video is 100% spot on, accurate, true and correct. Go cheap, you’ll do it twice and it will cost more. Buy GW from the start!

[@bryanbeggs9461]

They're junk. A 1/4'" short on overall length where the lower ones are supposed to mount. total opening is 13.625. These measure 13.375 outer washer to outer washer. Will not fit, no way, no how. Sending them back to Auto Classic and spending the $ on American made ones.

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

Yup! Gotta love their ‘quality’ standards.

[@Tigerchevelle77]

Save you $$$ guys and buy the USA stuff. I know it's pricey,but this hobby isn't for the poor

[@Anarchy-Is-Liberty]

So you got a great deal, but not really!! More like they took your money, and you gave it willingly, but the only winner was them!!

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

No, I got a FULL refund, and I got to do an evaluation video to help others, so I’d say I won!

[@ldnwholesale8552]

All of these tubular arms leave me cold. I doubt they are as strong as the OEM ones and seem to be heavier as well. The various bushing styles too are generally far inferior to factory rubber bushes. I see all of this aftermarket crap with the bushings flexing on the sleeve. Useless. As for eurathane plain junk and never fit it. Even on a race car/ Grease nipples for a 'plastic' bushing. Dumb! Though that lower arm seems to have quite a lot of caster built in which is good. Are they a fraction longer too to get some camber?? Those lower arms the way they are bent where the spring seats seems to be a very weak point. Lets hope they still have the spring seat square with the upper arm. All of this is race orientated. Though IF they can give more caster and neg camber are probably better for a modern wheel align setting. IS the top wishbone pickups able to be redrilled? That is what we have done here in Oz on that style suspension, lower the top wishbones around half an inch

[@arlenmartin8672]

Do you know POL suspension is good quality?

[@01surge24]

Glad I didn’t buy them. Thanks

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

Look up UMI for some attractive options... or go Global West or Hotchkis

[@noampitlik2332]

Those are crap. Risk your life on that junk?

[@CrawdaddyCustoms]

Exactly- that’s why I did this video. People need to know what we are dealing with.

[@noampitlik2332]

@@CrawdaddyCustoms Indeed.

[@JRhatesyou]

Speedeay sells those same arms. The lowers are too narrow to properly fit a 70-72 Abody (chevelle) subframe and the uppers are shorter with less of a step as the factory ones.

[@tylerseabook9423]

So don’t buy these for my 72 chevelle