I replaced the bushings on my '55 Club Sedan and had the same issue.  Fortunately for me I had a second set of bushings that had the steps.  On one set of bushing I  found that the inner diameter of the bushings were not consistent.  Some were sloppy and at least two were so undersized I could not get the shaft to fit.


Mark

1956 Mercury M100
1955 Ford Fairlane Club Sedan
Delta, British Columbia

Unfortunatly you've now installed them..maybe they weren't the right ones?  Mine, for a 57 car, were installed a couple of years ago & appear to be correct. Came from Joblot Automotive in N.Y. state    


Paul

Thanks Ted, I did not consider that accelerating or breaking issue, so I'll do some more thinking about a suitable fix.

Cheers Ken

While it’s typically customary to realign the front end after any suspension work is done, it would be preferable that any parts being replaced are as close to original as possible.  This is to simply keep all the adjustments within ranges that are not overly difficult to adjust for.  I would think that the steps in the bushings would be necessary to allow the bushings to be securely clamped in place without the potential for them to be pushed more inward on the control arms either by tightening the outboard nuts or the acceleration/deceleration movement of the vehicle.
 
Any other thoughts on this?

Lorena, Texas (South of Waco)

Hi there, I have just replaced the upper inner bushes and noticed that the new bushes I got from Dennis Carpenter are made in China and do not have a shoulder/step on the outer metal sleeve like the originals. 
I have positioned them as best I can but if the arm is slightly too far forward or back as a consequence of not placing them correctly, will this affect my wheel alignment?
Also, I noticed that from 58 onwards Ford started using threaded bushes. Would any of you guys recommend I change to the later arm and shaft/bush or should I stick with what I've got.
Regards

ken