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Thread: Control arm welds

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    Senior Member ztoolman44's Avatar
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    Control arm welds

    Moving this from my build thread. Anyone else have issues with the weld quality on their parts? The control arms were clearly not welded by the same guy (or gal) that welded my chassis. Not only was there very little penetration on one arm, he or she missed the entire seam on the other arm. I plan to inspect all of the welds now and wanted others to realize they may want to do the same. If powder coated it may not be so obvious.control arm 1 resized.jpgcontrol arm 2 resized.jpg

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    Quote Originally Posted by ztoolman44 View Post
    Moving this from my build thread. Anyone else have issues with the weld quality on their parts? The control arms were clearly not welded by the same guy (or gal) that welded my chassis. Not only was there very little penetration on one arm, he or she missed the entire seam on the other arm. I plan to inspect all of the welds now and wanted others to realize they may want to do the same. If powder coated it may not be so obvious.control arm 1 resized.jpgcontrol arm 2 resized.jpg
    Looks like some QA is needed Thats crazy

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    Seasoned Citizen NAZ's Avatar
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    That's ugly.
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    Installed mine today, they looked fine; will reinspect closely tomorrow. (Received my kit about six weeks ago)

    Which mounting holes are you using for lower control arms?

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    Senior Member ztoolman44's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by VIRGIN MIKE View Post
    Installed mine today, they looked fine; will reinspect closely tomorrow. (Received my kit about six weeks ago)

    Which mounting holes are you using for lower control arms?
    Haven't got there yet. Just laying stuff out, cleaning and inspecting.

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    Tool Baron frankeeski's Avatar
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    I think I would have contacted Factory Five before I posted a picture on the forum............ But that's just me.
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    Senior Member ztoolman44's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by frankeeski View Post
    I think I would have contacted Factory Five before I posted a picture on the forum............ But that's just me.
    I appreciate the feedback. I posted it to let others know of a potential problem so that they could inspect their own welds, kind of a public service announcement. Didn't realize it would bother anyone.

    FYI- FFR has been contacted, waiting for a reply. Thanks
    Last edited by ztoolman44; 10-25-2019 at 09:23 AM.

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    Senior Member edwardb's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by ztoolman44 View Post
    I appreciate the feedback. I posted it to let others know of a potential problem so that they could inspect their own welds, kind of a public service announcement. Didn't realize it would bother anyone.

    FYI- FFR has been contacted, waiting for a reply. Thanks
    The point here is with the advent of social media, seems for many they publish problems on the web without ever giving the supplier a chance to resolve. Posting without doing that first kind of gives the impression they don't care or wouldn't do something about it, and is perhaps unfair. If it were your business (or mine for that matter) would appreciate the chance to be first in line. Not saying that's what you did. Just what the sensitivity is. I agree that weld looks substandard. Based on my experience, they will replace it. I would call them. Sounds like you sent an email? They're better with that than they used to be IMO, but still calling will usually get the quickest response.
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    Senior Member ztoolman44's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by edwardb View Post
    The point here is with the advent of social media, seems for many they publish problems on the web without ever giving the supplier a chance to resolve. Posting without doing that first kind of gives the impression they don't care or wouldn't do something about it, and is perhaps unfair. If it were your business (or mine for that matter) would appreciate the chance to be first in line. Not saying that's what you did. Just what the sensitivity is. I agree that weld looks substandard. Based on my experience, they will replace it. I would call them. Sounds like you sent an email? They're better with that than they used to be IMO, but still calling will usually get the quickest response.
    Copy that. I apologize if that was the impression that I gave off with my original post. Just wanted others to take a look at their parts to make sure a critical component wasn't a potential failure. It could easily be missed if the parts had arrived powder coated.

    I totally agree that FFR will do the right thing and I have been very happy with their customer service to this point and written rave reviews in my build thread. I did send an email and they just replied today so I am happy to report that it will be taken care of.

    I still feel it was appropriate to share a safety concern but perhaps could have phrased it a little more clearly so as not to offend. Thanks to everyone for having a civil discussion.

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    Junior Member Mikes35's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by VIRGIN MIKE View Post
    Installed mine today, they looked fine; will reinspect closely tomorrow. (Received my kit about six weeks ago)

    Which mounting holes are you using for lower control arms?
    Hey Virgin Mike! We spoke to David at FF and he said to use the lower mounting holes.

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    Hey Mike 35, thanks for that, check the last couple of entries an my build Re the lower arms
    Mike

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    Senior Member ztoolman44's Avatar
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    As expected, FFR has responded to my communication and offered to send out two new control arms as soon as they are available.

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