[KeithO]

I am about to go out and start removing parts off my car in anticipation of a rear swap between Christmas and New Years. I am going to do a little at a time due to time constraints. This morning I will remove the driveshaft, rear swaybar and possibly the shocks only.

First, the car is currently on 4 jackstands with the stands supporting the car on the frame rails as shown here:
http://www.installuniversity.com/install_u...rsity/index.htm

The front/rear weight bias paired with the jackstand locations always made me a little nervous on this car (actually all of my f-bodies). Has anyone done a rear end swap and if so, was there any risk or tendency for the car to rotate forward once all of the weight is removed from the rear? (Due to an accident that happened as a teenager to a friend of mind with jacks/jack stands - I was there - I am hyper-sensitive about getting under cars anyway. In fact, I didn't do anything with cars from the mid-1980's until 2000 after that.) Is there any risk here or am I being paraniod?

Second, I plan on removing things in the following order. This is only an educated guess.
Driveshaft
Sway bar
Shocks
Brake pieces/lines
Any residual wiring that might be there (ABS removed)
Torque arm
Panhard bar
Lower control arms

My logic with leaving the LCAs until last is that I plan to have 2 jackstands under the axle tubes and as I remove pieces, the LCA's will keep the rear centered and allow the rear to rotate in controlled manner into the jack stand cradles.

Is this the correct order to remove stuff? Is "installation the reverse of removal"? Any hints on making this an easier job?

Thanks

[KeithO]

Back from Grandma's.

Thanks for the advice and input, guys. I will follow your procedure from here, Glenn.

As it turns out, the parking brake cable took the load of the rear. If my car wasn't able to pass PA inspection, things would have been worse since the only thing left back there is the brake lines.

I now have the rear supported on either side via the LCA relocation brackets (yes, I am aware that these are not CMC legal but I used the stock holes and that makes them dead weight).

I also re-installed the front wheels. I plan on buying two new jackstands on my lunch hour tomorrow and firming up the front with them. This doesn't look hard but I have to admit that I believed that the torque arm played a bigger role in supporting the rear. Live and learn.

Anyone have any helpful hints for the re-install? Or are you really gonna say "installation is the reverse of removal" like the trusty Haynes manuals?