Kathy,
Unless you've got the engine out, you shouldn't need a spring compressor
(You were refering to suspension springs?). The standard practice is
to jack up the front of the car using a floor jack. I use an inexpensive
($40) model. Place jack stands under the front crossmember, not under
the A-arms. Position the floor jack under the A-arm, and gently raise
the A-arm until the car is just lifting off the jack stand. You can
then remove the nuts from the inside pivot of the A-arm and gently lower the
floor jack, letting the A-swing free, decompressing the spring.
The full procedure is detailed in the MOSS Motors parts catalog.
As far as prepping the car to paint, make sure you remove or mask
anything you don't want painted (assuming you're having someon else
paint it) If there are any doubtful areas where rust may be, I'd suggest
wire brushing them out yourself, else they may just be painted over.
Best of luck, and welcome to the fold of the happily insane!
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*Philippe Tusler - Mission Viejo, CA | "MILOU" '57 MGA Roadster *
*A-Mail: <TUSLER@MP050> | "TINTIN" '66 MG/MGB-GT *
*InterNet: TUSLER@MP050.MV.unisys.com | "N/A" '88 ISUZU Trooper*
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