K-frame alignment?

Uncle Bob said
I don't know what the deal is. It had a 400 on elephant ears to begin with so before this, the K-frame didn't have to locate the motor and transmission, only the steering column and the torsion bars. I had the torsion bars out when it had the 400 in it (before I took the k-frame out) and they slid in and out like I expected. There are no wrinkles or signs of a crash that I have noticed.

After hours out there today trying this and that I'm getting convinced it's related to the LCA somehow. Whatever it is it's off enough that the bar kind of "thuds" when it stops going in. I had some success at one point, then I lost it and in the end that bar is really no different than it was when I started. It's not going to take long before I make sure everything is loose and go ahead and drive it in and call it good enough.

Sounds to me like you need to make sure that the LCA pivot and bushing are in good condition. If the pivot tube has broken loose in the K then the LCA can move around, so the torsion bar would slide out but the force from installing the torsion bar could push the LCA out of alignment, causing binding. If nothing else you need to rule it out.

And like @RustyRatRod suggested, the elephant ears may have been there to solve a K frame/engine mount related issue. Could have been the cheapest fix for a larger problem.

You do what you like, but I wouldn’t be driving that car on public roads until I had an explanation and/or solution. The amount of issues you’ve had suggests something significant is wrong, and not the kind of thing you want to find going down the road at speed.