Front strut reassembly HELP!

[stlouisaaron]

I had to replace the strut bearing plate on the left side. i got the spring off, and now I cannot figure out how to get everything back up and bolted to the frame. I am thinking that my strut spring compressor is too bulky - because the tool keeps getting stuck when I try to release the compression. In the book, they are much smaller looking than the one I have. Any help / pointers in getting this back together would be MUCH appreciated!

[SuperRA]

You can take the strut assembly off the knuckle by the two large bolts & nuts, reassemble the entire spring/strut/bearing plate assembly outside the car, and then reinstall back into the car as a whole.