Help with W123 shock replacement

[cheech9]

I am replacing my front shocks this weekend on my 82 240D with some new Bilstein comforts. I had quite a bit of trouble getting to the lower bolts to remove the shock - the bracket on the shock itself gets in the way, and there isn't much room for a wrench. I found that bolting the new shock in on the bottom mount is near impossible with either a socket or a closed end 12pt wrench. Is there a special tool that can help with this? Any suggestions to make this easier?

TIA