The Ford Barn

connecticut mike · 06-28-2010, 08:34 PM

Good evening from sultry Connecticut. We had one of those tornadoes, that that the Midwest folks know more about, touch down in Bridgeport last Friday. Those bad boys sure can do a lot of damage in a short time!

I'm thinking about using teflon ball seats in my shock links when I reinstall the rebuilt shocks. The teflon seats are each about 0.050" thicker than the brass ones. This makes installation of the link more difficult as the spring now has to be compressed to get the second ball into the link. I got one assembled "on the bench" using a C-clamp to force it. I didn't like doing that, and I would like less trying to remove it when its on the car.

Any experienced advice would be appreciated. Did you shorten the spacer, or use some tecnique to compress the spring?

Thanks, Mike

Steve Plucker · 06-28-2010, 09:13 PM

I had no problem puting the teflon seats into my links and did not have to shorten or modify anything within the links themselves. Just use a lot of grease to hold the seats and they should just slip on.

No special technique used here in the PNW!

Pluck

Brentwood Bob · 06-29-2010, 01:47 AM

Make sure the seat is not cocked. You can use chassis grease during assembly. I know using the bronze seats there are interference problems if a seat slips out of place.

jw hash · 06-29-2010, 07:30 AM

I put teflon in my victoria 15 years ago and my A400 has them in it too but it is not on the road yet. they are a little tight going on so I made a rod 20" long and the same size as the ID of the shock link, put the link on as you normally would put the rod in the end of the link and snap it on, it

Marco Tahtaras · 06-29-2010, 08:15 AM

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There shouldn't be a real problem. Typically both repro parts and used originals are looser/easier to assemble than original. The assembly method is the key. The following is a copy of an old post:

Posted by Marco Tahtaras from c-24-4-43-195.hsd1.ca.comcast.net (24.4.43.195) on Wednesday, May 07, 2008 at 4:38PM :

I grease all the link internals well to somewhat hold everyting in position. In many cases I find it easier to put the link on the upper (arm) ball first, raise the internals up from the lower hole, and then slip it over the perch ball. The grease should hold everything up long enough to slip it on the perch.

The angle of the link varies a little from car to car. If the link is at a severe angle it may be beneficial to remove the shock arm from the shock but then you have to realign the square shaft with the arm to slip it back on.

06-28-2010, 08:34 PM	#1
connecticut mike Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Somers Connecticut Posts: 46	Shock Links Good evening from sultry Connecticut. We had one of those tornadoes, that that the Midwest folks know more about, touch down in Bridgeport last Friday. Those bad boys sure can do a lot of damage in a short time! I'm thinking about using teflon ball seats in my shock links when I reinstall the rebuilt shocks. The teflon seats are each about 0.050" thicker than the brass ones. This makes installation of the link more difficult as the spring now has to be compressed to get the second ball into the link. I got one assembled "on the bench" using a C-clamp to force it. I didn't like doing that, and I would like less trying to remove it when its on the car. Any experienced advice would be appreciated. Did you shorten the spacer, or use some tecnique to compress the spring? Thanks, Mike

06-28-2010, 09:13 PM	#2
Steve Plucker BANNED Join Date: May 2010 Location: Walla Walla, Washington USA Posts: 6,066	Re: Shock Links I had no problem puting the teflon seats into my links and did not have to shorten or modify anything within the links themselves. Just use a lot of grease to hold the seats and they should just slip on. No special technique used here in the PNW! Pluck

06-29-2010, 01:47 AM	#3
Brentwood Bob Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: brentwood, ca Posts: 4,233	Re: Shock Links Make sure the seat is not cocked. You can use chassis grease during assembly. I know using the bronze seats there are interference problems if a seat slips out of place.

06-29-2010, 07:30 AM	#4
jw hash Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Auburn Washington Posts: 2,552	Re: Shock Links I put teflon in my victoria 15 years ago and my A400 has them in it too but it is not on the road yet. they are a little tight going on so I made a rod 20" long and the same size as the ID of the shock link, put the link on as you normally would put the rod in the end of the link and snap it on, it

06-29-2010, 08:15 AM	#5
Marco Tahtaras Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 3,099	Re: Shock Links Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements) There shouldn't be a real problem. Typically both repro parts and used originals are looser/easier to assemble than original. The assembly method is the key. The following is a copy of an old post: Posted by Marco Tahtaras from c-24-4-43-195.hsd1.ca.comcast.net (24.4.43.195) on Wednesday, May 07, 2008 at 4:38PM : I grease all the link internals well to somewhat hold everyting in position. In many cases I find it easier to put the link on the upper (arm) ball first, raise the internals up from the lower hole, and then slip it over the perch ball. The grease should hold everything up long enough to slip it on the perch. The angle of the link varies a little from car to car. If the link is at a severe angle it may be beneficial to remove the shock arm from the shock but then you have to realign the square shaft with the arm to slip it back on. __________________ http://www.abarnyard.com/