Hello all,
Winston the 1970 13/60 Herald broke the LH vertical
link the third day I owned him. I have since aquired
new one$ from Rimmer Bro$. As you all have
experienced, once you start disassembling you find
other parts that need attention. In my case the front
spring/damper assembly was a mess. In the lower
damper/shock absorber bushing the metal tube/bush had
migrated upwards crushing the rubber portion. I
suspect that had changed the geometry of the lower
A-arms as the faces where one mounts the trunnion and
damper are no longer parallel nor plumb. Probably the
reason the vert. link broke, twice since I found a
solid rod where the grease passage should be.
Replacement parts for the Herald are not available
here in Peru and one has to adapt parts from other
cars. I could not find shocks so I have to use the
originals which seen OK still. I visited about 8
different shops till I found one where the gentleman
was willing to help. He had worked in the Gabriel
Shock assembly plant here in Lima way back when. He
pulled out his boxes full of bits and pieces he had
accumulated during the years and we were able to
adapt, with the help of a grinder, the lower shock
bush.
I had disassembled the spring/shock using a press
where I work (Otis Elevator). The PO had replaced the
upper shock absorber bushes with about 8 circular
layers of inner tube rubber the diameter of the upper
spring seat plate (the one with the 3 studs popping
out the top) and an aluminum disk spacer. The nylock
nuts on the 3 studs were barely hanging on. The was
no sign of the original bushes on this side, LH, and
one very crushed one on the RH. The dished washers on
the LH upper spring seat had come loose and I have
since welded them back on. The kind gentleman
mentioned above supplied me with 4 new bushes and
washer/caps. The bushes, I believe, are of greater
diameter than stock so I will be grinding the down to
fit.
Questions:
What is the correct diameter of the stock upper shock
absorber bushes?
What is their thickness?
Are they shaped to fit into the dished washer/caps
attached to the spring plate? The edges of the ones I
have are square cut. Should they be rounded or beveled
to fit?
Would it be OK to swap the shocks and springs from
side to side to compensate for any sag caused by
driver weight on this LH drive car?
Thanks in advance for any help.
Javier
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