front suspension re-build

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marky
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Re: front suspension re-build

Post by marky »

Jason.goad wrote:Handy tip when fitting new wheel bearings. To make a drift for tapping the new races in the hub, grind the outside edges of the old races down a tiny bit and use them. That way you can make sure they go in straight. Probably everyone knows that, but it sounded like I knew what I was talking about for a moment 8)
Thanks Jason - a useful tip. I was lucky enough to get some of the bearings for a £1 each in a Lotus part sale and now have the whole set and the seals which I was keeping for when the old ones started to wear but now seems like a good time to fit them.

Mark.

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Re: front suspension re-build

Post by DavidOliver »

To drift in the new outer bearing races, with a Dremel cutting wheel I cut directly through the old race ring which means easily pulled out when you have drifted the new race fully home. Easier than grinding down the outside of the old race.
Dave the cog.

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Re: front suspension re-build

Post by shaunw »

I used some brass punches and just tapped them home. the real struggle was cleaning up the burring on the rear of the hub that was preventing installation of the new oil seal. It took hours of filing to get it right.

Shaun

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marky
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Re: front suspension re-build

Post by marky »

Made some progress today. Success with the sheared off bolt. I soaked the dirt shield in WD40 overnight and used a heat gun to warm it up today then removed the remains of the bolt with a small pair of Stillson's ( probably spelled incorrectly!). :D Just as well as the dirt shields are £45 each and out of stock at the moment!

Lot's of cleaning up done on the parts that are going back on - but lot's more to do.

Out of interest when I was taking the suspension apart I found the top two tools in the photo ( large persuader and angled socket bar) far more effective than the long breaker bar on the old rusty nuts and bolts! also less chance of rounding off a nut if they free up quickly.

Image

Thank's to everyone for all the advice and help.

Mark
Last edited by marky on Sun Sep 22, 2019 14:02, edited 2 times in total.

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marky
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Re: front suspension re-build

Post by marky »

shaunw wrote:I used some brass punches and just tapped them home. the real struggle was cleaning up the burring on the rear of the hub that was preventing installation of the new oil seal. It took hours of filing to get it right.

Shaun
Thanks for the warning about the burring Shaun - have come up with a cunning plan to avoid it! I will use a larger drift to knock the races in level with the hubs - then use the main part of the old bearings as a drift to tap them in a few millimetres and then either the old races or a smaller drift to tap them home. This should not damage the races as most bearings are driven in whole anyway. That's my theory anyway.

Mark.

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marky
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Re: front suspension re-build

Post by marky »

More progress is being made - I have cleaned, rust treated and painted the front dirt shields. A few years ago I did the rear ones. One side can be done from underneath with the car on ramps but you have to take the discs off to do the other side. I also did the rear chassis extension ( boot support ). Well worth it - the dirt shields are about £600 for the four if you can get them!!

I used a wire brush and file to clean them up a much as possible and lots a brake cleaner to de-grease them. Then rust treated them - you can see the difference in condition between the nearside ( with cable tie on ) and the off side.

Image

I then finished them off with black Hammerite. I plan to lightly sand and re-paint them in-situ every couple of years. already re-painted the back once. Its a bit of a pain as there is a lot of stuff in the way but it is do-able.

Image

The new parts also arrived today but I have had problems with carriers. The lower arms were sent out overnight express but were not delivered this morning as promised - from the tracking it looks like they are in the Coventry depot. Hopefully they will be there in the morning. The late Xmas present I bought myself ( bearing and seal drift set - always wanted one ) was stolen on route!! A replacement is now being sent out.

Image

I have tried the spring compressor on one of the springs. It has to be assembled from three parts inside the spring. If the parts will all fit through the lower arms then it looks like it will do the job but I will have to cut 5" off the threaded part to make it work - there is a picture of it earlier in this thread - it is a Sealey AK3842 - I will let you know if it works.

Mark

PS. I am assuming the brass screw in the centre of the protech adjuster is to lock it once you have adjusted ??

PS. - after complaining the carrier has updated their information to show that the lower arms were in fact delivered to Lotus Bits this morning. I will have to phone in the morning to find out if they are telling the truth!
Last edited by marky on Sun Sep 22, 2019 14:06, edited 2 times in total.

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Jason.goad
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Re: front suspension re-build

Post by Jason.goad »

Keep up the good work. Your suspension re-build is going a lot quicker than mine. :(

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Re: front suspension re-build

Post by shaunw »

marky wrote:
shaunw wrote:I used some brass punches and just tapped them home. the real struggle was cleaning up the burring on the rear of the hub that was preventing installation of the new oil seal. It took hours of filing to get it right.

Shaun
Thanks for the warning about the burring Shaun - have come up with a cunning plan to avoid it! I will use a larger drift to knock the races in level with the hubs - then use the main part of the old bearings as a drift to tap them in a few millimetres and then either the old races or a smaller drift to tap them home. This should not damage the races as most bearings are driven in whole anyway. That's my theory anyway.

Mark.
The burring was already there Mark, I didn't cause it with the punches. Just years of wear and tear I think (or a very hamfisted previous owner!) It didnt look too bad but the oil seal is a very snug fit and also very easy to damage when intalling and the burring was enough to prevent me tapping the seal home.

The punches I used were brass and were too soft to cause damage. IMHO this method was very straight forward and safe.

Sorry, I probably didnt make that clear in my previous post - brass punches = good - burring already present on rear edge of hub = bad :)

Regards

Shaun

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Re: front suspension re-build

Post by Lotus-e-Clan »

On my Clan's Protech dampers the adjuster is re-positionable to take advantage of an extended (or reduced) range of adjustment - ie a high and low range - which is necessary on the front of the Clan being rear-engined and v light at the front.

I don't know if Protech make all their dampers to have same range adjustment? But if so, then the brass screw is not a locking screw (that shouldn't be necessary anyway).
Peter K

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marky
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Re: front suspension re-build

Post by marky »

Sorry Shaun - I didn't mean to imply that you are a dribbling retard with the hammer and punch!! :D :D
I just thought the burring was inevitable. I have just had a quick panic and checked both hubs - all OK - no burring.

Thanks Peter - I will leave the brass screw well alone.

Have now cut down the internal compressor by 5" and installed it in the spring. The spring is 13" long and I think I will need to compress it about 3" to get it in. Looks do-able but haven't tried it yet.

Image

Mark.
Last edited by marky on Sun Sep 22, 2019 14:08, edited 2 times in total.

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Re: front suspension re-build

Post by shaunw »

marky wrote:Sorry Shaun - I didn't mean to imply that you are a dribbling retard with the hammer and punch!! :D :D
I just thought the burring was inevitable. I have just had a quick panic and checked both hubs - all OK - no burring.


Mark.
:lol: :lol: :lol: that really made me laugh Mark. And i cant deny that there has been more than one occasion over the years when your description of my mechanical skills could be described as accurate :lol:

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Re: front suspension re-build

Post by marky »

Two mistakes that I have made for the benefit of others who may take this job on:-

Firstly - I should have freed up the track rod end lock nuts before I broke the track rods free from the hubs. I will have to do this during re-assembly now and have been regularly applying WD40. Once the new suspension has settled the tracking will have to be re-set.

Second mistake - I had assumed that the large nuts and bolts on the front suspension were all metric and they may be on later cars but on mine they are 1/2" and 5/8" UNF. I keep all the metric sizes. I am hoping that Lotus Bits can supply the correct nuts with the lower arms.

Mark

Update 14.01.17 - have been cleaning up the threads and trying various nuts again and I think the above information may be incorrect. My roll bar has the stepped ends which the later cars with later threads are supposed to have and I now believe that they are in fact M12.

Update 25.01.17 - I am now pretty sure the Roll bar is M12 but the bottom damper bolt is 1/2" UNF as is the Lower arm to chassis bolt. No idea what the ball joints all are! The bottom ball joints came with new nuts and I will re-use the old track rod end nut and top ball joint nut as I cannot identify them.
Last edited by marky on Wed Jan 25, 2017 22:31, edited 2 times in total.

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Re: front suspension re-build

Post by marky »

All the cleaning up is now done and I have successfully installed all four new bearing races into the hubs. In the end the most essential tool was the old bearing races! Thanks for the tip chaps! I cut through them with an angle grinder and then filed the sharp edges away. Did use the drift set to get started fairly straight but afterwards it was easier to use the old races.

Image

I found that I had to hit them harder than I expected and in the end there were two choices either belt the living s--t out of it with a normal hammer or gentle taps with the big persuader. Easy choice really!

Next step tomorrow grease up and install the inner bearings and install the seals. Put the seals in the freezer overnight and keeping the hubs warm in the hope of making the job go smoothly.

I did nearly put the seals straight in after the bearing races :shock: A million swear words avoided :lol:

Mark.
Last edited by marky on Sun Sep 22, 2019 14:10, edited 2 times in total.

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Re: front suspension re-build

Post by Jason.goad »

Hello. Glad you got the races in ok. It's always easier to use the old ones as a drift. The seal should tap straight in, they don't really need cooling. I tend to use a block of wood to make sure they fit straight and flush with the hub face. Have you thought about how you'll put the pre-load on the bearings when you fit the hub?
There's a spring balance setting in the workshop manual, make sure you use the one for a new seal.

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Re: front suspension re-build

Post by marky »

Thanks Jason I missed that. Have just fully read the service notes and have also realised that there is castor adjustment where the roll bar goes through the lower arm. Good job I kept all the washers in an organised fashion. I now know why the washers were different on the two sides.

Rule no 1 - read all the relevant service notes before you start!! :oops:

Mark.

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