rear swinging arm bushes??

[drek1]

how tricky is it to change the rear swinging arm bushes onmy stag??

[Mike Stevens]

It's possible on the car, but much easier if you remove the swing arm first.

Cheers,
Mike.

[mike@thenook]

If you are going to replace them with poly bushes (and I wouldn't put the original rubber type back) it is quite straightforward really and can be done without taking the whole unit off the car.
You will need to release the shock absorber lower mount and then ideally the spring too to gain some extra flexibility it is then fairly straightforward to either pull the old ones out using a self made tool - I made mine from the central screw of one half of a coil spring compessor combined with a large enough socket to allow room for the bush to be partly pulled through the middle of the socket. Once you have go the bush half way through it is then easy to pull the rest out with brute force and mole grips or soemthing of similar strength.
The other alternative I have heard of people usingis to burn them out with a blow torch or similar but it is both very unpleasant for breathing and dangerous given the full tank etc just above! If you need to use this method you should take the whole swing off the car for safety which is a lot more time and effort.
Having done all that, putting the new bushes in is simple as they are in 3 parts; two nylon bush halves and a central stainless sleeve. Once fitted you will notice there is no longer any rear end twitch (this is the main cause of it) provided your drive shafts are in good condition and the splines properly greased.
Definitely a job for a nice sunny day!


Cheers,

[drek1]

thanks mike i think thats got it down to a "t"
THANKS AGAIN DEL..............

[Kevin Garrod]

When I did mine I used a drill on the old rubber bush to make a series of holes around the steel sleeve, which could then be removed with a bit of effort. My new poly bushes came in one piece (plus the sleeve of course) and went in with some grease and the reverse of Mike's removal method, if that makes sense.
I took the swing arm out.

[drek1]

i have bought just the standard rubber ones but i also have some proper rred rubber grease to fit them back in easierly and also it wont rot the rubber either.....

[StagnJag]

One thing to bear in mind, don't exert pressure on one arm of the swing arm in an attempt to remove/replace the bush in the other. The stress has been known to break them!

Rgds

Dave

[drek1]

great lot of info people thanks a lot

[Firept]

Get some scaffold tubing large washers and 10mm studding, Cut the scaffold tube (make surer its square on the ends ) to be about 25mm longer than the bush, the stud needs to pass straight through the tube and the bush. I lock 2 nuts together and a suitable washer on the bush end (I use an old shock absorber washer), on the top end of the tube use some thick plate as it will bend and then just wind the old bush into the scaffold tube. I did find one that seemed to have welded its self into the arm and as Kevin has said you will then need to drill some holes through the rubber bush in order to get it out. This is all best done on the bench, it can be done on the car but to be honest its far quicker to take it off. once the old bush is out I use an old worn flap wheel thats just about the right size for the hole in the arm and it cleans the crud away easily.When you come to put it back I gently ease the mounting bracket fingers apart, use the stud again and with the nuts on the inside of the bracket gently wind them apart so that the bush will go in with reasonable pressure (test fit first ) they do compress when you tighten them up and if you dont do this it will fight all the way.
Best of luck

Paul.

[drek1]

thanks paul i have copied what you've written and i have now printed it off for efernce when i'm under the car doing the bushes
cheers del.........

[Firept]

Del.
Best of luck, the very first one I did was a complete Ba*#%^d! and I was beginning to loose the will to live, but it saw it my way in the end a good burst of Anglo Saxon helps, after that fiasco I always take them off its not that bad a job and it saves the back!!.
Just a thought on the thick plate for the end of the tube I think I got some large square washers/spreader plates from Bye and Que, cant for the life me think what they were for but were in the hardware section they fitted over the scaffold tube a treat and had a M12 hole in the middle.


Paul.