Outer Limits 4x4 Board

Doing an OME spring/shocks install on the Disco today. Got the back done fine, lifted up 2" nicely. Bloody hot and hard work though. Only lost a bit of skin of one finger so not too bad considering (word of advice - don't jam fingers between spring and base when installing).

Got started on the front springs, removed three of the four nuts holding down the shock tower and the final one won't undo, it just spins on the stub. Now i have to fawk around with the grinder and replace the bolt etc. This is meant to be the wifes DD and i promised her it would always be on the road. Plus, i'm a cheap bastard and won't pay any shop money to do something i could do (even if it takes me a week).


So now i have a 2" lift in the back, and a -1" lift in the front (winch bar on std springs). Driving feels like i am always going down hill, i keep sliding off the front of my seat.

Anyway, just thought I'd share my grief.

Why do you have to take the shock tower out? I've never done this when changing springs and shocks.

You have to remove the shock tower to remove the shock to enable you to remove the spring- its easiest to just unbolt the bottom of the shock and then lift the shock and tower out in one.This is for RR classic , county/ defender and disco 1, dunno about disco 2.

The last time i replaced springs , the rover gods made my highlift jack handle smack me on the head and i saw stars for the next 2 days

Ah ok. For the D2 you unbolt the shock bottom, drop the axle, compress the shock and pull the spring out then if need be pull the shock out. No tower work.

You can do the same with a rangie but you cant drop the axle that far down as the brake hoses wont allow it. Plus its just easier the above mention way.

never removed shock towers, changed front springs 4 times shocks twice.

if you undo control arm nut abit you get heps more drop and you don't have to remove tower.

TuffRR wrote::bad-words:

(snip)Got started on the front springs, removed three of the four nuts holding down the shock tower and the final one won't undo, it just spins on the stub. Now i have to fawk around with the grinder (snip)

How do you guys remove the lower nuts?
Simply brute force?
I tried last summer and all I got was a spinning damper...
...even with a wrench no avail.

Yesterday I bought what I hope will be a useful tool,it's a device to unscrew oil filters,it has a leather strap with rubber inside for a better grip.

Will it work?


The guy at the garage told me he uses an air-tool,it's so quick
the damper has no time to spin...


Cheers

There is no room to use a rattle gun, you just need to hold the shock body some how either with vice grips or as you said , 1 of those filter tools. The shocks do have flats on the shaft but these usually get rounded.

The Rover gods are not as silly as the rest of us. They actually drive Toyotas.
Bill.

Michele wrote: How do you guys remove the lower nuts?
Simply brute force?

Yesterday I bought what I hope will be a useful tool,it's a device to unscrew oil filters,it has a leather strap with rubber inside for a better grip.

Will it work?


The guy at the garage told me he uses an air-tool,it's so quick
the damper has no time to spin...

I found a 9mm open ended spanner fits around the lowest shaft part of the shock (below the bolt) where the sides have been squared. Then just use the 19mm on the nut. This wasn't enough for one so i also had to use a clamp on the lower part of the shock. Vice grips will also work below the nut (most of the time). At one stage i did try using the oil filter removal tool but it was too big.

Got it all sorted today without any dramas, was much easier than i thought after i had a chance to calm my frustrations.
Used the grinder to remove the useless nut on the tower, and then just tac welded up a replacement bolt into the shock tower holder. Front was all done in a couple of hours.

The ride is a lot better than standard, although the steering is a little more vague (as expected). Luckily it didnt cause any driveline vibrations which apparently is reasonably common on D1's even with only a two inch lift.

Now i have to resist the tempation to try and fit my old 33" muds.

Hopefully I'll be able to do the trick and fit the dampers before the new year...
(hopefully!)

I was given these 4 KONI rally shocks (only used once)as gift a lot ago but
I wanted to replace the bushes with new ones...the bl@@dy Italian importer didn't want to sell them to me (suggesting 4 new shock instead!) so I had to find a good guy in the Netherlands who just went to KONI factory and bought the bushes for me...

Actually they're on their way to Italy...


So far I managed to ruin a nut at the 1st try,so I had to find some new ones to replace as well...and I'm getting as much infos as I can to do the job without fuss.



(I start seeing the light at the end of the tunnel)

Slunnie wrote:Why do you have to take the shock tower out? I've never done this when changing springs and shocks.

IME it has been heaps easier to unbolt the bottom shock nut and then get the 4 or 5 nuts on the tower and take it out - no jacking/flexing required

Tom

I have always found that dropping the entire axle assembly makes life easier, also using a workshop jack also is a big plus. Undoing all the sockie bolts and the like first of course then lower the jack usiong the diff base to allow it to drop down to the stage where the springs can be removed, sometimes with a bit of force and swearing thrown in. Then a beer to help cool your temperment

I have never neede to undo the front tower bolts, only on the 83 Rangie I have now as it had surface rust from head to tow and I haven't encounterd so many seized bolts on a Rangie. Maybe I have had too many late model Rangies in recent times and this is normal

There are a dozen or more ways to do it. My way works for me, maybe not for everyone else though.

Good luck and don't skin too many knuckles

Trav

Aquarangie wrote:
Good luck and don't skin too many knuckles

Trav

'

Great, you tell me that now!!!

Better late than never they say

Trav