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Lift help!! Bilstein shock problem....
http://www.lostjeeps.com/forum/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=62063		 Page 1 of 1
Author:  Lucky [ Sat Aug 13, 2011 7:56 pm ]
Post subject:  Lift help!! Bilstein shock problem....
Got the OME spring and bilstein strut/shock combo with a couple extras for some more lift. Got everything on there, and I have a couple kinks to straighten out.

The stock shock has a rubber busing and metal sleeve pressed inside the upper shock mount (normal), but for some reason the bilstein shocks don't have a metal sleeve in the upper mount point. Without the metal sleeve/pin or whatever it is technically called, the bolt doesn't have a snug fit into the upper shock mount (as pictured). I'm sure that eventually the bolt will wear out the rubber bushing (it already seems the threads are cutting into the bushing), or the play will snap the bolt after hitting a hard enough bump. I got the stock bushing and metal sleeve out and ground down the rubber bushing on it. The only problem is that the stock sleeve has too wide of a diameter to fit inside the new shock bushing.

Pictures should help so here goes:
-top shock mount
Image
-shock/metal sleeve/bolt
Image
-gap between the bolt and upper shock mount
Image
-horizontal view of the sleeve
Image

My ideas are:
-dremel out the rubber bushing of the new shock to fit the original metal sleeve
-try to find something that will fit in place of the old metal sleeve

What have others done with this??
Author:  tommudd [ Sat Aug 13, 2011 8:16 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Lift help!! Bilstein shock problem....
stock sleeve with washers over the sleeve will work to take up the room
Author:  BugginKJ [ Sat Aug 13, 2011 9:46 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Lift help!! Bilstein shock problem....
All I did with mine was take the sleeve ya have out of the orignal shock, stuck it on a long rod slightly smaller than the hole and held it to a grinder so that it would spin and grind off material evenly. It helps to taper the ends slightly. have patients and take your time. Slap a small of grease on it and used a redneck press to install it into the bushing then center it up. You want the sleeve to press into the bushing, do not size the bushing to the sleeve! By using the stock sleeve and doing this you wont need any washers and it works like a charm.
Author:  Lucky [ Wed Aug 17, 2011 10:25 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Lift help!! Bilstein shock problem....
Thanks guys. I may do some further modifications later, but strangely enough I found a steel sleeve at lowes that fits almost exactly both around the bolt and into the bushing. My only fear is that it may not hold up because the walls are so thin.

The day after I finished everything with the lift I took my jeep from Huntsville, AL to Fort Pierce, FL (vacation you could say). Seems to be doing fine after about 6-700 miles of driving.

There is less than a 16th of an inch gap of play now, and there is a clanking sound from the rear. As long as the piece I found holds up and the sound doesn't drive me nuts, I should be alright.
Author:  BugginKJ [ Thu Aug 18, 2011 9:33 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Lift help!! Bilstein shock problem....
Lucky wrote:
Thanks guys. I may do some further modifications later, but strangely enough I found a steel sleeve at lowes that fits almost exactly both around the bolt and into the bushing. My only fear is that it may not hold up because the walls are so thin.

Which is exactly why I chose to grind the stock ones down. Yes they are thin but much thicker than what you can buy. If ya take your time grinding, you can get the sleeve still with a realatively thick wall and be able to press it into the bushing. I know I posted some pics somewhere of what I ended up with. Almost 5,000 miles since the install and still not a sound out of them and also the sleeves are still centered in the bushings. Plus not only that but the stock sleeves are solid, not split like the cheap after market stuff.
Author:  JeepinJarhead03 [ Thu Aug 18, 2011 10:11 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Lift help!! Bilstein shock problem....
had to build my own sleeves on something, dont remember what it was exactly at the moment

drilled out some threaded rod and ground a slot in one side and threaded that sucker into the bushing with a flat head screw driver :P
Author:  Lucky [ Fri Aug 19, 2011 10:57 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Lift help!! Bilstein shock problem....
I suppose I may end up grinding down the old ones, or making some out of something.

Thanks for the suggestions guys.

I reckon it's about time to throw up some pics of the lift....time to make a new thread.
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