radius arm bush tool

Has anybody got the tool to fit some new radius arm bushes that i could rent/borrow for beer tokens/biscuits/ sweets what ever your poison is, i don't fancy struggling with a vice or trying to make up a tool to do it, and i'm fed up with the job already, its fighting me all the way

luckymark said:

Has anybody got the tool to fit some new radius arm bushes that i could rent/borrow for beer tokens/biscuits/ sweets what ever your poison is, i don't fancy struggling with a vice or trying to make up a tool to do it, and i'm fed up with the job already, its fighting me all the way

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I'm sure someone on here was getting one recently. Have you tried a bit of soap to slick it up a bit. Ease it a bit, leave it to rest, ease it a bit more, leave it to rest and so forth?

@martyuk isn't a million miles from Surrey and may have something?

I managed the first time I did mine by soaking the bush in hot water then compressing it with hose clips.plenty of washing up liquid and work fast. The next time I used poly bushes, much easier and without any noticeable difference in ride or handling

Home made tooling and a 20 ton press works wonders. Poly bushes indeed, that is sacrilege .

if it's fighting, ive had to drill out rubber before hand then hacksawing carefully the bush outer until its thin enough to pop it out with a screwdriver. If that helps??

tomcat59alan said:

The next time I used poly bushes

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WASH YOUR MOUTH OUT! Now, back of the class and face the wall with your hands on your head.

Polybushes, indeed!

I asked the same question back in December. Ended up doing the "chamfer the bush & jubilee clip method" with plenty of washing up liquid while pressing them in.

I think i might go down the chamfer and washing up liquid route, polybush smolybush!! original bits for me

So, I may well get flamed for this, but what exactly are polybushes and why does everyone frown on them?
I'm assuming they're some kind of plastic instead of rubber?

I'm in Swindon and have a 20T press and the bush tools to press them out/in.

Not sure if that helps though, as they are pretty heavy to post!

wammers said:

Home made tooling and a 20 ton press works wonders. Poly bushes indeed, that is sacrilege .

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Only on the axle end of the radius arm Tony Grrrrrr. I'm not advocating changing all of them.

tomcat59alan said:

Only on the axle end of the radius arm Tony Grrrrrr. I'm not advocating changing all of them.

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Clawing his way back to the front of the class ...

I put polybushes on the rear of my Jag and the ride is definitely harsher at the back now. They are supposed to give more direct handling but the Jag was already superb and didn't need it. They slip in more easily but then it is easier for dirt to get in and sandpaper them away.

Grrrrrr said:

Clawing his way back to the front of the class ...

I put polybushes on the rear of my Jag and the ride is definitely harsher at the back now. They are supposed to give more direct handling but the Jag was already superb and didn't need it. They slip in more easily but then it is easier for dirt to get in and sandpaper them away.

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And they "frazzle" up into little bits then fall out.

I've used a piston ring compressor to hold the shape while pressing them in before!

Gazbo said:

And they "frazzle" up into little bits then fall out.

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Is this a Southern Hemisphere problem? Too much sun or no UV protection from your budgie smugglers

Grrrrrr said:

Clawing his way back to the front of the class ...

I put polybushes on the rear of my Jag and the ride is definitely harsher at the back now. They are supposed to give more direct handling but the Jag was already superb and didn't need it. They slip in more easily but then it is easier for dirt to get in and sandpaper them away.

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I'd rather stay at the back and get up to mischief with Holidaychicken

tomcat59alan said:

I'd rather stay at the back and get up to mischief with Holidaychicken

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Now that's a really nasty image that just won't go away.

Jubilee clips are the important tool here. A 10 ton or 20 ton press helps, but so does a big vice. Slightly chamfer the bush edge, plenty of washing up liguid & keep those jubilee clips at the right distance. The clips stop the bush from expanding when you apply pressure when inserting.
I have the main dealer kit for this, but prefer the jubilee clip method. It's easy.

Problem is the hole in the radius arm is 60 mm diameter and the plastic cased bush is 61.5 mm diameter. I made a internally tapering tool from Micarta in my lathe, that squeezes the bush down from 61.5 to 59.75 mm as the bush is pressed through it. And a 59.65 mm removal and refit tool. That pushes the old bush out and the new bush in. Pretty simple task, although i do realise not everyone owns a lathe.

How long was the tapered tool? I'm happy to draw one up on Solidworks so that if anyone wants one made they can go to the local machine shop with a drawing.