Telescopic Suspension??

Post by **minx** » Sun Apr 30, 2006 6:30 pm

Apologies if this has been discussed before...but interested in doing a front end telescopic shocker conversion, and was interested in best buys / recommendations?
Gas/oil which is the better or best? Worth spending the extra for the Spax adjustables? What happens to the stock shocks? Do they stay in situ, if so do they require disabling?
Thanx in anticipation!

Post by **neiltomlinson** » Sun Apr 30, 2006 8:01 pm

hi i have fitted a pair to my pickup. i found the best way was to use mini Spax adjustables which you can buy of ebay cheap then made brakets to fit them on easy job you must leave orignal stock shocks in situ,no nead to disabling?them they work well together if you need photos or any more help ring me on 07884388741 thanks neil

Post by **jojax64** » Sun Apr 30, 2006 10:48 pm

Could you post some pics on here, Neil?

Post by **paul.kissick** » Mon May 01, 2006 9:44 am

you must leave orignal stock shocks in situ,no nead to disabling?them they work well together

so this means that if if buy these other shocks that the old ones stay and still need servicing?

Post by **aupickup** » Mon May 01, 2006 9:48 am

i think the cheapest kit from esm is about £77.00, includes shocks and brackets and instructions. then £89.00 for gas and £139.00 for adjustables

http://shop.morrisminorspares.co.uk/ind ... efba2cc9a3

Post by **246gts** » Mon May 01, 2006 10:15 am

Paul
In the kit I bought from MM centre in Bath the original shocks stay in place as you need the arm to locate the upright but in fact you then take out the valve from within the shocker body (not difficult). So they will not need servicing they are just used as a fixing mechanism no longer as a shock absorber.
Dave

Post by **jonathon** » Mon May 01, 2006 11:36 am

Basically there are two styles of kits available here. The most commonly sold is the old Owen Burton kit which is a bolt on design, incorporating a lower saddle bracket for the bottom location and an couple of plates for the top. The dampers used are mini ones. The other design is one prefered by C,S Autoclassics, C.Wares MMC and ourselves. We all produce our own versions of this type. The kit in this instance is a weld on system, the bottom thick arm is machined to accept a welded in lower pin. A top bracket with a load spreading plate is incorporated as the top link. I'm not sure what the other kits use as dampers but we have worked with both Spax and more recently with AVO to supply a purpose made unit.We only sell adjustable units. We always remove the valve from the original damper, re fill with the correct oil and use it as a location point only. To leave the valve in has no advantage as you want to be using the better damping characteristcs of your telescopic units. Its a bit like fitting coil-overs and leaving the original torsion bars. Before you buy, try!

Post by **minx** » Mon May 01, 2006 6:15 pm

Thankyou very much for the advice much appreciated. I figured it must be logical to some how make the orig dampers redundant, but keep them in place as a bottom mount. So, how do you remove the "valve" from the orig dampers.....I've got a factory manual if that will assist in parts location/identification.

Post by **paul.kissick** » Wed May 03, 2006 9:09 pm

Thanks dave for clearing that up for me. i never could quite get my head around the idea. but its all clear tome now

Post by **bmcecosse** » Thu May 04, 2006 10:25 am

NO! Leave the original dampers in full working condition. These kits ask you to take the valve out because they are using the original damper mount bolts to hold the new tele dampers - so they could be overloaded. I fitted additional tele-dampers which do not use the original damper mounts - and these work in conjunction with the lever arm dampers which have been filled with slightly thicker oil. The damping is fantastic - the ride is excellent - the car soaks up dips and brows magnificently - never hits the bump stops. If you disable the lever dampers you will be no better off than before! PM me if you want pics or advice.

Post by **jonathon** » Thu May 04, 2006 5:02 pm

In your opinion BM. Our damper kit does not use the original damper for its mounting and we along with the other two major specialist minor suspension suppliers suggest that the dampers are de-valved to make the most of the better damping od the Gas/oil telescopic units. If you do not want to use the potential from fitting a suspension kit then by all means follow BM's advice.But then we suppliers/designers have a legal obligation that our designs work are safe, researched, correctly manufactured and are fit for the purpose.