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many people recommend not to use poly for this application because of the way that the strut rods move. Have you looked into that view point? Dont think marking the camber cam lock positions is going to help maintaining your current camber.
interesting , I have not looked into that but I was thinking that the poly bushing would do a better job of holding the camber in check...no ?
Ok....... enlighten me .........
Really look and understand the movement of the strut rod. It moves up and down but also twists (torsion) under full suspension travel. Being that the factory bushing is rubber is has the ability to twist. Poly bushings are very hard by nature of the bushing and doesn't take the rotation forces well at all. Thus they break down. If upgrading the only real option are the spherical joints end strut rods.
Here is another thought from the other side. If a person does a complete (springs and shocks) performance suspension (car sits lower) upgrade thereby limiting the suspension travel, most of the twist is eliminated. I have functioning proof of this. Just doing a part here and a part there, serves very little function. He would be better off using rubber. Dennis
Here is another thought from the other side. If a person does a complete (springs and shocks) performance suspension (car sits lower) upgrade thereby limiting the suspension travel, most of the twist is eliminated. I have functioning proof of this. Just doing a part here and a part there, serves very little function. He would be better off using rubber. Dennis
I have a complete vette brakes suspension kit on my 66 and it came with the spherical rod ends. I would not put poly rod ends on those strut rods. And this is coming from someone who has poly bushings on the front end of the car.
I don't think I would rely on tape measurements alone to keep the camber in check after strut rod replacement. But it's a fairly easy adjustment to check and set. Depending on your source and intentions you want around 1/2 to 1 degree negative camber (that means top of tire leans towards centerline of the car. It's fairly easy to check with a level held across the top and bottom of the wheel rim with the car sitting on the suspension. I have a bubble gage so I've not had the need to calculate the actual deviation from vertical across a 15 inch wheel for 1/2 (or 1) deg negative camber but that's easy enough to do with some geometry.
Really look and understand the movement of the strut rod. It moves up and down but also twists (torsion) under full suspension travel. Being that the factory bushing is rubber is has the ability to twist. Poly bushings are very hard by nature of the bushing and doesn't take the rotation forces well at all. Thus they break down. If upgrading the only real option are the spherical joints end strut rods.
I replaced the worn out poly bushings in my stock rear strut rods this Spring with the same VBandP HD Strut Rods and I love the transformation - they really "tightened" up the rear suspension - my car handles great now! No more poly for me!
Really look and understand the movement of the strut rod. It moves up and down but also twists (torsion) under full suspension travel. Being that the factory bushing is rubber is has the ability to twist. Poly bushings are very hard by nature of the bushing and doesn't take the rotation forces well at all. Thus they break down. If upgrading the only real option are the spherical joints end strut rods.
1. Stock rubber bushings in steel sleeves. Good for all around use in the stock strut rods. The flex with large tires is said to upset the alignment and handling response. The factory changed to strut rods with a larger diameter bushing with more rubber to flex in misalignment in the C3 era.
2. Poly replacement bushings for the stock strut rods. These do not have steel containment sleeves. The lack of flex due to the small diameter and hard poly make these undesirable. The lack of flex tends to loosen the camber cam adjusters. The small diameter and lack of flex tends to destroy the poly bushings quickly. This option gave poly bushings a bad reputation.
3. VBP poly ends on adjustable strut rods. These have larger diameter poly bushings with more room for misalignment flex when compared to stock diameter rod ends and bushings. More flex room allow for a better life. Better than stock with poly for misalignment flex, better than stock rubber for holding alignment and response, better ease of adjustment, and quiet. There can be some misalignment bind that can accelerate bushing wear. The solution to reduce the bind and wear is to leave the lock nut loose on the outer rod end to allow rotation at the rod threads in the rod. The rotation is minimal, with minimal thread wear and minimal camber change. The tight lock nut on the inner rod end keeps the rod and rod end length intact, maintaining alignment, if you check to assure it is tight as part of your modified maintenance routine.
4. VBP adjustable rods with spherical rod ends (as recommended above). Same benefits as the other VBP adjustable strut rods with spherical rod ends that do not bind like a rubber or poly bushing. They trade better flex travel and alignment, against a potential for more noise and a harsher feel as there is no rubber or poly to isolate road imperfections from the strut rod and chassis.
5. Race strut rods and spherical rod ends. VBP and other vendors have offered this option for decades, with the same benefits and noise issues as any system with no rubber or poly vibration isolation.
I have run all of these options for strut rods and rod ends.
The stock rubber was good and I did not feel much improvement in handling response after going with the small diameter replacement poly bushings that wore out quickly. The stock strut rods are fairly flexible due to their lightweight construction, compared to the VBP and race strut rods, so any handling response gain going to the poly bushings was wasted because the stock strut rods bend anyway under hard cornering loads.
The VBP adjustable strut rod system has the advantage of stiffer strut rods and the improved C3 roll center height with the more rigid differential bracket. I went through a vibration chase exercise when I had the steel spherical rod ends, and replaced them with the larger diameter VBP poly ends. The swap did not resolve the immediate vibration problem, but it did improve the ride quality and road noise feel (my main driveshaft was out of phase causing the vibration, fixed with new u-joints and balancing). I have kept the VBP poly ends, with the outer end allowed to rotate, and have seen no bushing wear or flex destruction in over twelve years of use (a big improvement over the stock rods and stock diameter poly bushings in the 80's that would be destroyed in a year).
I think VBP offers or offered a system with a large diameter poly inner rod end for vibration isolation, and an outer spherical rod end for flex. I have not tried the combination. It might be the answer for an owner who wants better handling response and some vibration isolation.
This is a VBP poly bushing after a couple of years.
I went with the heim joints. The problem is you have to periodically clean them. Or, replace them. They're exposed to a lot of dirt and the bearing surface can wear.
This is a VBP poly bushing after a couple of years.
I went with the heim joints. The problem is you have to periodically clean them. Or, replace them. They're exposed to a lot of dirt and the bearing surface can wear.
10-28-2016, 04:26 PM
rear strut rod replacement - '67 BB
Dennis
