Re: Safe T Flex rubber bushings.

Posted by TxGoat On 2023/12/20 13:55:32

I found it convenient to remove several of the small bolts holding the engine side pans to the frame, starting at the rear to allow the pans to drop down way from the ball cap. I left the front pan bolts in place. I used a scrap piece of 2X4 or 2X6 cut at an angle and driven between the radius rod and the car frame to move the radius rods down away from the ball socket about an inch. The old rubber on my car had rotted and bonded to the cap and ball and frame socket. I peeled, scraped, and finally burned the crud off, and then wire bushed the the parts clean and smooth. Be sure to get any debris out of the 2 small holes in the frame socket and the hole in the cap. I did not paint the parts, but I would recommend doing so as described above. I used Ruglyde type rubber lubricant to put the rubber on the radius rods. I then removed the wood block/wedges, and carefully moved the radius rods into place, being very careful to keep the small rubber studs in their proper places in the holes provided in the frame sockets. I put a little grease on each of the three cap bolts and installed the caps, leaving the bolts a little loose, then lowered the car to the floor and bounced it a few times, then tightened the bolts firmly and evenly and replaced the bolts in the side pans.
It made a big difference in how the car handled.