Converting Front Oil Shocks to Gas
Inserts
By Simon Perry
Hi guys,
Someone on the site has been asking
questions about this mod so here are a few pictures of what I did.
The internals of the shocks were
removed and the spacer shown was fitted in the base.
Nut and bolt spacer may be a bit
heavy but will do the job. Adjust nut on bolt to suit length of shock insert
then weld in place.
The shocks I used were heavy duty
commodore - designed for lowered commodores (would go with normal commodore
next time as these ones are pretty stiff).
I used the top screw in strut top
from the zephyr strut to hold the insert in place, however the inside diameter
is a little larger than the insert so I cut a length of 1mm plate steel and
wrapped it around the insert and tacked it to the inside of the threaded
nut so it stayed at the top and kept it all snug.
After trial fitting with a standard
zephyr spring I found that the ride height was slightly higher than original,
so I cut 1.5 diameters off the spring and bent the bottom up so the spring
would sit flat. This has the car sitting slightly lower than original, but I
would remove more if you wanted a lowered car as such. (From what I can tell,
by removing 2.5 diameters and bending the bottom up would lower the car by
about 2 inches. Not this will be different if staying with the zephyr top
bearing.
I then reassembled using the zephyrs
spring top holder (weld a washer on the hole to reduce the diameter to match
the strut insert) and used the rubber boot from a set of commodore legs I had.
I then fitted the adjustable camber nolathane bearing tops from the commodore legs. Note
that the bolt holes don't line up and I slotted mine on the car and
fitted a strut brace to tie them all together however if you wanted an original
looking car you would re drill the holes in the bearing top plate to suit
the zephyr holes.
All the early commodore front shocks
were the same from memory. (refer to parts book at
auto shop) the ones I used suit the VB to VN commodore according to the
markings on the nolathane bush - part number not visible.
Brand new/secondhand shocks cost $10
at swap meet ($300 new)(heavy duty lowered), 2 x front legs for commodore
(including standard but leaky shocks) and including nolathane bushes were $60,
you can get these in rubber also for softer ride if preferred. Top bearings are
very expensive brand new.
Keep in mind that the commodore
shock is a fairly "standard" design and I believe that other models
will also fit, for example I have another set of shocks from a ford (not sure
what model) but these would also fit fine.
I had a wheel alignment done and the
bloke told me that it was easy to do and the result achieved was "mid
way" in the specs given in the zephyr manual.
I hope this helps, and if there are
any quetions please email me.
perrysinbuderim@bigpond.com or Route66 on the web site
Disclaimer:
The advice and guidelines given in these articles are given in good faith.
The owners and managers of the Galeforce Zephyr site will take no
responsibility for any injuries or loss sustained while carrying out the
described tasks and procedures or any consequences arising. Please read
the Safety First
Article
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