Removing trailing arms

LarsB · April 21, 2007, 09:45:19 AM

Fianly both trailing arms have been removed from the car. After several days spraying penetrating oil on the bolt it had to let go.

Unfortunatly the arms are not as rust free as I hoped. The shockabsorber bracket will have to be remade as well as some minor reinforcements on the arms. As soon as the weather premits I will get them sandblasted and primed.

Lars

Lennart Sorth · April 21, 2007, 05:40:30 PM

Quote from: LarsB on April 21, 2007, 09:45:19 AM
Fianly both trailing arms have been removed from the car. After several days spraying penetrating oil on the bolt it had to let go.

Unfortunatly the arms are not as rust free as I hoped. The shockabsorber bracket will have to be remade as well as some minor reinforcements on the arms. As soon as the weather premits I will get them sandblasted and primed.

Lars

Congrats on getting them out. Good going!
It is however not really a surprise that they are worse than you thought. Hand on heart, I think most owners would say the same of theirs, if they had a look. :/

Be advised that of the outside is so corroded that you will have to remake the shock absorber bracket, then the *inside* will probably be much worse...

I wish one could dip the whole thing in some sulfuric acid, and then treat them in a way that would seal them from the elements. But as it is, they corrode, and will always do so

The alternative is to have new ones made up, reusing the hub. I think MatraMagic still offer this ?

Over the years, many have come up with designs for new arms in exotic materials like extruded aluminium or even simply galvanized steel - but as far as I know, nobody have yet done it for real ??

/Lennart

Matra_Hans · April 22, 2007, 06:10:27 AM

Hi
Renovation of trailing arms: I agree with Lennart that you should have a closer look at your trailing arms now they have been disconnected from the car. I changed mine a couple of years ago and I was really chocked when cut up the old ones and saw how bad they really were.
We have had some set of training arms for the 2.2 repaired at a machine shop here in Denmark reusing the original hub. We had plates for 10 sets laser cut, and I think that there are still some in store. The design was improved a little i.e. the steel quality is better than original, and where the sides of the original arms had double layer of steel plate (very bad for rust) we used only a single plate but of a thicker dimension. On my own set I closed the original "drain holes" and put approximately 10 cc of rust preventing oil inside.
My new trailing arms are not stainless, but they are much better protected against rust than the original ones, and the original set of trailing arms lasted more the twenty years.
The price we paid for this trailing arms was very competitive.

Regards from the Sudan
Hans

Will Falconer · April 22, 2007, 08:48:23 AM

Quote from: Lennart Sorth on April 21, 2007, 05:40:30 PM
Quote from: LarsB on April 21, 2007, 09:45:19 AM

The alternative is to have new ones made up, reusing the hub. I think MatraMagic still offer this ?

Over the years, many have come up with designs for new arms in exotic materials like extruded aluminium or even simply galvanized steel - but as far as I know, nobody have yet done it for real ??

/Lennart

We looked at various options. I liked the idea of a stainless steel spaceframe most, but in the end the only viable soution was an improvement over the original using heavier grade steel.

Galvanising of course creates it s own problems and we've shyed off doing that because of the distortion dangers.

If a Bagheera shell really can be cooked at 500C without any distortion I guess a Murena trailing arm should be OK too. BUT, why didn't Matra do that? I think they knew what they were doing...

Matra_Hans · April 22, 2007, 11:15:28 AM

btw. stainless trailing arms are available from Polytechnich (at least according to their web-page) but they come at a price: 605€ plus VAT each!
http://www.politecnic.com/brasarriere.htm

Hans

Anders Dinsen · April 22, 2007, 12:26:44 PM

Quote from: Matra_Hans on April 22, 2007, 11:15:28 AM
btw. stainless trailing arms are available from Polytechnich (at least according to their web-page) but they come at a price: 605€ plus VAT each!
http://www.politecnic.com/brasarriere.htm

They say they are strengthened ("renforcée") and made by CrMo steel - AFAIK that's not entirely stainless - strong, but not stainless.

- Anders

LarsB · April 23, 2007, 05:47:06 PM

Quote from: Matra_Hans on April 22, 2007, 06:10:27 AM
Hi
Renovation of trailing arms: I agree with Lennart that you should have a closer look at your trailing arms now they have been disconnected from the car. I changed mine a couple of years ago and I was really shocked when cut up the old ones and saw how bad they really were.
We have had some set of training arms for the 2.2 repaired at a machine shop here in Denmark reusing the original hub. We had plates for 10 sets laser cut, and I think that there are still some in store. The design was improved a little i.e. the steel quality is better than original, and where the sides of the original arms had double layer of steel plate (very bad for rust) we used only a single plate but of a thicker dimension. On my own set I closed the original "drain holes" and put approximately 10 cc of rust preventing oil inside.
My new trailing arms are not stainless, but they are much better protected against rust than the original ones, and the original set of trailing arms lasted more the twenty years.
The price we paid for this trailing arms was very competitive.

Regards from the Sudan
Hans

How much ? And where do I inquire to have a set made?

When you cut yours open did you notice that one of the arms were heavyer built than the other? One of mine seems to be doubled up.

Lars

LarsB · May 07, 2007, 08:14:59 AM

Do you have any more information about the lasercut arms, are there any more left, and what is the price for a set.

Lars Olav

Matra_Hans · May 07, 2007, 05:46:48 PM

Sorry I did not notice your posting. However I am excused at I am now in a rather remote area of Sudan, and some days our internet connection is just hopeless.
From what I know of trailing arms being made there must be some sets left of the 10 sets, which we had cut.
As I remember it the price was 50 % of the price Simon is asking and the quality is better than the original ones, as they do not have two layer of two mm plats on top of each other no the sides but one thick plate and the materials is a stronger and rust resistant chrome alloy steel, maybe close the ones that Politecnic is offering. I do not have the e-mail to the guy in our Danish club who knows the machine shop, but I will off line e-mail you his phone number. Our chairman in the Danish club “Bagheera Lars” will also be able to help you.
You are asking if the arms on the left and one the right have different material thickness, and the answer is: No. But many trailing arms have been repaired by welding on additional plate on top of the existing rusty ones, and if you do a good job the guys at the inspection will not notice. So maybe you are having on original and one repaired one.
regards Hans