njjeeper Posted August 14, 2015 Share Posted August 14, 2015 (edited) I am trying to rebuild a Ferret that was taken apart by the previous owner. I am going to need lots of help Today's question is about the suspension pins. Could someone tell me the order of parts at each pin station on the suspension? I have the manuals but the pics are just not clear enough. So the pin goes into the bracket on the hull. When it exits, whats between it and the a-arm? I have o-rings and these really odd looking washers. The washers are square with a raised round area. Are these shims? If so, which side of the arm bushing do they go on? I cant fit seem to fit one on both sides. Having a "shim" only on one side leaves just the oring on the other side to get smashed. Where do the o-rings fit in here? Help! Close pics of suspension of an assembled Ferret would be very helpful as well. Thanks! Edited August 14, 2015 by njjeeper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diana and Jackie Posted August 14, 2015 Share Posted August 14, 2015 The rubber O ring fits between the fixed and moving joint in order to prevent the ingress of water. They often perish and fall apart. Diana I am trying to rebuild a Ferret that was taken apart by the previous owner. I am going to need lots of help Todays question is about the suspension pins. Could someone tell me the order of parts at each pin station on the suspension? I have the manuals but the pics are just not clear enough. So the pin goes into the bracket on the hull. When it exits, whats between it and the a-arm? I have o-rings and these really odd looking washers. The washers are square with a raised round area. Are these shims? If so, which side of the arm buhing to they go on? I cant fit seem to fit one on either side. Only on one side leaves an oring to get smashed on the other. Where do the orings fit in here? Help! Close pics of suspension of an assembled Ferret would be very helpful as well. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robin craig Posted August 14, 2015 Share Posted August 14, 2015 Seeing as how you are going to need lots of help, you may want to think abut laying items out and numbering them and taking a photo and loading them here. There is lots of help that folks can give you with a good picture as the starting point. Robin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sexton Posted August 16, 2015 Share Posted August 16, 2015 Here are some photos I took recently. Looks like the square washers go against the hull brackets. So the raised part of teh washer must face away from the brackets to prevent the o-rings from being squashed too much. I don't know why you can't get washers both sides of the a-arm bushing. Are the bushings fully pressed home? Perhaps teh washers are location specific? I can take some more photos if you need. Malcolm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diana and Jackie Posted August 16, 2015 Share Posted August 16, 2015 (edited) Yuk what a mess :-) a typical Ferret. So far I cannot see what is wrong, but if I have time I will take a photo of mine - unless someone beats me to it ! - and you can compare. The Rubber bump stop needs replacing. The big weakness on a Ferret is the suspension spring support, which can seize solid to the shaft and over which fits a sleeve interposed between the support and shaft. The small arm which holds the support parallel to the road then comes under tremendous force and its bearing pins wear out. The rubber O rings are a free fit between the body bracket and suspension A frame, they are not compressed by anything, but are tight in enough in themselves to grip between the joint. Unless off roading or going through deep water they are not needed provided everything is well greased. This is the front so usually the rear suspension is in a worse mess . Make sure that grease comes out of all the joints, if the suspension creaks when going overa kerb then you have seized pivots somewhere. A pressure grease gun is best for greasing the pivots. If you cannot see grease coming out of the joints its a blowlamp job and grease gun- forget the hit it with a hammer tool which is supposed to overcome seized joints as it doesn't work - not for me anyway. Diana Edited August 16, 2015 by Diana and Jackie added O ring info Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njjeeper Posted August 20, 2015 Author Share Posted August 20, 2015 These pics are great, thanks so much! I have 1 wheel station back together! Now to figure out how to get the bump stops back in. The hull is lifting before the 2 arms open enough to slide it in between... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diana and Jackie Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 That is normal - just keep jacking on the suspension arm, BUT do not place your fingers in a position that they get chopped off should the jack fail. You will need to wiggle the stops in, the hardest part is getting the nut on the back stud of the bump stop. I used nylocs as its simpler than a washer, spring washer and a nut. Diana These pics are great, thanks so much! I have 1 wheel station back together! Now to figure out how to get the bump stops back in. The hull is lifting before the 2 arms open enough to slide it in between... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sexton Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 I found I had to support the wheel hub (support as far out on the hubs as you can) on both sides to get the upper a-arms to lift enough to make room for the bump stops. (These were the old ones, not new ones which would probably need more room.) For a couple of wheels, a bit of prying with a long pry bar between the bump stop mount and the a-arm was also necessary to lift the a-arms a bit more. Malcolm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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