Sheared front shock brackets

[pjpvi]

Originally Posted by Belize

Sorry Phil, you’re right, that is the shock. Am on assignment thru weekend again, will post photo of bar when I get back.

I just took a quick look at mine and forgot that the track bar attaches to the passenger side plate. It may have some lateral force on it that is binding the bolt from coming out. Need to try to shift the axle to the left or right a little. Can do that by jacking on frame maybe (extending suspension) or have some one try to "wiggle" the van side to side while you try to get the bolt out (not while on jack stands though!). Maybe a little gentle persuasion with a hammer cautious not to damage the threads. If I was nearby I'd be happy to help.

Good luck!

[JoeH]

Originally Posted by arctictraveller

Prefab weld on shock tabs are readily available on line, but be aware that lowering the tabs will most likely require longer shocks if you are to avoid reducing the available droop, and stressing the shock itself. Or, you can install limit straps, but your still limiting droop. In addition, bump travel should be limited by bump stops, not the shock. If travel is limited in either direction by the shocks, hitting just one unexpected pot hole or "sleeping policeman" (I love that term) could result in shock, or mounting tab damage (as you have seen)
Best of luck.........

Indeed. And also I suspect the reason many of us that have gone the Deaver Spring route have had issues with the plate and the remote reservoir that Deaver spec'd with their spring package. On the other hand, lots of folks have had the plate break anyway.

Either way, I tested mine at full droop or extension. Lift went from 3 to maybe 4" with the Deavers. The spec's on the 7100 series Bilsteins are:
Collapsed Length (IN) :14.61"
Extended Length (IN) :24.39"

Now, the shock is actually going through full travel rather than being limited to the collapsed or compressed upper 1/3 of the stroke. But like I said I don't know if the shocks spec'd by Agile have sufficient length for the same solution.

[jquevedo]

I own a 2006 SMB EB50, common occurrence in SMB's, replace buy one from SMB West, repair weld or fabricate a new one.
I broke my driver side one after many miles of off road driving in Baja Sur. At a small Weld shop in Mexico who also builds Off road racing cars, we made a couple of gussets and welded the piece in-situ, it is now even better than new, and we paced the gussets in positions where you can use normal tools to access the nuts to work in the suspension.

[TomsBeast]

The shop who originally converted mine to 4x4 used a mix-n-match of UJOR parts, Ford Truck, and van parts for the front axle conversion. For lower shock mounts, they used the stock cast iron ones.


While completely redoing the front suspension several years ago, I designed my own lower shock mounts from a clean sheet of paper.


It might be more than you'd want, but you could steal some of the design elements and find a local Belize craftsmen, or someone in the states to build you something similar.



They were cut from 3/8" steel plate. You can't see it from this view very well, but the two plates are stacked for a total of 3/4" thick. The top plate has hex holes, to nest the heads of the 9/16"-UNF grade 5 bolts. The bottom plate has 9/16" thru holes. I keyed the 3/8" thick shock tabs into both plates, not bending moment where the other ones fail, the bending is in the long and strong direction, for a bulletproof part.



This pic shows them mocked up in place, before welding.


There's more pics on this thread:
https://www.sportsmobileforum.com/fo...edo-17676.html

[Belize]

I managed to re-weld the brackets back together and added 3 gussets to each. Looks rock solid. The tracking bar bracket also cracked, and had to cut the bolt off to remove the bushing so I could weld it. Was a bitch getting the bar back in. Had to jack each wheel independently so get the holes lined up enough to slip in the bolts. I found I had to get the tracking bar completely level to get the holes on both side to line up. Thanks for all the suggestions and Phil, the bracket you sent I guess will be waiting for you (or stay in my parts box as a spare) when you visit for your free night at the resort!