smart51
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 12:11 PM |
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mini ball joint taper
I'm planning a bubble car build using mini uprights. Either I have to use the original iron suspension arms or I have to make my own steel tube
wishbones. If I make my own, I'll need to cut tapered holes for the ball joints top and bottom.
What is the taper of a mini ball joint.
What alternatives are there other than OE iron arms or custom made steel?
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Marcus
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 12:23 PM |
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My Alfa 156 has alloy wishbones - maybe adaptable?
Marcus
Because kits are for girls!!
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Delinquent
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 12:29 PM |
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This isn't going to be much help... but while trawling the net a few weeks back I came across mini uprights made from ally - they are
extensively used in hillclimb and lightweight specials for racing (I'm told!) so shouldn't be that hard to come by - certainly worth
putting some time into a search to see if they make other parts as well.
[Edited on 8/11/07 by Delinquent]
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worX
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 12:59 PM |
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I don't think the uprights used by Zcars for their Mini are that dear.?.
Steve
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Jimbob
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 01:18 PM |
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Kent Auto Developments produce lots of special goodies for minis, might be worth a try
James
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britishtrident
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 02:33 PM |
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The steel in Mini bottom arms is weldable --- Mini freaks have been making adjustable bottom arms for 40 odd years without problem.
[I] “ What use our work, Bennet, if we cannot care for those we love? .”
― From BBC TV/Amazon's Ripper Street.
[/I]
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smart51
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 03:06 PM |
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Are the top arms weldable too?
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britishtrident
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 05:58 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by smart51
Are the top arms weldable too?
Likely to be the same stuff
[I] “ What use our work, Bennet, if we cannot care for those we love? .”
― From BBC TV/Amazon's Ripper Street.
[/I]
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minitici
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| posted on 8/11/07 at 07:11 PM |
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Mini ball joint taper is a 7 degree included angle.
The ball joint pin can be turned down parallel and a spherical bearing can be used in your suspension arm.
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britishtrident
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 posted on 8/11/07 at 08:55 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by minitici
Mini ball joint taper is a 7 degree included angle.
The ball joint pin can be turned down parallel and a spherical bearing can be used in your suspension arm.
?
[I] “ What use our work, Bennet, if we cannot care for those we love? .”
― From BBC TV/Amazon's Ripper Street.
[/I]
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Minicooper@work
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| posted on 9/11/07 at 08:49 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by britishtrident
quote:
Originally posted by minitici
Mini ball joint taper is a 7 degree included angle.
The ball joint pin can be turned down parallel and a spherical bearing can be used in your suspension arm.
?
Like this but with a single spherical bearing on the top ball joint, the taper is removed on the tapered pin to resemble a bolt shank and then a
standard spherical bearind can be fitted to it. Non of this sort of thing would use a top cast arm
This is not my frame belongs to a guy called Gavin Wakely
Cheers
David
 
Rescued attachment Gavin Wakely.jpg
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MikeRJ
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| posted on 9/11/07 at 10:27 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Minicooper@work
Like this but with a single spherical bearing on the top ball joint, the taper is removed on the tapered pin to resemble a bolt shank and then a
standard spherical bearind can be fitted to it. Non of this sort of thing would use a top cast arm
The ball joints that screw into the mini uprights have the tapered pin on them. If you somehow machined this to a straight pin, you couldn't
simply slot it into a spherical bearing in the end of a wishbone as you'd then have two ball joints which would introduce a very significant
amount of uncontrolled movement.
If you could machine the pin parallel, with a flange at the bottom it could be put through a straight hole in the end of the wishbone (no spherical
joint) but I fear that making the ball joint pin parallel would be vastly more work and making a tapered hole in the end of a wishbone. And
you'd have to do it again when you replaced the ball joints.
IMO it would be far easier to get a suitable lump of steel machined (by a machine shop) with the correct taper, and then weld it to the end of the
wishbone.
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Minicooper@work
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| posted on 9/11/07 at 10:52 AM |
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Well all I can say is I've seen it done several times and it seems to work well enough
Cheers
David
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Minicooper@work
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| posted on 9/11/07 at 11:04 AM |
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Found this picture of what they do with metro uprights in this case on a terrapin, they make an adapter which screws into the normal balljoint cups,
this version has no movement in the replacement balljoint all the movement is in the rose joint
But like I said I have seen both ways done to achieve this
Cheers
David
 
Rescued attachment Mini Metro Upright.jpg
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JC
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| posted on 10/11/07 at 08:26 AM |
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I have 4 bushes with a mini taper reamed into them - they were bought for a previous project from the company that make wishbones for the GTM Libra.
You can weld them to the end of wishbones. I also have 2 metro front uprights - these have a 'bolt on' type ball joint that could be used
on a lower wishbone. I'm open to offers if these are any good to you. I'm away until Saturday 17th but I'll reply then if you are
interested!
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smart51
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| posted on 10/11/07 at 09:28 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by JC
I have 4 bushes with a mini taper reamed into them
U2U sent. Thanks.
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MikeRJ
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| posted on 11/11/07 at 02:53 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Minicooper@work
Found this picture of what they do with metro uprights in this case on a terrapin, they make an adapter which screws into the normal balljoint cups,
this version has no movement in the replacement balljoint all the movement is in the rose joint
Right, that makes much more sense. Whatever you have seen, it couldn't have involved two balljoints as it simply would not support to the top
of the upright properly. Perhaps the original balljoint in the upright was welded up to fix it one position?
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Delinquent
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| posted on 11/11/07 at 03:57 PM |
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I thought when they used the spherical bearing option, they cut the ball down to create a pin that the spherical bearing would fit on, rather
than the taper?
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britishtrident
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| posted on 12/11/07 at 08:51 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Delinquent
I thought when they used the spherical bearing option, they cut the ball down to create a pin that the spherical bearing would fit on, rather
than the taper?
That dosen't make any sense.
Making a fittings up to replace the ball joints is however workable.
[I] “ What use our work, Bennet, if we cannot care for those we love? .”
― From BBC TV/Amazon's Ripper Street.
[/I]
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