Branded Posted September 7, 2015 Report Posted September 7, 2015 After several hours of searching and reading I'm going to ask members where they purchased their front suspension kit. I'm getting ready to disassemble the complete front suspension to inspect all the parts and also clean and paint everything. Where is the best place to purchase the complete kit for my 49 Wayfarer. Who might have the best price. Dave 1 Quote
doctor dirt Posted September 7, 2015 Report Posted September 7, 2015 I bought two through the years all on ebay and I think they were produced by Raybesto's! Quote
Frank Elder Posted September 7, 2015 Report Posted September 7, 2015 https://www.kanter.com/index.aspx?DeptNo=1600 Quote
RobertKB Posted September 7, 2015 Report Posted September 7, 2015 (edited) Be wary of parts made offshore. Quite often they do not fit or are of poor quality. When I rebuilt my front end I found that many of my used parts were preferable to parts bought at NAPA but made in China. My rebuild ended up being a mix of good used parts and NOS or NORS parts made in the US or Canada. Edited September 7, 2015 by RobertKB 2 Quote
Branded Posted September 8, 2015 Author Report Posted September 8, 2015 (edited) I got the 49 Wayfarer front suspension completely removed today. Outer Tie rods are wore out, I'll replace inner and outers. King pins had a little slop so new bushings and pins to correct that issue. The upper and lower knuckles and threaded pins show no wear, is there something I should be looking for other than the threaded pin worn where it goes thru the bushing. The upper and lower A arm bushing seem ok I'll know more when I get 66 years of grease removed. Any way to tell if the A arm shafts or bushing are wore without taking them apart. The right side tie rod sleeve (the long one) is bent so The sleeve will also get replaced Thanks Dave Edited September 8, 2015 by Branded Quote
Frank Elder Posted September 8, 2015 Report Posted September 8, 2015 Good stuff....pictures please. Quote
Branded Posted September 8, 2015 Author Report Posted September 8, 2015 I'll have to get pictures when I get back to the shop. Didn't think about pictures. Quote
Frank Elder Posted September 8, 2015 Report Posted September 8, 2015 We live for pictures...lol. plus it gives you something to bore your relatives with...haha. Quote
MarcDeSoto Posted September 8, 2015 Report Posted September 8, 2015 I'm doing the front end suspension on my 48 DeSoto now too. I don't feel even the slightest play with the king pins, so I will leave them alone. As long as you are rebuilding part of the control arms, I would just go ahead and rebuild both upper and lower control arms while you have it apart. Quote
Andydodge Posted September 8, 2015 Report Posted September 8, 2015 I've found that the inner/outer tie rod ends and king pins are the main things to wear, place a large screwdriver/pry bar against the upper/lower pins & bushes to check for wear but as I mentioned the tie rods and king pins are the main things, however I suppose it all depends on how and when the car was serviced and what sort of mileage it has...........welcome to the world of Mopar........regards, andyd Quote
50fordtruck Posted September 8, 2015 Report Posted September 8, 2015 I bought mine from Andy Bernbaum and had good luck, but that was 15 years ago. Quote
Mark Haymond Posted September 8, 2015 Report Posted September 8, 2015 I used Kanter for my 1950 Plymouth entire front suspension restoration about ten years ago. Completely satisfied. Quote
Andydodge Posted September 8, 2015 Report Posted September 8, 2015 I got quite a few bits & pieces over the yrs from a couple of guys in Instanbul, Turkey.....genuine 100% USA made brand name parts in their boxes, it appears mopar had a major distribution centre in Turkey yrs ago and the parts are still turning up....paid for the parts in US dollars via paypal, they were sent promptly and packed well......would happily deal with these guys again.......one was moparken or similar.....have also had good dealings with Andy Berbaum for over 25yrs..........regards, Andyd. Quote
Branded Posted September 8, 2015 Author Report Posted September 8, 2015 (edited) Thanks for the leads Dave Edited September 8, 2015 by Branded Quote
Branded Posted September 8, 2015 Author Report Posted September 8, 2015 Ok, All bushings look fine but the rubber dust seals will need to be replace so I'll be removing the bushing to replace the rubber. I'll probably replace the knuckle rubber dust seals also. Along with tie rod ends and king pins. Dave Quote
Andydodge Posted September 9, 2015 Report Posted September 9, 2015 (edited) The lower outer rubber seal I have found with 2 different sized hexagonal molded holes to suit 2 different sized hex headed lower outer bushes....for the other seals I have used both large, thick "O" rings and/or short lengths of rubber hose........andyd Edited September 9, 2015 by Andydodge Quote
Branded Posted September 9, 2015 Author Report Posted September 9, 2015 The lower outer rubber seal I have found with 2 different sized hexagonal molded holes to suit 2 different sized hex headed lower outer bushes....for the other seals I have used both large, thick "O" rings and/or short lengths of rubber hose........andyd Found the dust seals from Roberts, will be ordering today Quote
Branded Posted September 16, 2015 Author Report Posted September 16, 2015 (edited) Started pre assembly of the control arms and found the dust seals for the control arms in the kit all all the same size. The seal fit the upper shafts which are about 3/4", the lower shafts are closer to 1". The seals might stretch to fit the bushings for the lowers but I suspect they won't hold up very long before splitting being stretched this far. What have others used for dust seals for the lower control arm shafts and bushing. If nothing else I'll try the o rings on the lower shafts Edited September 16, 2015 by Branded Quote
Niel Hoback Posted September 16, 2015 Report Posted September 16, 2015 I've seen pieces of rubber hose used, but I wouldn't recommend it other than a last resort. Quote
Andydodge Posted September 16, 2015 Report Posted September 16, 2015 Lower inners are just like pieces of rubber hose, find some the right diameter and use that, but the lower outer tho' uses the specific "hex" holed piece I mentioned earlier........andyd Quote
Branded Posted September 16, 2015 Author Report Posted September 16, 2015 Yes its the lower inners, one would think the vendors selling the dust shields they would make sure they to fit. But after restoring cars for 40 years and dealing with after market parts I know that aint gonna happen. Quote
Andydodge Posted September 17, 2015 Report Posted September 17, 2015 Welcome to Mopar World..........lol..........I've even seen the pieces of hose held on with a couple of wire ties wrapped around the rubber nice & tight.......as I mentioned its the lower outer with the hex hole which have caused me grief over the yrs......the lower inner and upper inner are essentially just a piece of suitable hose, the upper outer and lower outer use a large "O" ring with the Hex piece.............andyd Quote
Branded Posted September 18, 2015 Author Report Posted September 18, 2015 Hers a few pictures, ill send more when I get farther along Quote
MarcDeSoto Posted September 19, 2015 Report Posted September 19, 2015 (edited) As far as part are concerned, I am rebuilding my front end with all MoPar NOS stock parts still in their 1940s boxes. I don't think NOS MoPar parts are hard to find, but then again, I bought these parts in the 1980s. Maybe it's changed now? BTW, you are doing a beautiful job there! Excellent paint job too! And a 49 Dodge Wayfarer is certainly worth it, especially the roadster! That's a car I've wanted forever! Edited September 19, 2015 by MarcDeSoto Quote
Branded Posted September 20, 2015 Author Report Posted September 20, 2015 Coming along one bolt at a time Quote
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