Uprated drop link group buy

[Niles]

Howdy troops. I know a SUPERB fabricator who offered me some time of his to make me some uprated heavy duty drop links for my 850, they when done will also fit the 70's. The centre rod on a standard link is 10mm, we talked about 12 or 13mm centre rod. The best news is that the 2 ball joints that he's planning to use are 100% stainless steel, the centre rod is also stainless steel!!!! (with stainless weld). So thats a 100% stainless steel uprated heavy duty drop link!!!!
Ball joints have 'boots' to protect the joint union and the joint has slot for a spanner to tighten them up. NOT the bloody nasty torx slots on some drop links that bugger up over time and leave you with little option of cutting the sodding things off. Should last for a LONG time & improve the feel due to the centre rod NOT flexing under extreme torture.
For 1 pair (mine) he quoted me £47.50. Worth it as his work is stupidly good quality. If 10 of us want some, £40 for a pair. (Plus a little for postage from me to you).
Will take 10 days or so to get all the bits together, so, If anyone wants a pair, £20 deposit needs to be paid & the rest on post out day.

Please copy paste and add yourself to this list... (this is also on VOC)
1, Niles. 100%.

[Alan M]

I guess these are spherical bearings being used? If so can you supply the manufacturer and static and radial loads of the bearings and what liners they use, also what temperature ranges the bearings are to be used within please.

[PHIL V70R]

put me down 4 a set mate..pm me your paypal address, carnt do anything till sunday as away mate...

[Niles]

1, Niles. 100%
2, PhilV70R

[Niles]

I guess these are spherical bearings being used? If so can you supply the manufacturer and static and radial loads of the bearings and what liners they use, also what temperature ranges the bearings are to be used within please.

I'll find the details of the ball joint & put them up here later.

[woz]

Quick question - has anyone actually had a standard (or any) rod buckle in use?
It would have to be I guess with seriously uprated ARB fitted?

Just I have not come across anyone who has had it happen before the ball joimts wore out anyway.

W:>)

[leet5r]

there wont be much benifit with out uprated anti roll bars , could be wrong

[woz]

"there wont be much benifit with out uprated anti roll bars , could be wrong"

I dont think there will be ANY benefit at all.
In fact , if they are heavier than standard I think quite the opposite!

However if somone comes up to me and says they have actually had a standard drop link buckle, then I would have to say I am sorry for misleading the board.

Why, you ask? A Level physics.
Provided the ball joints are frictionless, there is nothing other than an axial load acting on them - tension or compression. Assuming tensile strength is adequate there are two failure modes we should worry about

a) wear in the joint itself
b) buckling of the rod under pure axial compression forces.

In my opinion a) generally happens first. Indeed its a common criticism on vpcuk of rods sold as "uprated" They may be thicker and heavier but the b/j's wear out much quicker. How is that uprated??

Anyway just my tuppenorth, "and for that reason, I am out"

That said, Mr Niles's colleague seems to have at least put some thought into the design issues plaguing certain imported links, so I will be v interested in results.

I would merely question why he is using stainless for the rod itself when a high tensile tube would be stronger in buckling mode and lighter. Depending on the grade, Stainless is not as strong and corrosion resistance is a bit irrelevant. (IMHO).

Woz

[JezF]

Very happy with the Meyle ones I fitted recently and they have good feedback from existing users. Not expensive either.

[Alan M]

No information on load ratings and material content?

These particular setup's can be made quite cheaply and light with excellent quality British made spherical bearings. They can be made to any length by using either light aluminium or steel bar as the joint between the bearings. Then either using a left and right hand thread bearings for a quick release/lengthening option or both right hand thread spherical bearings for just a normal option these can be made by anyone with access to machine shop facilities. The reason I asked for material details is I have made my own using very good quality high loading bearings much cheaper than those for sale hence my questioning on bearing type.

For most applications I would buy Meyle HD items as they are relatively cheap and seem very durable.