ReCasting Bushings with Polyurethane

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deskinthewoods
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ReCasting Bushings with Polyurethane

Post by deskinthewoods »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_0BYvTkZ0o

I’m going to give it a try...any thoughts?
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Growlerbearnz
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ReCasting Bushings with Polyurethane

Post by Growlerbearnz »

Go for it!

I'd use plastic instead of cardboard, or wax/grease the cardboard so it releases cleanly. Did you notice how he very carefully never showed the back side of any of the bushes? I bet they're a mess of ugly stuck-on cardboard. :-)

My only concern would be that they might end up transmitting more drivetrain vibration to the giant tin can that is a Delica shell. Still, new genuine bushes aren't *that* expensive, if it turns out to be a terrible idea you won't be stranded and you can revert to stock easily enough.
Nothing says "poor workmanship" more than wrinkles in the duct tape.
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deskinthewoods
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ReCasting Bushings with Polyurethane

Post by deskinthewoods »

I’ll be using plastic for sure. I’ve got some of the chopping board stuff. Nothing sticks to it. I’ll try to document the process.

I checked the Shore scale for rubber tires which is 60A and ordered the same polyurethane.

Fun fun fun. Probably get to this next month sometime. Stay tuned...
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deskinthewoods
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ReCasting Bushings with Polyurethane

Post by deskinthewoods »

Here we go!...

So these are the transmission mount bushings:
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I placed a jack under the transmission to take the weight off the bushings
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and removed them. They came out fairly easily.
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I measured the position of the sleeves as they are not centered in the bushings.
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Last edited by deskinthewoods on Wed Jan 01, 2020 2:33 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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deskinthewoods
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ReCasting Bushings with Polyurethane

Post by deskinthewoods »

I cut out as much of the old rubber as possible with a utility knife
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and cleaned up the rest with a wire wheel in a drill. The bushings have an outer metal ring around the rubber that can be pressed out of the housing but I left it in in case this all goes south and then I can press out the whole mess. It only took about a half hour to remove the rubber and clean it up.
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I made up a couple of platforms from cutting board plastic (HDPE) as nothing sticks to that stuff. I drilled a hole to hold the metal sleeve, deep enough to have the sleeve centered side to side in the bushing
IMG_3857.jpg
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I put a bead of silicon around the bushing housing and in the sleeve hole and let that set up for an hour

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IMG_3860.jpg
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deskinthewoods
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ReCasting Bushings with Polyurethane

Post by deskinthewoods »

This is the polyurethane product I used. The 2lb kit I got was $30 Canadian. Loads cheaper than the $400 for OEM parts.
IMG_3862.jpg
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It's a simple 1:1 ratio to mix and has a 30 minute potlife.
IMG_3863.jpg
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I leveled up my forms and poured
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IMG_3866.jpg
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Now I wait until tomorrow to see how it all worked out. 16 hours to cure....
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deskinthewoods
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ReCasting Bushings with Polyurethane

Post by deskinthewoods »

And...SUCCESS!!!

They came off the form easily with just a bit of silicon to clean out of the sleeve
IMG_3870.jpg
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The 60A Shore Scale polyurethane seems to have pretty much the same flex as the original rubber so I don't foresee any issues with more vibration.

And reinstalled
IMG_3871.jpg
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IMG_3872.jpg
IMG_3872.jpg (25.72 KiB) Viewed 9905 times
Test drive tomorrow...
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lrp374
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ReCasting Bushings with Polyurethane

Post by lrp374 »

Now that you've had a few days to test them do they 'feel' much different from the units you replaced?
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deskinthewoods
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ReCasting Bushings with Polyurethane

Post by deskinthewoods »

As they are transmission mounts there isn’t much to feel. However, the clunk i used to hear/feel on acceleration is gone. 👍 :-D
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deskinthewoods
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ReCasting Bushings with Polyurethane

Post by deskinthewoods »

...and a month and half later, they are holding up beautifully...
bushing.jpg
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deskinthewoods
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Re: ReCasting Bushings with Polyurethane

Post by deskinthewoods »

...and after a little over a year, they have worn not great. The polyurethane casting slid right out of the bracket...
Bushing1.jpg
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I ordered new bushings from https://www.facebook.com/TxTxTWorkshop/ ... e_internal,
where they are very helpful and pretty quick delivery considering they are in Taiwan, under two weeks.
Bushing2.jpg
Bushing2.jpg (35.13 KiB) Viewed 5647 times
I managed to press the two smaller ones in myself with a vice and a hammer, but the larger two were beyond my capabilities so had my local garage press them in...
Bushing3.jpg
Bushing3.jpg (32.79 KiB) Viewed 5647 times
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Re: ReCasting Bushings with Polyurethane

Post by thelazygreenfox »

bravo for trying and showing the year long result.
Wayne
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deskinthewoods
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Re: ReCasting Bushings with Polyurethane

Post by deskinthewoods »

I think the poly I used wasn’t stiff enough.
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