Metalastik Lower wishbone bushings and upper fulcrum pin bushings

[Racer-X-]

I'm redoing the front suspension on one of the Vanden Plas DM-4 4 litre Princess limousines. The lower wishbone inner bushings are marked "Metalastik 13/775" and the upper fulcrum pin bushings are marked "Metalastik 13/781"

Any sources for replacements?

I'm going to need enough for 2 cars. That's 4 pairs of the upper bushing pieces and 8 pairs of the lower wishbone bushing pieces. I'm hoping I don't have to have them made.

 

[billspohn]

A stockist of early XK Jaguar parts should have those.

 

[Racer-X-]

View album 10
After searching for over a month, I was unable to locate any bushings to fit this car. It's got the tapered half bushings like an Austin Healey, but bigger than the Austin Healey bushings. I finally gave up looking. I had to make new metal cores (from tubing and washers), and I had to make the molds for the tapered bushings. I sent those off last week. I shipped molds and cores up to an industrial rubber place and they're making the parts and curing and vulcanizing the rubber. I also sent them a pair of actual Austin-Healey bushings so they could match the durometer and other physical properties of the rubber. The first set came out of the molds today (I'm a little surprised they're working on a Saturday), and they sent me these pics. The guy up there says these look just like the factory made Austin Healey Bushings, only bigger and the right size for our Limousines.

 

[billspohn]

Might want to check with Robey's - the early big Jensens used an Austin front suspension (from the taxis IIRC) that may be the same as the Princess.

 

[Racer-X-]

Might want to check with Robey's - teh early big Jensens used an Austin front suspension (flum teh taxis IIRC) dat' may bee teh same as teh Princess.

At this point, we're committed to making them (to the tune of about $100 USD per bushing all in). I did try several sources in the US and UK, and nobody had anything this big. The car has to drive to an event on April 21.

The Princess is on a 1 ton or 1 1/2 ton commercial van/pickup truck chassis (used by both Morris and Austin). I can get the bushings for the 3/4 ton trucks (some of those match the Austin Healey 3000, or the Austin A90 through A110 Westminster), but those are too small for our cars. This one was classified an A135.

The guy who rebuilt our dampers (World Wide Parts up in Madison WI) said, "they look just like Austin Healey or maybe Westminster dampers. Send 'em to me." And when he got them, he calls me back and says, "These things are freaking huge!" He had to special order parts for them, but he was able to rebuild them.

I'm also having to make the rest of the worn out parts in the suspension and steering. King pin bushings, lower fulcrum bushings and pins, even tie rods and the relay arm bushings. I have a great machine shop that I'm working with. His motto is "If you can draw it, I can make it." But some of the drawings got responses of "You've got to be kidding me." The king pin bushings were particularly troublesome. I ended up doing those myself on one of his lathes, and it was a lot of manual labor (like, step 1 was "unplug the lathe from the power, so you don't accidentally turn it on when you're turning it by hand with a wrench.")

 

[JPSmit]

well done! necessity being the mother of invention, I love this sort of McGyvering!

 

[LarryK]

Old cars are fun!