TR2/3/3A Tr3 suspension rubber

Hi all you know that little black rubber band seal that goes on the lower wishbone around the nylon trust washer on a tr3, well does anyone know where to get some higher quality ones. I do not know what happened, but I put new ones on this rebuild and they rotted off before I have even driven the car. I do not want to pull the wishbones back off and put another piece of crap back on there, so does anyone have a slick idea what to use as a replacement. Something I can install without unbolting the whole thing.

No personal experience, but Revington TR produces them in polyurethane for the same reason you mentioned. About $1 each, shipping would be cheap too unless you get tempted and buy some of Neal's other fancier bits.

But I can't answer the part of how you manage to change them out without pulling things apart..sorry about that!

Like you, mine lasted about 2 years.

All you need is some black tie-wraps or cable-ties. Get them 1/4" wide at any hardware or electrical store. Wrap it around, tuck it through, pull it tight and clip off the excess. And you don't need to pull all the wishbones (A-frames) apart to get the rotten original ones on. No TRA or VTR concours judge ever noticed them on my 1958 TR3A. I was awarded 2nd out of 7 contestants in my class last July at VTR with 384 points out of 400.

Yeh sure that should work Don. I guess I was worried about not having a good seal, but what are they there for anyway to keep crud from getting in the little crack between the wishbone and the nylon trust washer. Ideally I would like to have something a little softer than the hard plastic tie, but what the heck.

this may help

https://www.britishcarforum.com/bcforum/u..._sea#Post368162

I will try to find the photos. We ended up making our own.

This must be the 17th or 18th time I've read about some tricky little non-stockness on Don's Champion TR3. Don, aren't you afraid that by posting these where the WHOLE WORLD can see them, they'll get wise to you????

Ok angel what did you use. If it was on the outside, I would probably use an old bike inner tube or try and find some polyurethane or something. I just hate buying crap from these guys; I will pay for quality from the big three, why don’t they get that.

We found some industrial grade nylon with close to the proper OD/ID and machined the "rings". This was an actual pig of a job, and we actually had to make a special set of mandrells to hold the material - one for the OD operation and one for the ID operation. The finished product is very nice and the material is very stable over a wide temp. range and resistant to solvents and fuel/oils, etc. I don't believe Brian is anxious to make more of these but I can ask. I'll look for those photos later in the week.

Regards, Frank

Moseso - Thank you for your concern, but I don't really care. The judges at TRA and VTR can't see what I write here. They have their noses up so high that they can't see down very well. Judging is permitted by putting one knee on the grass and peering under the TR. I try to park it where the grass is long.

At TRA, I once lost points because one judge pointed out that I had flat washers where there shouldn't have been any - and then he saw that I was missing flat washers under some nuts where the parts manual says there should be some.

I don't enter the concours to win. I have never won at TRA or at VTR. But I have 7 to 10 second places at each. That's OK with me. My TR is my trophy. I love to come second where the guy who beats me by a fraction of a point has just spent $50,000 for a professional restoration and trailered it to the event. In my case, I did mine, mostly all by myself, 18 years ago with 98,000 miles during that interval with a re-spray last spring.

Don Elliott said:

Moseso - Thank you for your concern, but I don't really care.

Click to expand...

<span style="font-size: 17pt">Good for you, Don!</span>
:thumbsup:

It's funny you bring this up -- I was crawling around my TR3 this weekend and noticed that the trunnion seal, that being the seal between the trunnion and the vertical link, was split and falling out. Funny thing was is that I haven't driven the car 100 feet -- the suspension was done 2 years ago and already the rubber is falling apart. What junk!

In the spring of 2007, I replaced all the rubber boots etc. on the front suspension of my 1958 TR3A. I removed all the old graese and then I re-greased every joint where there was a new rubber seal or boot with AMSOIL red synthetic grease. I have no idea what the outcome will be but I'm hoping that the synthetic nature of the new red grease may allow the rubber to last a little longer.