Is this a rebuildable strut?

[JimMW]

Is this a rebuilable - cartridge type - strut? If so, how do I get the cartridge out? - I'm imagining some sort of wrench like what's used to change the wheels/discs on a hand grinder...? Was on the rear of a '78 X, the struts are blown, the top bronze-ish colored part measures 1.75" in diameter.



Thank you!

[DanielForest]

Yes, this is a rebuildable Fiat struts. Some aftermarkets had a "nut" but the Fiat ones got these 2 holes requiring a special tool. Some heat and/or a lot of loose-nut will be required to open a 34 years old strut, even with the right tool. I'm sure some other members had use creativity and build their own special tools!

Daniel Forest
Montreal

[rjplenter]

Once you get that "nut" out the insert will come right out and you can replace it with an insert of your choice.

Or, if there is a Koni insert hidden inside, rebuilding is an option, since these are now very scarce.

Cheers,

Rob

[Jeff Stich]

It's the rebuildable type. If you don't have the special 2-pin tool required to remove the top "collar", you can remove it by securing the strut vertically in a vise, inserting a center punch, thick awl or similar tool into one of the holes, & tap on it horizontally in a counter-clockwise direction to spin the collar loose. If the top-end edges of the strut tube are crimped/center-punched over the corner edge of the collar (usually looks like 2-4 little spot-welds around the perimeter edge), you'll want to free those up first using a chisel or heavy screwdriver to tap/pry the dented areas free.

Once you spin the collar out of the strut tube, you can then lift the strut insert out of the tube. WARNING: There will (should) be oil in the strut tube, so you'll want to have rags handy to wipe it off of the strut insert after you pull it out. You'll also want to drain/replace the oil in the strut tube when rebuilding the unit, so it's good to have a catch-pan handy to dump the old oil into. Standard 30w or 10w30 motor oil is fine for replacement.

[JimMW]

Thanks for all of the feedback guys, I appreciate it. Thanks for the detailed directions, Jeff.

[Old Fiat Driver]

I bought a large black impact socket, ground down the end and left two teeth that fit into the the two holes. Used an impact wrench and the gland nut comes right out. Usually you can just replace the o-ring and seal and clean everything up and replace the oil with motorcycle fork oil, start with 3 weight. Different weight oil will change the stiffness of the shock, I have used up to 15 weight fork oil. I even experimented with STP once in the old days, that was a disaster as you can immagine it was way too stiff and after a while it broke down and became much softer, don't use STP. This only works for a shock that is not an insert cartarge. Yours appears to be a Koni or KYB, both came in a complete insert type or just the inner tube that can be serviced. The insert type cannot be serviced only replaced.
Good luck
Charlie

[bmck]

Jim,

A Makita angle grinder tool did the job for me.

The pictures are missing here, but you'll get the idea...

http://www.network54.com/Forum/12159...r+removal+tool

Regards,

Brian

[JimMW]

Thanks for all of the info, Charlie, very helpful!

Originally Posted by bmck

Jim,

A Makita angle grinder tool did the job for me.

The pictures are missing here, but you'll get the idea...

http://www.network54.com/Forum/12159...r+removal+tool

Regards,

Brian

And thanks for this Brian. That's exactly what I was thinking of. I have one of those for my grinder and was looking at it before posting originally thinking it was about the right tool for the job. I'll pick up another one so I don't ruin the one I have altering it.

I only have the two rear's, don't have fronts, so it'll be a while till I am able to do anything with them aside from taking them apart. Think I'll hold onto them though, make some coilovers at some point

Thanks again everyone