Are roller bearings really that great?, anyone out there with some experience? Options

[SirAndy]

are roller bearings really that great? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/idea.gif)


- anyone out there with some experience? preferably someone who did a install himself. and has driven some cars to compare.
- is the install really that hard?
- what about dirt getting into the bearings?
- change of effective springrate due to not fighting sticky rubber bushings anymore?
- got pics?


i still got my set (rears) in the box, they'll be going on the new trailing arms ...
(IMG:style_emoticons/default/smash.gif) Andy

[kdfoust]

I've got needle bearings in both front and rear. I don't think that the installation is that big a deal. The only special thing I did was for the rear. I made a big jack screw for pushing the outer bearing race into the trailing arm. I'll put some pictures of it up when I get home. Basically it's patient work.

The a-arms and trailing arms now move slicker than snot on a brass door knob. With no strut or ARB I can move the a-arms with one finger through the entire range of motion. Same for the rear trailing arms. The change was dramatic in my car BUT the OE rubber bushings were completely shot in the rear and pretty aged in the front.

If I were going to need to setup another car I'd probably go to the Elephant racing bronze bushings. I've not had any trouble with the needle bearings yet but I've only just begun to abuse the car with them installed. The reason I would switch is that I'm concerned about the lack of external grease fittings on the bearings and I feel like the bushing will be a little more robust in the suspension environment. At the end of this season (like in December) I'll be tearing the suspension down to do a C&I on the bearings. I'll let you know how things look then.

I don't know if you've seen the Delrin bushings but IMO they are junk. Wrong material for the application and not accurately sized or even round. That leaves bronze, needle, or OE rubber as the reasonable choices.

Later,
Kevin