New Bilsteins aren't fitting
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Joined: Feb 2009
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New Bilsteins aren't fitting
Yesterday I tried to install some new Bilstein shocks on my '81 FWD F150 and I thought it would be a breeze. Wrong, how stupid of me to think that! I have the dual shock setup on my truck. After battling with the shock for a long time I finally realized that the shock will not fit in the lower bracket because it is just a bit too wide to fit in that bracket.
I know I have the right shock for the truck but the shock is just a little too wide at the bottom to fit. I tried to grind down the rubber bushing to get it to fit but it's still too wide. To make it narrower I would have to grind the metal bushing inside the rubber bushing. I don't know if I should do this. I thought about trying to bend the lower bracket so the bottom of the shock will fit in it but it seems too beefy to bend very easily. So my question is has anyone else had this kind of problem putting shocks in? Before going any further I thought to ask if anyone has had this problem and how they solved it. I guess I could just grind away on the bottom of the shock until it's narrow enough to fit but before doing that I'd like to see if there is a way to get the bottom of the shock to fit in the lower bracket without grinding the crap out of the shock. Oh, I already tried lubing the bushing and the shock is just too wide at the bottom to fit in the bracket. No amount of force was enough to make it fit so something else is needed. Any ideas... solutions?
I know I have the right shock for the truck but the shock is just a little too wide at the bottom to fit. I tried to grind down the rubber bushing to get it to fit but it's still too wide. To make it narrower I would have to grind the metal bushing inside the rubber bushing. I don't know if I should do this. I thought about trying to bend the lower bracket so the bottom of the shock will fit in it but it seems too beefy to bend very easily. So my question is has anyone else had this kind of problem putting shocks in? Before going any further I thought to ask if anyone has had this problem and how they solved it. I guess I could just grind away on the bottom of the shock until it's narrow enough to fit but before doing that I'd like to see if there is a way to get the bottom of the shock to fit in the lower bracket without grinding the crap out of the shock. Oh, I already tried lubing the bushing and the shock is just too wide at the bottom to fit in the bracket. No amount of force was enough to make it fit so something else is needed. Any ideas... solutions?
Senior User
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 294
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From: East Bernstadt, Ky
I changed the rear shocks on my f-100 and when I went to put them in the lower bracket it was too narrow, like you described. All I did was use a large pry bar to open up the bracket about 1/8 - 1/4 inch and it slipped right in no problem.
