***! TRY THIS AT YOUR OWN RISK !****(still awaiting a period of “field testing” for these).
Energy Suspension bushing and inner sleeve installation without the use of a hydraulic press; just some hardware, a wrench, a socket and an air-powered impact gun.
Borrowed the idea and gained some more confidence for this installation process after watching GallowayChicago’s bushing install video; thanks man.
I tried to install the bushings using the bolt-press method, but the bushing would not quite fit– it would just compress and then when a little bit of the leading edge would go in, it would slip out and go crooked within the bolt-press jig.
I added relief cuts along the edge (one at a time across from each other; 6 was the min # that worked) after taking a cue from what appeared to be a relief spot in all of the bushings on the leading side (side that goes into the link or arm socket first; this side also appeared to have a tiny bit more taper than the other side as well). I started by making this relief deeper, then started adding slots, just as deep as the edge, being careful not to cut into the main cylindrical part of the bushing.
Materials:
1x- threaded rod (want this to be very close to the inner diameter of the metal sleeve insert of the bushings; length just needs to be long enough to fit the whole bolt-press-jig assembly together- so length of bushing + length of link/suspension arm socket + all other hardware thickness)
2x- grade 8 hex nuts
2x- large washers (want these to be able to cover and be a little larger than the largest diameter of the bushing, so the edge of the washer doesn’t cut into the bushing and the washer will help distribute the force exerted by tightening the nuts on the “bolt press jig”
2x-washers appropriately sized for the hex nuts being used (mentioned above)
*multiple washers between the sizes (2 of each, one for each side of the bolt press jig); just used to properly transition between the two other washer sizes used (large against bushing and hex-bolt-sized against the hex nut
- lots of appropriate type of grease, depending on what the bushings are made of (thankfully most Energy Suspension bushings come with just the right amount of “polyurethane-safe” grease.
Tools:
-compressed air source
-impact gun
-sockets for hex nuts
-adjustable or crescent wrench for hex nuts
- small saw or dremel with rotary cutting wheel
Steps:
1. using the small saw or dremel with cutting wheel make cuts perpendicular to the apex of the bushing surface, ONLY on the outer edge, being careful not to cut into the main cylinder body of the bushing; again just on the edge- this is only to provide enough “flex” for this larger outer edge to tuck and go through the link/ suspension arm’s socket.
2. put a hex nut on the threaded rod so that the nut fully threads on it, but only protrudes a slight amount if any, then the multiple sizes of washers small to large (consider space restrictions; may have to put rod through the link/suspension arm socket first and then start assembly of the jig; may have to thread the rod even further than just “fully seated” on the hex nut on the one side).
3. Put the threaded rod through the bushing on the opposite side of the link/ suspension arm socket, then stack the washers on top from large to small, followed by the hex nut
4. Grease EVERYTHING- lots of grease: inside link/ suspension arm socket, on leading face (slotted side) of bushing and the bushings exterior surfaces
5. Using impact gun (bushing side) and using wrench on opposite side, drive the hex nut down on the bushing side. May have to go slow at first to get the edges aligned and then just fully drive it in. The bushing will not go fully in, but just drive the hex nut tighter until no more forward progress is made.
6. Disassemble the jig and repeat the process for the inner sleeve (remember grease everything!). This time the inner sleeve should push the leading edge of the bushing fully through the link/suspension arm’s socket as long as there was plenty of grease available; if not, one can gently pry out the other side with an appropriate tool
*Tip: found the grease included with these is best removed from tools with a two step process: first WD-40, then Brake cleaner to remove the WD-40
Hope this helps. If anyone has any questions, please free to ask.
Our story in co-operation with the financial daily, Handelsblatt. China is the most important growth market for sporting goods manufactuers. And Adidas is looking to get a piece of the pie.
Right on cue for the olympics, Adidas is due to open its biggest store worldwide – a total of 3000 square meters of shop floor. The shop is packed full of high-tech gadgetry and has a fitness center and a basketball court. By 2010 the German company is hoping to turn over 1 billion Euros a year in China. A report from Michael Altenhenne.
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It’s only just opened, and already it’s a draw in Beijing: The biggest Adidas store in the world, dubbed the “Brand Center” by PR strategists. Adidas’ entire product line is on display here across four stories and more than 3000 square meters, a shopping mecca for China’s well-heeled consumers.
Beijing residents have caught the Olympic fever, and the German sportswear brand is busy surfing that tidal wave of excitement. Like prized religious artifacts, the Adidas store showcases shoes for 27 different Olympic sports. For the brand-conscious clientele, the three-stripe logo is a champion in the fashion world:
“My favorite is the “Superstar” shoe from Adidas. Their stuff is just totally trendy and original. And I think for the quality of the product, the price is reasonable.”
With sales in China up 60 percent in the first half of the year alone, Adidas has already struck gold – the kind of success the Olympic athletes in Beijing are still fighting for – and that company founder Adi Dassler never would have dreamed of. But he also couldn’t have imagined that one day soldiers in China’s people’s army would patrol his storefronts.
The security situation in Beijing remains tense as political conflicts overshadow the Games. Herbert Hainer can sense that tension during his visits. Repeatedly, the Adidas CEO has to justify his company’s engagement in China.
“We discuss many topics with our Chinese partners. I think that when you get to know China really well — I’ve been traveling here for 10 years already, and in the past four years I’ve been here 15 or 20 times — you’ll also start to notice that there’s a tremendous push for further openness, for working together with other countries and peoples. But it’s not something that happens overnight.”
2000 kilometers south of Beijing, far from the political conflict. The idyllic rice paddy fields are deceptive – the region of Guangdong is THE center of China’s economic boom. In the so-called workbench of the world, Adidas is also hard at work.
About 18,000 workers make Adidas trainers in this factory owned by an investor from Taiwan. Wages are soaring — up 20 percent in a year. The factory management is starting to question the benefits of producing here. Monthly wages are now about 130 Euros – twice as much as in India, for example.
The Manager Charles Yang explains: “Yes, we know there will be volume shifted to the other lower-cost areas. But we are sure the great majority of the complicated product of the high-end product will stay here in China. Obviously we will find the other locations also, like we have a factory in India.”
At lunchtime, a throng of factory employees marches toward the cafeteria. Yet the days when millions of poor migrant workers couldn’t find work are over. Now, it’s often the factory managers in Guangdong wringing their hands in search of new employees. All in all, working conditions in China have improved markedly. A new worker protection law has been in effect since January. Management must offer their workers more in a day than the famous “bowl of rice,” a symbol of a bygone era.
Charles Yang: “We try to build a community around this factory. We try to have our workers come and stay with us for a long time, for good. Otherwise, we’re going to have to compete with the other factories again and again and again. So the more that we can do to build this community, to take care of workers, the better we will be down the road.”
This is what employees’ accommodations look like: well-groomed parks, there is even a community room for evening events. Sure, it’s a model factory, but standards across China are improving rapidly. New condos are being built exclusively for factory workers.
Back in Beijing, in the shiny new Adidas-Shopping World. Skill tests and loads of high-tech gadgetry – and the young are certainly taking notice. The expense is paying off. After all, many of tomorrow’s sports fans are going to need footwear with the perfect fit.