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Pantera 06927

G Guest
Hi guys,

rather then start multiple new thread I figured I might be best just to start one and title it with my own car's number. Then I can just add to it as time goes along.

Okay, car is registerd now and on the road, but I knew the Alden Eagle shockers weren't too good and needed replacing. I also need to do rear stub axles and a trunnion bush for the gear linkage. Whilst I'm there, might as well rip out the Upper control arms and send them to the UK for modification, and look at the steering rack whilst the UCA are away.

So there's the initial list. Got to start somewhere hey?

So this morning I ripped out the Alden Eagles. One out of four was still working, one had blown the lower compression valving out completely, one was actually torn in half and the front right had just stopped working.

So I have these on the ground, stripped and cleaned ready for transport to USA.

Question?

These were fitted new in 2004 and the car hasn't done 5000 miles in tht time. Given that now it's Down Under, it may get driven a whole lot more and on a variety of roads, not smooth super highways like we see on USA TV shows!

So, if the guys at Aldens rebuild them, I wonder if it's possible to harden them up more that what they might do for a show car for instance?

Do any of you guys run ALden shockers, and if so, are they sotock, rebuilt or have stock adjustables got enough ajustment to firm them up for the type of driving I'm proposing?

NEXT:

I'm going to send the upper control arms to UK for modification for castor. I've gone to pull them off and suprise, suprise, you need special tools.

I sorted the rubber grommet and found that above the clutch pedal, but the nut is lower than the hole centre so you cant use a socket from inside the car anyway.

The worst part appears to be the 17mm bolts/nuts that actually hold the ball joint to the upper control arms. None of my 17mm gear will go on to them. Looks like you need a special super thin wall tube spanner to get onto them. Can anyone confirm the two techniques to 1. get the 19mm bolts of the upper control arms, and 2. what tool to use to get the 17mm ball joint off the upper control arms?

Thanks
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O OzGT5 (Guest)
Okay, shocker question still stands, but.............

Some days I just hate women!!!

Picture this. Her, the lanky blonde wife, arrives home after work and wanders into the shed with the business jacket, tight skirt and high heels.

"Are you still under that car?" she says, "You started that when I left this morning!"

So I explain to her that I got the shockers off and show her the cleaned up struts ready to post tomorrow, and then tell her that I struck an issue with the upper control arms etc as described in post above.

"What about that set of special sockets with the covers on them that I bought you to take the wheels off the cars without scratching them?" she says. "Isn't the smallest one of those a 17mm size?"

Yeah, yeah, yeah, but it's too thick to fit in this space I try to explain to her.

In her best, I'm only a mere woman and you are Tarzan type voice, "Well, what about if you slide off the nylon sheath that protects the wheels, then I'm sure you will be left with a thin enough wall to fit in there" she says, looking towards the roof of the garage as if to add 'dumbass' onto the end of the statement if she wasn't actually a very well mannered lady!

And guess what.............she was right. Three minutes later I've got both upper control arms on the bench.

Yes, she went and changed clothes then operated the 1/2 drive rattle gun from under the wheel arch, whilst I crawled into the footwells and captured the 19mm nuts. Bloody women!!!
lf-tp2511lf-tp2511Member
quote:
I have aldins in mine, and mine are in simular condition to yours.

IMHO, from what you both have experienced, it might seem as if putting stock and faith in the virtues of rebuilt Aldins is pretty much an exercise in throwing your money away.

I cannot recall other failure reports with the Aldins, but the writing on the wall seems pretty clear.

Dump them now, buy Konis, and be done with it.

Larry
bosswrenchbosswrenchMember
I've heard of a few Aldan failures- mostly leaks around the damping adjust screw. If you send such back to Aldan, they unscrew the adjuster and put a new 0-ring on. Until the next time. Had not heard of hard-part breakage before. What spring rates do these assemblies have?
Our Pantera has always had Konis with zero failures in going-on 30 years.
O OzGT5 (Guest)
Okay, based on feedback from the guys that know, I went to Koni in Melbourne to discuss the issue. Now this is the Australian HQ for Koni, yet they tell me that the only product that they list for Pantera is the 8211 series which is a 12 stage fully adjustable rebound and compression shocker as fitted to all 70's and 80's race cars including F1.

It seems they will do the job, but their recomendation is the Code 1324 version with the B3 valving which suits a 285 - 450lb spring rate.

My car runs a 400/650 spring rate which they think is too stiff for the car, and if I stick with that spring rate then I need a Code 1324 with a B6 valving rate suitable for 400 - 700lb springs.

Now here is the kicker, $1100 AUD pr shocker plus labour charges to adjust the valving to suit the car and shorten the bump stops as required.

Close to $5000 for the set including new springs.

They said that if I could find an old set of Koni's, they can certainly rebuild them, but there are no suitable bodies available as new items apart from these racing shocks.
lf-tp2511lf-tp2511Member
I have Konis supplied by Quella.

I took the following # off mine - 30 1301 1000.

'30' referred to the series 30 shocks, (gas-filled, sealed and not rebuildable)

1301 was the style (oval track with heim
joints for the upper/lower mounts

1000 was production date code (10th week of
the year 2000).

These are rebound adjustable shocks that must be removed from the car to be adjusted according to the factory sequence.

Springs are also from Quella and are -

GT5 SPRING RATES ARE:

FRONT 450 POUNDS

REAR 550 POUNDS


Hope this helps at least a little bit.

Larry
O OzGT5 (Guest)
Yep, they look great. The 30 series won't do it for me as they are not height adjustable. Classic garage has a set for a good price, but I'm not interested in a fixed height unit.

The ones on that link look great. Weird that they are not Koni colour as I've never seen a Koni in Yellow, but if I could get a part number from them, I think they would be perfect.
57545754If you're not kickin' up dust, you're collectin' it!
Have you looked at the Hall Pantera shock options, they have both standard and aluminum versions...

http://hallpantera.com/cgi-bin...ntera-inc&item=22484

From the Hall Website under "Chassis Components"...

SHOCK ABSORBERS
Set of 4 gas filled shock absorbers with adjustable ride height. Includes springs.
$1040.00

SHOCK ABSORBERS
Aluminum, gas filled, double adjustable. Includes springs.
$1440.00

Might be worth making a quick call to a vendor or two to see what they have to offer.
O OzGT5 (Guest)
Yep, I'm pretty sure they are Aldans.

But.........is that such a bad thing. If Hall supported them and sold them, can they be all bad. Seems a lot of folks using them that want height adjustment.

They may not be a Koni by design, reputation or quality, but are the Q1's going to be much better given their racing heritage.

Here's what I found when I pulled out the Aldans. Remember these were fitted in 2004 and then a spring rate change was done in 2007 so they were obviously out at that time.

• Front Left - The entire adjustment knob and valve unit is not in the base of the shocker and I can't even see the groove where the circlip sits that holds the valve.

• Front Right - Not too bad, still holding pressure but doesn't seem to be affected by the adjustment knobs.

• Rear Left – No pressure at all.

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O OzGT5 (Guest)
Rear Right – Very badly damaged. The entire shocker had come apart in the car. The top had come off and the inner tube has been rubbing against the casing and worn the thread off the outer casing. I have no idea how this could happen when the shocker is totally captive in the car unless constant movement can unscrew the top cap.

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pantera1887pantera1887Member
quote:
Originally posted by OzGT5:

The ones on that link look great. Weird that they are not Koni colour as I've never seen a Koni in Yellow, but if I could get a part number from them, I think they would be perfect.


You can just order the set from Pantera East and they bolt right in. I think the setup was only around $1000. Ride height adjustable too!
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