vinny Posted December 7, 2006 Share Posted December 7, 2006 I replaced the 6 bolt box in my 1987 90 with a new recon 4 bolt type, the origional drop arm no longer fits so I replaced this with a disco drop arm. I want to keep the steering damper in the same position. Im sure I read somewhere a kit can be bought for this conversion!! but where??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Posted December 7, 2006 Share Posted December 7, 2006 i think sumo bars do a kit to fit a disco damper in the stock defender posistion. having seen the 'kit' to attach the damper to the trackrod on my HD bars as fitted to my disco i'd be tempted to make my own. a couple of u-bolts to clamp a 'L' shaped bit of metal to the rod should do it. when i get time im going to get a bracket fitted to the chassis so i can relocate my damper to the defender posistion. heres a pic of mine to show how simple it appears. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orgasmic Farmer Posted December 7, 2006 Share Posted December 7, 2006 What about fitting an early 200 series Disco drop arm (G-K reg). They have the 4 bolt steering box but come with the same rebuilable ball joint as the 90 so I think (but don't know for sure) that the 90 swan-neck with damper mount would fit. anyone like to confirm? The two set ups certainly look the same with the exception of the damper mount. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lewis Posted December 7, 2006 Share Posted December 7, 2006 What about fitting an early 200 series Disco drop arm (G-K reg). They have the 4 bolt steering box but come with the same rebuilable ball joint as the 90 so I think (but don't know for sure) that the 90 swan-neck with damper mount would fit. Hmmm, the steering box i sold you was off a K-reg disco and IIRC had the ball-joint on the track-rod not the drop arm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orgasmic Farmer Posted December 8, 2006 Share Posted December 8, 2006 True, the change over was sometime in the KA's I think, whenever they went to 24 spline and cable handbrake. I have a J reg that I still drive and that definately has the 90 type rebuildable ball joint (I have done it) but as far as I can see the steering box is identical to the later Disco ones fitted with TREs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orgasmic Farmer Posted December 8, 2006 Share Posted December 8, 2006 Just checked on Paddocks, the change to the TRE type on the Disco was at JA019ish (J reg or some early Ks). There is only one steering box listed for the Disco 1 with different ones if you choose the one with the drop arm fitted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vinny Posted December 8, 2006 Author Share Posted December 8, 2006 The drop arm I used doesnt have the TRE attached like the defender type. The TRE is fitted to the steering linkage. Could I get away with using a disco type shock thats shown in the picture in place of the defender shock. (Would the stroke be the same as the defender shock????) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orgasmic Farmer Posted December 8, 2006 Share Posted December 8, 2006 Have a look at the Discoweb site http://www.discoweb.org/ click on Tech ands then the 2 articles about steering dampers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vinny Posted December 8, 2006 Author Share Posted December 8, 2006 Brilliant thats sorted it out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbocharger Posted December 8, 2006 Share Posted December 8, 2006 A bit late to the party but I've got a Disco arm on a Defender 4-bolt box, I swapped them after getting sick of changing drop arm BJs. Some people reckon there are clearance issues with the chassis but mine's fine. The damper relocation is a bit of a pain since the QT bracket (shown) is designed to fit a fatter arm, so I've packed it slightly to clamp properly. It's shown leaning over because it had bottomed out on the damper - I slid the clamp along a little to restore full travel (and yes, I've clipped the winch pipes up properly since then) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diff Posted December 8, 2006 Share Posted December 8, 2006 John, in you last photo, your TRE seems to have an awful lot of thread showing. It implies that there isn't much in the drag link, or is it just an 'angle of the photograph' thing? Regards, Diff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vinny Posted December 8, 2006 Author Share Posted December 8, 2006 Cheers Lads Ive to replace the steering damper so Ill use a disco damper and mount it the same way as the one on the disco web site. Ill use a piece of 50mm angle and 2 exhaust clamp brackets to hold it to the linkage Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbocharger Posted December 9, 2006 Share Posted December 9, 2006 Diff - you're right, there is a lot of thread showing. I bought a solid aftermarket drag link but it was unbranded, and it seems to be a funny length. It was a concern when I fitted it but I'm satisfied that there is enough thread inside the bar (not just the nut). The drop arm doesn't point ahead when it should though... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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