skauldy Posted October 22, 2015 Share Posted October 22, 2015 Hi Guys, Does anyone know of any threads of someone fitting disco 2 axles to a defenders. Have seen plenty of threads about talking about it but none of someone actually wanting to do it. I have read what involved but would like to see pics. Thanks Shane Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jai_landrover Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Cutting welding much measuring. What is to be gained? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ejparrott Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 There's the Watt's linkage on the back axle to take into consideration, standard A frame on defender and disco 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dangerous doug Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Stronger internals, better steering lock, a little wider, better brakes and the hubs are nicer to work on Tomcat Motorsport have a jig to weld brackets on to axles. I would go to them as it will be done to a professional standard and the castor angles will be correct Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discomikey Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 It's not that hard of a job to be honest. It's simpler than some people make out! I would go along the lines of using the disco radius arms and if possible fitting the watts linkage too, if not stick an a-frame ball joint mount on the rd5 axle. I've done a couple now, most recently on a tomcat for ultra4, however we are putting a 4-link setup on the rear rather than conventional setup Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discomikey Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 What do you want to know? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wanger Posted October 23, 2015 Share Posted October 23, 2015 Here we go. http://www.disco3.co.uk/forum/topic108409.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skauldy Posted October 24, 2015 Author Share Posted October 24, 2015 Thanks for all the replies guys. I just want to see what way the brackets were welded etc. On. I'm very good at copying how other people done stuff but not very good at pioneering new ways. Is it better to keep the defender radius arms or weld the disco boxes onto my chassis so I get the traverse bolt setup. If am going the disco route using the arms how do I do the back. Thanks Wanger. Will have a flick through the link Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discomikey Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 I would go down the route of disco arms personally. What do you mean how do you do the back? Any part in particular you are unsure of? Just make sure your arms do not clash with the front outrigger on full bump it might need scolloping to cope but don't remove the outrigger as its the only substantial thing between your feet and the front wheel in the event of a crash! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Landy-Novice Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 I would go down the route of disco arms personally. i am strongly concidering this xle conversion for some time. i have spoken to loads of people on this and have come to final conclusion that using d2 front arms all round (cutting second eye off front so they fit on rear) would require some easy to make brackets to weld on chassis, the front defender radius arm mounts need to be removed and on a 90, a smaller bracket is needed as tank in in the way. with the d2 arms all round makes good ride and allows best downwards acticulation (as arms are longer and better bushes at chassis ends), loads more than standard 90/110 arms and then some. but dont allow axles to twist over ruts etc which almost defeats the whole point. diffs are same lenght as 90/110 so props wont need changing. i have now come to decide that for me, cut off all mounts and weld d1/90/110 mounts from YRM so d2 axles will fit will all defender suspention with aframe. that will allow me to keep my chassis standard (ideal if you have a galv chassis) but i would use d2 axles with either double cranked or jonny joined arms for max down artiulation and cross axle ability. if you go d2 arms, then i beleive mikeys friend is develping a kit to make installation much easier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landroversforever Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 Johnny jointed arms on a chassis with standard mounts is a waste of time. You shorten the arm and end up with hideous axle walk when articulating. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Landy-Novice Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 Johnny jointed arms on a chassis with standard mounts is a waste of time. You shorten the arm and end up with hideous axle walk when articulating. what would be best option to use at the chasis end? i did think about rose jointed but they allow alot of driveline vibration to transmit through the rest of the vehicle and sway and 'chatter' when worn. poly bus hand souble cranked best way forwrards? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landroversforever Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 Well anything that makes the trailing arm shorter means more axle walk. So using johnny joints or rose joints you need to move the mounts forward. Best bet if you're staying with a standard chassis mount has to be the XArms. They retain the same length arm and are much freer moving than a normal LR bush. If you stay with the normal LR bush, your best bet is genuine rubber bush or Super Pro. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wanger Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 anyone read the link?! Defender brackets on D2 axles...simple Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discomikey Posted October 24, 2015 Share Posted October 24, 2015 The tomcat we are building has got 48" (yes 4ft) long lower link arms! The longer the better! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bingy Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 i am strongly concidering this xle conversion for some time. i have spoken to loads of people on this and have come to final conclusion that using d2 front arms all round (cutting second eye off front so they fit on rear) would require some easy to make brackets to weld on chassis, the front defender radius arm mounts need to be removed and on a 90, a smaller bracket is needed as tank in in the way. with the d2 arms all round makes good ride and allows best downwards acticulation (as arms are longer and better bushes at chassis ends), loads more than standard 90/110 arms and then some. but dont allow axles to twist over ruts etc which almost defeats the whole point. diffs are same lenght as 90/110 so props wont need changing. i have now come to decide that for me, cut off all mounts and weld d1/90/110 mounts from YRM so d2 axles will fit will all defender suspention with aframe. that will allow me to keep my chassis standard (ideal if you have a galv chassis) but i would use d2 axles with either double cranked or jonny joined arms for max down artiulation and cross axle ability. if you go d2 arms, then i beleive mikeys friend is develping a kit to make installation much easier. I have used the Disco 2 axles front and rear I also got the brackets from YRM cutting off the old ones and welding YRM brackets on Have a look at my build pages to give you a bit of an idea http://forums.lr4x4.com/index.php?showtopic=81668 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skauldy Posted October 26, 2015 Author Share Posted October 26, 2015 Thanks bingy will check it out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skauldy Posted October 26, 2015 Author Share Posted October 26, 2015 Feel a bit more confident to do the conversion. Think I will just swap the mounts on the axles rather then the chassis. Bank holiday here so will ring around tomorrow for prices on the d2 axles. Thanks for all the replies guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicken Drumstick Posted October 26, 2015 Share Posted October 26, 2015 i am strongly concidering this xle conversion for some time. i have spoken to loads of people on this and have come to final conclusion that using d2 front arms all round (cutting second eye off front so they fit on rear) would require some easy to make brackets to weld on chassis, the front defender radius arm mounts need to be removed and on a 90, a smaller bracket is needed as tank in in the way. with the d2 arms all round makes good ride and allows best downwards acticulation (as arms are longer and better bushes at chassis ends), loads more than standard 90/110 arms and then some. but dont allow axles to twist over ruts etc which almost defeats the whole point. diffs are same lenght as 90/110 so props wont need changing. i have now come to decide that for me, cut off all mounts and weld d1/90/110 mounts from YRM so d2 axles will fit will all defender suspention with aframe. that will allow me to keep my chassis standard (ideal if you have a galv chassis) but i would use d2 axles with either double cranked or jonny joined arms for max down artiulation and cross axle ability. if you go d2 arms, then i beleive mikeys friend is develping a kit to make installation much easier. That seems like rather a lot of work when all said and done. And I'm still not sure what the real world gains would be. What would you be able to do, that you couldn't on Defender axles? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wanger Posted October 26, 2015 Share Posted October 26, 2015 there cheaper to upgrade to full lockers and hd shafts etc than a defender axle, they have better steering lock +4" width and knuckles and cv's and nobody wants them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicken Drumstick Posted October 26, 2015 Share Posted October 26, 2015 They might be cheaper to upgrade, but is the cost difference really that big? Not too mention it's not exactly a free conversion in time or money. So I'd be amazed if you could really swap them on and make it cheaper. More likely more expensive overall. As for the steering and wider. Ok they might be benefits, but what difference are we talking? And if all you are doing is running 32-35" tyres, then are you really going to see these advantages from the drivers seat? I'm by no means saying don't do it. Just trying to understand what real advantages there are, vs the cost and effort of the swap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discomikey Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 a large benefit is the size of the CV that you can fit in the knuckle on a TD5 axle compared to the size of CV you can get in a standard defender axle. Another benefit being the wheelbearing type much less prone to failure, although they are more expensive to change. and the brakes are much simpler to service Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicken Drumstick Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 Again that's all fine. But it's a bit like saying spend £2000 to save £500. CV's and bearings aren't really that big of an issue on a Defender. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ex Member Posted October 28, 2015 Share Posted October 28, 2015 Stronger internals, better steering lock, a little wider, better brakes and the hubs are nicer to work on Tomcat Motorsport have a jig to weld brackets on to axles. I would go to them as it will be done to a professional standard and the castor angles will be correct ??? They have weaker internals and worse brakes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landroversforever Posted October 28, 2015 Share Posted October 28, 2015 ??? They have weaker internals and worse brakes. The diffs are the same as any previous coiler. I'd agree that they're worse brakes too... I hate sliding calipers with a passion! I was chatting to David at Llama4x4 when I bought my rear brake lines and I was talking about plans for the car and about not using stainless flexi throughout. He had a story of a Disco 2 based racer which couldn't get a decent pedal. It turned out that it was the calliper flexing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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