Stabalizer Bar nut suggestions

[dirtymac]

The new 3/8" bolts arrived Tuesday but I have not put them on yet.  In the mean time, the old bolts are back on until we finish up with the front sway bar.  I was under the rear-end today working on the wheel splash shields so I took a few quick measurements of the old bolts.  I decided to measure at the threads since I put a few coats of paint on the bolts.  They're close to 10mm.

[mat in tn]

measure on the inch setting. .375" is what you should have

[ArdWrknTrk]

I stand corrected!
You're doing a great job Wil!
Keep on keeping on! 👍

[dirtymac]

By the way, the bolts that hold the front sway bar to the cross member are also 10mm.  The threads were in good shape when we removed them but the heads were not.  They still had their basic shape but were very thin in height and several were missing entire chunks from oxidation.  I did manage to find replacements at the big orange store.

[Gary Lewis]

Will - Sorry to bother you this way, but you and Derek started the joining process on the Invision forum but never confirmed your membership via the email that should have been sent to you.  I'm trying to find out if there is some problem in the joining process or what cause y'all to not confirm.

I sent both of you an email a few days ago but haven't gotten a response.  Is there some problem with those email addresses?

Just trying to make sure we don't have a problem in the soon to be used process.

[dirtymac]

This is what happens when you don't respond to emails.  Gary comes after you any way he can :)

[dirtymac]

We finished the front stabilizer last week.  Everything got cleaned and repainted.  The bushings are MOOG just like the rear.  We had issues finding replacement end links for the front.  The current end links were still in good shape, clean and tight threads, so we reused them.

I ordered replacement end links from O'Reilly and the rear fit just like the old ones.  The front ones, on the other hand, were the same overall dimensions, but the insertable bushings were too big.  Every part number I could find seemed to be the same way.  I tried getting replacement end links from MOOG, but I could only track down the rear.  No one had the front ones in stock.

[ArdWrknTrk]

Will, can you give me a # for the rear bushings you used?
Mine are getting very sloppy.  

[Gary Lewis]

Good job!

As for tracking you down, don't miss the email from Chris asking you to try again.  

[dirtymac]

I absolutely can.  The bushing kits are the same for the front and back on the 4WD models.  I think the kits are made to fit both styles of front end links, so you'll have a few bits left over.  For the stabilizer bars themselves, they have a bunch of options depending on the diameter of the bar.

I opted for the blue which is described as being a little stiffer than the black.  MOOG's website is a dumpster fire but if you can manager to get your vehicle info put in, select the stabilizer bar options.

End link bushing kit - K8657.
Front sway bar bushing kit, 1" ID - K8653
Rear sway bar bushing kit, 1 3/16" - K8656

If you need the end links themselves, good luck.  MOOG has part numbers listed but all I could fine were NOS items and they all looked rough.  The rear end links from MasterPro had an extra half inch of threads than my old ones.  The front end links were identical as what I had except the holes for the insertable bushings were smaller than the MOOG parts.  I didn't want to mix and match and my old links were good, so I kept them.

Rear end link - MasterPro K80016
Front end link (did not fit) - MasterPro K8662

Oh, you may also notice that a lot of other brands are using the same part numbers as MOOG.  I'm not sure if that is common.  If you search by the MOOG part numbers, tons of other brands will come up.  I got the MOOG parts from Amazon.

[ArdWrknTrk]

Thanks Will!  

I really just need the ones that are held by the U-bolt's to the rear axle.
I did the links a couple of years back (and, at first, got two different sets from the same vendor, in the same bags (Gary knows. I have pictures!)

But I will get on it, since the guts* of my rear axle are brand new RN...  

[ArdWrknTrk]

I figured out today that I have an 1 1/8" rear sway bar.
Bushing # 8655.  

[dirtymac]

There seem to be a lot of size options.