Drilling Front Bumper Shocks?

[toplessexpat]

Hey All -

Has anyone ever tried this, with the intent of collapsing the shock somewhat?

I'm asking as one of the winter projects is to put some kind of protection on the front of the beastie in lieu of the removed front bumper (which I think is about 50% of my bodyweight).

My idea is to mount on the original bumper shocks, but have them suitably collapsed in so whatever I finally mount (and I've got some ideas on that as $400 for a set of Abarth Bumperettes feels a little like daylight robbery) is more flush to the lower valance.

I was thinking of drilling a small (1/8") hole, allowing oil to seep until the shock collapses to where I want it, and resealing. Is the shock likely to explode or anything too drastic?

I have done a hunt for a thread on this, with limited success - although it could be my vernacular isn't right!

Thanks in advance for any pointers on this.

Andy

[81SPIDERMATT]

2 of the 4 i drilled just dripped fluid until i pushed on them then they gave a good squirt .... 1` was dry as a bone and the last one squirted me pretty good with some built up pressure .... not sure if you can get them in far enough for a bumperette type of mod ... i drilled mine with the bumper in place ..it will help pushing them in ... the rears did not want to go in .... had to do slow control telephone pole crashes to get it where i wanted .... i was going for tucked in bumpers.... did not like how they stuck out ... some will argue that now they are useless for their intended purpose... my argument was that the way i drive bumper shocks or not they would not be of any help... i really liked the way they looked tucked in.... for about 6 months ... then i removed them ...

after drilling and pushing them in to your desired spot ...drill another hole thru both pieces and put a set screw in to hold them in place ... as the vibration from driving will make them wander out some ....


and you are right ..those bumpers are heavy ... did not weigh them but i would guess 75 or 80 pounds a piece

[TX82FIAT]

I was thinking of doing the same but would love to see a picture. I don't like the way bumperettes stick out unless they can be mounted flat. if you drill the tubes to drain the oil you effectively have ruined the bumper and at that point can just remove the bumper mounts all together. Not sure if anyone has drilled and cut the existing tubes to mount the bumperettes to them.

[81SPIDERMATT]

found it ... some great pics of after jobs of tucking in the bumpers ... lots of discussion also ...

http://www.fiatspider.com/f08/viewtopic ... lit=bumper

[toplessexpat]

Thanks for this...

I'm just going to do the fronts. Living in Texas I like having a rear semi-functional bumper.... and I kid myself that the weight back there helps with getting the wheels to grip better.

So the basic gist here is that it's ok to gently drill them (along the chamber) and then fix with a fitting through the entire shock to prevent movement?

If I do it right... it is possible to maintain some degree of shock efficacy that would be good? ie. drain a small amount of oil and then reseal securely?

A

[81SPIDERMATT]

no ...well "some" is a loose term ... but no

[toplessexpat]

I read all the thread referenced....

... now the challenge has been set to make this work with some degree of shocking ability...

[81SPIDERMATT]

here is what i see as the problem.... the set screw that will hold it in place is drilled thru both parts of the shock... and i am thinking that you will not be able to seal the hole well enough on the inside part of the shock that is covered by the outside sleeve... know what i mean ... now you could call it a breakaway shock .. meaning that it would stay put and when it gets hit ... the force is strong enough to snap the screw then it will compress after that but it will just be 2 sliding tubes one over the other with no compression like a shock after the screw snaps.... depending on how far you compressed it to begin with on the original mod you would then have whatever travel is left until it bottoms out ... which i think would be not a lot.... BUT ... i have been wrong before and plan on being wrong at least 3 more times in the near future ... bringing my usual average up to 5 for the year....

and one more thing.... i am thinking that the only way to know for sure would be testing it.... with that being said give it your best go .... bypass the test ... call it a success ... and do what i do... "yeah it's fine.. works like a charm"

[toplessexpat]

I track your thinking....

Now - if I drilled the end of the shock, inserted a screw, and welded a small plate over the end to hold the screw in place... it seems like that might work... I've got a spare I'll test it on - and if it doesn't work, I'll shrug, say "I'm better off with something in front of me than nothing" and move on...

[81SPIDERMATT]

agreed... good idea about using the end of the shock... not sure how much time i would spend on it myself... let me know how it works out

[ga.spyder]

I think I was one of the first to try this.I drilled mine 5 years ago and have left them that way since.I drilled them with about a 3/16 bit,and a couple of mine did spray.I had to back against my garage to collapse the rears.I used a self tapping screw to hold them in,and they are still tight after 5 years.The dogs apparently approve

[htchevyii]

I drilled holes all the way thru and used bolts with nuts, so if I do get bumped maybe they will still do their job. Some of mine sprayed pretty good when drilled.