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MG TD TF 1500 - REAR GIRLING SHOCK REMOVAL

Sounds simple, "just remove the shock", Well my removal is anything but simple.
I am working on the right hand side girling shock on my 1950 TD. The rear bolt holding the shock on has a nut which came off so not a bolt but a nut on a stud, however, the front nut and stud just rotate and rotate. No sign of the nut undoing from the stud and no sign that the stud is backing out of some unseen fixed nut but still, the nut and stud turn easily.
So, originally, was the girling rear shock fastened by studs or bolts?
If studs, I cannot see how the shock was removed as there is not enough room for the shock to be pulled clear of the studs before it hits the tub or inside fender.
So I seem to have a mess. I assume at this point that I will have to some how shift the shock out enough and away from the frame then somehow cut off the stud to remove the shock then cut out the frame member to weld in a new set of fixed nuts
I have tried tapping the shock and prying with a bar but the shock has not moved.
Next issue, how does one remove the shock lever arm from the link and the link from the bottom pin? I have tried prying with a bar and whacking the link with a hammer, again no movement.
All information and advise welcome.
Thanks
Morris
M E WADDS

Morris,
I believe that the shocks are held on by bolts which thread into the frame,,, mabey a previous owner stripped the threads and inserted a bolt up through the frame and shock, with a nut on top,,,, you might be rotating the nut and bolt,,, can you look up inside to see if it is in fact a bolt???

SPW
Steve Wincze

They are mounted with long through the frame bolts with a nut on one side only. There were originally no threads in the frame for the rear shocks. What you must be seeing is the bolt head turning. Or someone used a stud with nuts on both sides. In that case if you have one nut off already just tap it through the hole. If you have to remove the other nut (if there is one), just grab the threads on the other end with vice-grips and undo the nut. No cutting, torch, etc. needed. To remove the link,just undo the big nut on the lower pin and remove the pin with the link attached. Then you can take apart on the bench. Reassembly is a different matter however. George
George Butz

I wrongly assumed that Morris was talking about the front shock,,,,
Steve Wincze

George, thank you.Once I understood that the shock was bolted on I went underneath the car and scraped away all the oiled road crime that had filled in between the inside frame flanges & hidden the bolt heads & loo & behold there were the two bolt heads. It took a couple of minutes to clean up the bolt head and wiggle on a wrench and I was able to unscrew the nut from the outside.
The link even came off easily. My new, from Moss, rubber bushings are half the length of the original bushings, is that the experience of others?
Thanks again
Morris
M E WADDS

This thread was discussed between 29/04/2009 and 30/04/2009

MG TD TF 1500 index

This thread is from the archive. The Live MG TD TF 1500 BBS is active now.