How to IMPROVE PERFORMANCE with ONE simple modification - Armstrong lever dampers

[@colvinator1611]

Thanks a lot Mark. I got my 1st minor last Sunday ! They are the same as I had on my Somerset.

[@MarksWheels]

Thanks for watching

[@Fenixx117]

Perfect! This saves a lot of trouble. I though I had to send mine away for an over haul and instead a thicker oil is all that's needed for my TR6!

[@MarksWheels]

Thanks for watching

[@jvleasure]

Thanks for this. I have a 1917 Model T hot rod that was built in the late 70s/early 80s. Has 70s Triumph cycle brakes and apparently, from your video, MG shocks! I'll add this to my list.

[@MarksWheels]

Sounds like a cool project! Thanks for watching

[@jvleasure]

@@MarksWheels it's a wild machine. My dad's friend bought it in 87 and stores it on our farm, so dad ran around in it for a year or so. That dude was a hero to me, and when i saw it for sale last summer, a year after dad's buddy died, i decided to commit financial suicide and buy it. It sat for 30 years... so far I've done 37 things to it to get it going. Oh well. Thanks for the video!

[@MarksWheels]

@@jvleasure Wow! Good luck with it!

[@timkingcarstuff1170]

Hi iv been to shop but couldn't find any 30 w But found some 85 w £5 so took all 4 dampers of the car unscrewed the tops to empty the old oil out quicker and did a mix with the shock oil i had and mixed the thick oil in with it and filled all 4 with the same mix . What a different now the car does not roll at all now Great at speed now I've loads more feed back

[@MarksWheels]

Excellent. Glad its made such an improvement

[@jonathansarley1499]

USE AW GRADE OIL AW HYDRAULIC OIL AW32 IS 10W. ALTHOUGH YOU AW46 IS 15W. MAY THINK OIL IS OIL AW 68 IS 20W. Just See For Yourself AW100 IS 30W. It contains zinc I use it motor cycles forks when replaced seals are needed and it's a cheap alternative to factory Honda fork oil

[@MarksWheels]

Thanks Jonathan, il try that in my cm125 forks too

[@deandallmann4464]

Do you need to remove the leaf spring U-bolts to get the rear shocks off?

[@MarksWheels]

No, you can undo the links from the arm of the shock

[@timkingcarstuff1170]

Thanks I will probably be taking them of again and emptying them iv plenty of gearbox oil i might see if I can do a mix with the shock oil and see if that will help. Quick question how did you get the old oil out of the front dampers with out removing them from the car

[@MarksWheels]

I have a vacuum pump with a small tube that fitted inside and got alot out. Bouncing the suspension also helps pump some out

[@MGDRIVING]

How much do you fill it? Do you hold it vertical and then fill to the bottom edge of the fill hole?

[@MarksWheels]

Yes. That's what I did anyway lol

[@JackEpstein]

Hi Thanks for the video, can you top up the oil in position in the car. Mine is MG Midget 1500 which i have lowered also

[@MarksWheels]

Hi jack. Yes you can. Fronts are easier than the rear as they can be done from under the bonnet but the rears are still not difficult.

[@JackEpstein]

Many thanks and do you fill them until the oil is coming out as you would filling an axle or box. I ask as you mentioned its half full in the video which be difficult to see.

[@MarksWheels]

@@JackEpstein you can do as they are not mounted level on the car and you want some air in the system to help displace the fluid

[@timkingcarstuff1170]

Hi iv just taken of the back dampers on my mg midget and filled with 10w 40 motor oil . Is that what you used motor oil that is ,?

[@MarksWheels]

I used straight 30 motor oil for a beetle. Not sure how 10w40 would perform

[@hankpb1]

the thicker the oil stiffer the suspension?

[@MarksWheels]

Yep. Thicker viscosity makes it harder for the oil to pass through the valve.

[@hankpb1]

@@MarksWheels can you use engine oil?

[@MarksWheels]

@@hankpb1 Yes the 30w oil I used is actually left over engine oil from my friend's beetle

[@hankpb1]

what about front suspension?

[@MarksWheels]

Hi Phil. Thanks for the comment. I had already done the fronts on the car. Access to them is a lot easier than the rear.

[@hankpb1]

@@MarksWheels video?

[@MarksWheels]

@@hankpb1 Sounds like an idea for a future one ;)

[@timkingcarstuff1170]

You say in your video the recommendation is to use 20 shock oil that is what I used when I first resorted the car but what I'm not sure about is on motor oil there are two numbers like 10w 40 And 10w 30 Is the Last numbers the thicker oil with bigger number Iv used 10w 40 not driven yet as its raining but rocking the car it still very bouncy

[@MarksWheels]

Not sure about using engine oil in the shocks. The first number is the oils viscosity when cold and the second is its viscosity when hot (or the other way around)

[@windmill1965]

Engine oil is usually a blend, resulting in different behaviour when hot compared to cold. That is indicated with the two numbers (e.g. 20W-50). For the dampers it is better to use a single grade oil meant for dampers. Look into fork oil for motor bikes. These are single grade, such as 10W, 15W, or 20W.