Apex Front Bushings- Poor Design??

[jaydaniels]

Replaced the front end bushings on my buddies Apex this weekend. The only bushings that actually needed replacement were the ones in the bulk head. I really dont' get this design. The bolts running through the bulk head and a-arms arent' tight against the bulk head. What seems to be happeniing is that the actual bolts are rotating with the a-arms and wear out the bulk head bushings. These bushings are very thin and light complared to the ones inside the a-arm. Wouldn't it make sense to have the bolt tight so it can't rotate and then have the a-arm rotate around the bolt? The bushings in the a arms are much thicker. Also, you could add a grease fitting in the arm and keep them greased. Am I missing something?

 

[HighSpeedLowDrag]

I drilled the bolt heads and pinned the bolts together for that reason.

 

[jaydaniels]

So, you pinned the upper and lower bolts together so they couldn't rotate? That's a great idea. I was trying to think of some way to stop them from rotating. My only concern is that maybe the bushings in the a-arms aren't a wearable item so maybe the bolt is supposed to turn with them?

 

[raginyamaha]

They are designed to be free floating bolts. The bolt shoulder is slightly longer than the bulkhead mounts. Just make sure there's some Loctite on the bolt and tighten em. They should be free to spin when installed properly.

 

[jaydaniels]

Yes, agreed they are free to spin but I can't see 'why' they are designed this way. If you look closely you'll see that the a-arm is free to spin around the bolt and the bolt is free to spin in the bulk-head. I just can't see the reason for this. The bushings in the bulk-head are very thin and wear through quickly where as the ones in the a-arm are much thicker. Seems like it would be better to have only the a-arm bushings moving and the bolt staying put. I could be missing something though.