Topic: 67 spring perch bushing crimping

[Jaybart68]

Hi, does anyone have a tip on how to duplicate the crimping of the spring perch bushing? I've managed to find some original 67 spring perches and the rubber in the bushings is perished. I sourced replacement bushings from NPD, managed to get the old ones out and the new one in. Now if I can find a way to get the crimp in I'm home ... 

[1967 eight barrel]

The bushings aren't crimped. They are press-fit into the eye. Are you talking about the bands?

[67gta289]

I think he is asking about these.

I carefully pried these open to remove the old bushing, then pressed in the new bushings, and then used a hammer with a square drift to close the crimps back in.

[1967 eight barrel]

Okay, now I understand.

[Bossbill]

The fold overs can be painful to remove.
I used a very small ball burr and a high speed grinder to get to the inside of the bend (in the rubber section). This weakened the tab so that it folded inward easily.
I noticed that my tabs weren't just flat punched but looked like slits were made into the bushings.
I don't think slits were actually pre-made, but the machine that originally pressed the folds into the metal produced enough force for the metal in both pieces to split.
So I cut some slits with a dremel and this worked pretty well. It did require a lot of pre-measuring.
Next time I'll try John's method!

[Jaybart68]

Excellent to hear that a hammer and a punch can do the trick. I'll give that a try.