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Topic: Body Mounts and shims

in Forum: C3 Body


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Body Mounts and shims (1/8)
 2/11/18 8:27am
cinorLifetime Member
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, - Canada

Vette(s):
1975 L48 Stingray 1992 LT1


Joined: 12/24/2013
Posts: 414

So the time is drawing near and have gathered up my old body mounsts (at least most of them) have to go back on hunt today for the rest. If I can not find them how do I go about determing shims to use. How can you determine if height is right when there is nothing to really go by. 

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Re: Body Mounts and shims (2/8)
 2/11/18 12:46pm
Adams' AppleLifetime Member
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Duncanville, TX - USA

Vette(s):
#1-1974 L-48 4spd Cp Med Red Metallic/Black deluxe int w/AC/tilt/tele./p/w-p/b/ Am-Fm/map light National/Regional/Chapter NCRS "Top Flight" #2-1985 Bright Red/Carmine Cp.L-98/auto Member: NCRS, NCRS Texas, Corvette Legends of Texas


Joined: 11/8/2003
Posts: 20126

Shocked Nuke Ouch

Unfortunately....if you did not tag & bag the mounts & shims as you removed them, you're pretty much gunna hafta start from scratch. When the body was dropped on the assy line, the mounts were on the frame, and a machine calculated the number/thickness of shims needed at each mount location. From there, the shims were adjusted until the body sat firmly on the frame, and door gaps were "close enough". Sad to say...if you did not mark the shims you removed, you will have to position the body close to the frame, and then start shimming until all mounts touch the body with the body level on the frame. Then it will be fine tuning time. I do not envy you on this one....
On the other hand...if you were alert enough to take note of where all of the shims were when the body was removed, then it's simply a matter of installing them in the proper location, whether with the "old" mounts, or new ones. You may still need to fine tune them after the body is fully dropped, but it will not take NEAR as long as the other way.

May the Force be with you....Star


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Joel Adams
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Re: Body Mounts and shims (3/8)
 2/12/18 9:05am
cinorLifetime Member
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, - Canada

Vette(s):
1975 L48 Stingray 1992 LT1


Joined: 12/24/2013
Posts: 414

I did bag the mounts (at least the bottom half) as when we transfered body top was rusted in so we set mounts and all on body dolly. I did make diagram of the bottom in a book and there seems to be only 3 body mounts that had shims and they were all on the drivers side. I seem to be having trouble locating the top halves of some of them and the ones I do have got moved a bit before I got them wrote in my book. Sigh, nothing can ever go easy!

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Re: Body Mounts and shims (4/8)
 2/12/18 2:21pm
Adams' AppleLifetime Member
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Duncanville, TX - USA

Vette(s):
#1-1974 L-48 4spd Cp Med Red Metallic/Black deluxe int w/AC/tilt/tele./p/w-p/b/ Am-Fm/map light National/Regional/Chapter NCRS "Top Flight" #2-1985 Bright Red/Carmine Cp.L-98/auto Member: NCRS, NCRS Texas, Corvette Legends of Texas


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Darlin... if it was easy, ANYONE could do it.... Wink

At this point you'll just have to give it your best guess to start with, and go from there....Ouch

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Joel Adams
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Re: Body Mounts and shims (5/8)
 2/13/18 7:34am
cinorLifetime Member
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, - Canada

Vette(s):
1975 L48 Stingray 1992 LT1


Joined: 12/24/2013
Posts: 414

yep you are right. I'll get er done eventually



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Re: Body Mounts and shims (6/8)
 2/16/18 11:28pm
tom43xy
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Littleton, CO - USA

Vette(s):
76 corvette, L-48, Flame Red


Joined: 2/5/2006
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Not sure how much this will help, but I recently completed the body off resto on my 76 and my body mounts were darn near rotted away (although frame was in good shape).  There was little evidence of the shims left.  I had to repair all of the flanges by welding on big washers and some judicious grinding so the shim fit up would have been a problem anyway (even if I had known how many I needed).

I took a lot of careful measurements on height to take my best educated guess at the number of shims I needed and hoped it would be close.  That may have not been all that helpful as when I finally lowered the body back on - got the front and back bolted onto the frame - and installed all 8 mounts (torqued to spec), I was about 1/4 inch lower to the floor on the drivers side vs. the passenger.  

All the doors seemed to shut nicely and I sure did not want to lift the body back off, so I just loosened all the mounts and front and rear frame bolts and then jacked up the drivers side of the body carefully (with bottle jacks spread out near the #2 and #3 mount positions).  I fit one or two more shims into all the mounts on that side which seemed like the maximum I could fit, then lowered it back down and re-torqued all the mounts and front and rear bolts.  When I remeasured heights on each side, it was still slightly low on the drivers side, but much better so I called it good.  The front spring might be sagged a bit lower anyway since usually the car only has a driver in it.  I should have measured the frame to floor height to get a feel for that issue, but don't think I did at that time.

If you want to know exactly how many shims I used at each mount, I have that information somewhere (probably would be meaningless for you though).  

BTW - I went with poly mounts as I never wanted to do this again.  They give the car a really solid feel (more so than with rubber), but the car was never very soft in the butt area anyway. LOL

Hope that is somewhat helpful.
Re: Body Mounts and shims (7/8)
 2/17/18 4:34pm
cinorLifetime Member
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, - Canada

Vette(s):
1975 L48 Stingray 1992 LT1


Joined: 12/24/2013
Posts: 414

Sounds much like mine lots of rust when removing mounts. I don't see how the measuring from floor to frame would help much there are so many variables how do you know if your floor is level or tires are exactly right. etc. I mean were probably talking like you said 1/4 or 1/8 inch or so, but if there is an easier way I'm all ears

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Re: Body Mounts and shims (8/8)
 2/19/18 2:28pm
Adams' AppleLifetime Member
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Duncanville, TX - USA

Vette(s):
#1-1974 L-48 4spd Cp Med Red Metallic/Black deluxe int w/AC/tilt/tele./p/w-p/b/ Am-Fm/map light National/Regional/Chapter NCRS "Top Flight" #2-1985 Bright Red/Carmine Cp.L-98/auto Member: NCRS, NCRS Texas, Corvette Legends of Texas


Joined: 11/8/2003
Posts: 20126

Remember as you're doing this that the #1 and #4(front and rear) mount shims go on TOP of the mount(between mount and body), and the #2 and #3(middle 2 mounts) shims go on the BOTTOM of the mount(between mount and frame). It's easy to loose, or miss shims if you're not looking for them in a different location when removing the body. They don't not all go on top of the mounts. Wink

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Joel Adams
C3VR Lifetime Member #56    

My Link


(click for Texas-sized view!)
             NCRS

"Money can't buy happiness -- but somehow it's more comforting to cry in a CORVETTE than in a Kia"

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