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Delco Remy Lovejoy Lever Shocks


stev1955

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Good question. I have always just made sure that the mechanism was covered but that there was still enough open space to allow for expansion contraction. It seemed to me that if you left no room, expansion might tend to force fluid out of the seals. Am definitely open to other answers.

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Hi Steve,

I have just done some work on the rear Lovejoy shocks on my 1929 chrysler 75. They needed a good clean and were in very good condition internally although completely empty of oil. I replaced the old leather lip oil seal with a modern seal that my local supplier had on the shelf. I filled them with shock oil so the piston was fully covered. The rears sit at an angle so probably didn't need as much as the front upright ones. They have worked fine since then.

Hope that helps

John F

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I have twin cylinder Delco Remy Lovejoy shocks on my 1930 Buick and had them rebuilt about 6 months age to the tune of around $1800 for the set. I have mounted them on the car but have not yet had the opportunity to drive with them yet so they have zero miles on them since the rebuild. As the temperature has increased in the garage due to the change of seasons, I have noticed that all four are leaking a considerable amount of fluid and have wondered if they were overfilled when rebuilt. Clearly I am somewhat concerned about the situation.

Thanks,

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Maybe they were filled to the brim and the heat caused them to overflow. If you find out why let us know. For now I'm just going to fill mine to where the piston is covered, as other posters have said, and maybe they won't leak too bad around the shaft. They do work as I can definitely notice a difference in the ride. My car is a driver and not restored so various things leak.

Edited by stev1955 (see edit history)
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Guest stephen48

My 1930 Oldsmobile has shocks that look the same as the ones above on the Essex.

When I dismantled the shocks the only thing that needed to be done was new seals that I bought off the shelf.I filled them to the top with as much fluid as I could get in.They have not leaked at all and work good.

The car had done many miles from 1930 until it went off the road in 1962 but there was no sign of any other wear in the shocks! Just worn out seals.

Nice looking Essex! It has a good authentic look.

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I only found 2 places that were able to work on the shocks from my 1930 Buick and the prices were pretty close to the same at both shops; one in California and the other in New York, both of which are well known and considered to be reputable. I sent mine out to California. They are twin cylinder double acting Delco Lovejoy shocks that the shop claimed were used on the Dusenberg and V-16 Cadillac. Unfortunately they charged Dusenberg prices as these shocks were the most expensive to restore based on the price list from both shops. I was told by the shop the shocks are rare and very difficult to locate. Mine were in poor condition when received and needed considerable work in order to bring back to life. As I understand it some shock bodies are not really considered rebuildable so I hope they did not attempt to rebuild mine if they were past that point. I don't have much knowledge of shock absorber internals so I went with the rebuilders decision to repair the ones I had. The fact that they are all leaking now, even with brand new seals makes me wonder if should have attempted to locate another rebuildable set of shocks rather than repair these.

Thanks,

Edited by michaelod (see edit history)
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  • 1 year later...
Hi Steve,

I have just done some work on the rear Lovejoy shocks on my 1929 chrysler 75. They needed a good clean and were in very good condition internally although completely empty of oil. I replaced the old leather lip oil seal with a modern seal that my local supplier had on the shelf. I filled them with shock oil so the piston was fully covered. The rears sit at an angle so probably didn't need as much as the front upright ones. They have worked fine since then.

Hope that helps

John F

Hi John. Seems you are the guy who finally can help me. Is there a possibility you to tell me serial numbers of your Delco Lovejoy shocks from your 1929 Chrysler 75 and abusing you any possiblity of a picture of them in their position?. I know they are in an uncomfortable position, but it would be very helpfull to me. Regards from Chile. Fernando

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I have Delco 1746 shocks on my Auburn. Being a DIY kind of guy, I would like to go into the shocks and see what mystery is inside that costs $200+ to rebuild.

The 1746 shocks have a 2" cap on both ends that are knurled. Has anyone found a way to remove the cap? There must be a special tool.

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Guest 61xlch

The 1746 shocks have a 2" cap on both ends that are knurled. Has anyone found a way to remove the cap? There must be a special tool.

At my 1931 Auburn these shock caps can simply screwed off.

Good luck, Curt.

Regards

Andreas

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  • 5 weeks later...
Hi Fernando,

[ATTACH=CONFIG]175756[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]175758[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]175759[/ATTACH]

Finally found the time to take the photos. Serial No. reads 822491 Hope they help. I will measure the length of the link and let you know. Photo of car taken in Aug 2010. I can email you the original files if needed.

Yours

John

[ATTACH=CONFIG]175760[/ATTACH]

Hi John, thanks for your pictures. But Oh Boy....! I am disappointed, because I have just realized the shocks of my car were upgraded to a newer model, 1933 may be. Yours have strap links and mine have iron ones and so are the front ones. So...to be or not to be that is the question, as in Hamlet's

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