WWYD - new front arb balls won't go in?

[Gridgway]

I'm fitting my new bolt on upper link kit to my LA 7 - removing the use of the old arb to locate the top link.  It uses the normal front arb arrangement with the balls on the end of the arb going into "sockets" on the new bolt on top links.  The balls won't go in to their sockets though.  I assume it's the powder coating that's the problem.

The question is what to relieve?  Sand the balls or the inside of the sockets?  I think I remember in the past seeing front arb balls with a circumferential (is that a word?) flat ground around them to get round this problem.   Or will the powder coat get worn off anyway in use, so then the balls would get loose if the diameter was reduced slightly.

Thanks

Graham

[ECR]

Yes, I have seen arb balls with a reduced circumferance…..

[Tazio]

I rubbed my arb balls with some fine sand paper, to get rid of the slight ridge around the circumference, and greased them, and they were fine after.

Alan

[AlastairA]

I removed the powder coat first and then measured the ID with verniers, compared to the OD of the ball. They were a good match so I assume the designer either neglected the depth of the powder coat or intended for there not to be one. Left the sockets without the powder coat and just made sure they were well greased. Confirmed this with CC build technician.

[Gridgway]

Thanks all, I'll investigate further and see what the delta is to remove.

[Tony P]

15 hours ago, Tazio said:

I rubbed my arb balls with some fine sand paper, to get rid of the slight ridge around the circumference, and greased them, and they were fine after.

Alan

All of the replacement/spare arb balls I’ve had in the past have already been machined around the circumference to relieve the moulding ‘seam’. Is that no longer done?

I don’t think they are anything special though: aren’t they just the off-the-shelf drilled-and-tapped balls used on the handles and levers of machine tools?

[Geoff Brown]

Found same when building Sevens. I used very fine emery cloth to remove the powder coating flash over from inside the ball housing. Then lots of grease & a grunt to locate both balls. (there is a pun there somewhere !)