Changing rear spheres on a '99 Xantia

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John F
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Changing rear spheres on a '99 Xantia

Post by John F »

Wishing to do a rear end sphere change, I found Jon/Alan Smith's post of 15 Nov 2002 about changing the rear spheres and the warnings about the possibility of the spheres rotating even with the car raised to full height with maximum pressure. Would it be a reasonable idea to add some extra pressure through weight by putting a couple of sacks of cement in the boot?
alan s
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Post by alan s »

That has been done in the past, although I think if they're that tight, you're in big strife anyway.
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Post by ItDontGo »

I've looked for that post and couldn't find it. I am curious as to what the problem is there?
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Post by JohnD »

Providing you have the right tool and you turn the spheres about a quarter turn before depressurizing, they should come off fairly easily. At least that's my experience on a Xantia and a BX.
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Post by John F »

Thanks Chaps.
alans, my heart is currently in my shoes; it took a lot of thumping with a heavy copper mallet to shake the front sphere threads and it seems double difficult for the rears from the kneeling position. Pity GF was caught!!
ItDontGo, please see Common Problems & Fixes - Archive, second page of post.
JohnD, have a special tool for spheres having just done the fronts.
As you can see from my Signature I do have a slight problem with under-car operations so it will be either a pit if I can find one or back to the axle supports.
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Post by alan s »

FWIW, I have heard of people using a strip of rubber inner tube with a monsterous jubillee clip around it and belting it with a hammer and if necessary a drift.
Paint a bit of a line across the edge of the sphere onto the cylinder so if it moves you'll see it. Any slight genuine movement is all you need.
A piece of motorbike chain attached to a piece of pipe about a metre long has also been used in the past.
I understand that Pleiades and possible GSF/Andys can loan you a proper sphere remover, for a fee, and in all reality, that may be your best option.
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Post by Richard Gallagher »

The Pleiades tool is the business because the strong metal ring is tightened by way of a nut thereby really gripping the sphere. Prior to buying one I tried to use a good quality oil removal tool which lasted a couple of seconds..........
Even with the Pleiades tool I have sometimes needed to use a hammer or slide a long scaffold pole onto the arm in order to release the grip on the sphere. Essential equipment and only around £35.
I do recommend getting hold of a pair of good old fashioned car ramps when removing rear spheres so you have more 'workspace', more importantly should the suspension suddenly drop you don't get your head flattened!
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Post by oilyspanner »

Ballast in the boot is a good idea, a few weeks ago I had a customer and two of his children in the boot of their Xantia before the things would budge! I use a gas blowlamp on the end of the cylinder where the sphere screws in too, once loosened drop the suspension to its lowest to avoid a Xantia sheped head and an LHM shower.
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Post by ItDontGo »

I remember I needed some struts from the scrap yard once for an old BX and both times I went to get them I forgot the sphere tool. The first time I was lucky enough to find a brick and a big piece of metal and by hitting the sphere at the base for about half an hour it came off. Different problem to what you guys are having I know - it was a front BX sphere - but they always come off in the end.
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Post by alan s »

A couple of days ago I was offered the front spheres off a CX "If I could get them off." The guy had practically no tools whatsoever and didn't even own an oil filter remover.
It was more a challlenge than a necessity, so he had a small hammer and I gave them a couple of glancing blows on the weld/seam on the outside of the actual sphere in an anti-clockwise direction and yo everyone's surprise they screwed off after having a piece of rag wrapped around them so as to reduce the slipping on the coating of oil & dirt on the outside.
Moral of the story; don't always assume they are going to be jammed on and remember if they are jolted, often that is enough to get them started.
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Post by paranoid »

I would not encourage hitting with a chisel but it was the only way I could get my accumm sphere off, after struggling for 3 days, a couple of well aimed taps and it was off, It really wound me up up because thats what I was going to do originaly.....[^]
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Post by John F »

My thanks to all; your advice & help is greatly appreciated. [:D][:D]
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Post by alan s »

I often hear people talk about their fear of hitting spheres with a chisel but the metal on them is about 4mm thick and the outer surface spherical. How many hits & how hard would it have to be hit to go through? Try cutting a dead one in half and you'll see what I mean.
If the fear of punching a hole in it is such a worry, use a pair of vice grips or stilsons and just loosen the charging nipple at the end. Do it carefully as even a half flat sphere had a lot of pressure in there, and then all you are really hitting is a big hollow steel ball.
Don't hold too many ambitions of regassing afterwards though if it turns out to be a stubborn one that needs a lot of force.
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Post by Kowalski »

Even when I've used a sharp chisel on spheres that refused to move, I've never done much damage beyond marking the sphere.
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Post by mseymour »

Had similar troubles with mr rears, they'd been tightened on by the last monkey to replace them.
In the end the pleiades tool did the job, but it took some sharp shocks to get them to move.
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