I have been thinking about fabricating some tubular control arms 
for the rear of my 128.  The stock bushings are worn and allow 
movement so hitting a bump would cause a change in rear toe.  
They probably do even when not worn.  Would spherical rod ends 
be ok to use on a street car?  I've heard they require routine 
servicing.  What kind of life-expectancy do they have?  Are 
there any types (teflon lined, etc) that are longer lasting or 
better for such an application?  How harsh do they make the 
ride?  Can anyone recommend a good source for them?

Courtney Waters
Davis (or San Anselmo), CA
'76 128 2-door
'72 124 Wagon (for sale or for parts)
'68 124 Wagon
http://www.mirafiori.com/~courtney

Courtney Waters wrote:
: Would spherical rod ends be ok to use on a street car?  I've
: heard they require routine servicing.

I've never done it for a street car... reasons to not do so 
include: prone to breakage due to severe suspension movements 
when hitting a pothole, increased road noise, and difficulty of  
keeping grit out of the joints (routine servicing means 
checking for slop due to grit wear and lubricating).

You know the reasons one wants to do it, so I won't bother with 
'em.  Sticking to the racing theme, this change isn't legal for 
SCCA Street Prepared unless the spherical rod ends are on a 
swaybar or other authorized addition like a panhard rod...

George Emery
gemery@aol.com
http://members.aol.com/gemery/scorpion.html