Polybush Rotoflex Couplings

[john2502]

Just wondered if anyone had any experience of them as they're marked as new on the Quiller Triumph website and i haven't found any threads with peoples experiences.

Am going to be converting the GT6 to CV anyway but just wondered, out of interest, if anyone had trialed them on their cars yet.

[xebec]

The question is do they have them as I emailed them a couple of months ago and they said they did not have any and could'nt tell me when they were likely to have some. I was interested in these however unable to try them as not available. Have you asked them whether they have any in stock?

[john2502]

I haven't asked no, just was interested as noticed them while browsing.

[uksnatcher]

I can see the demand for an alternative coupling as by all accounts the aftermarket ones are rubbish .......how much for an original....??!!!!

http://www.rimmerbros.co.uk/Item--i-GCD301

:D

I believe the problem is getting the metal bolt inserts to bond to the polyurethane as the couplings deflect at large angles and have to handle the twist or torque involved too?

[Slimboyfat]

Only as 'original' as the company that has made them recently owns the trade name.

They aren't made in the factory they were made in originaly, or by the people who produced them.

We bought the last batch of original (from the factory) couplings in about 2001, and immediately sold the majority of them to a larger Triumph trader.

In essence all couplings since then have been repro.

[uksnatcher]

Thanks Dave
So basically the 400 quid a pair couplings are possibly no better than the 80 quid a pair aftermarket ones, will do the job but don't expect too much from them.

Have you looked into the polyurethane coupling alternative as a product you could confidently sell? Looks like Quillers have not stocked them now for some time, quality issues?

[Slimboyfat]

No experiance of the 400 quid ones as I have never actually seen any in the flesh, or had any reports from anyone either good, or bad (has anyone actually bought any?)

I can however vouch for the recent QH couplings. Right up until QH went pop in January this year we were selling loads of the QH branded ones. They were as cheap as chips, and we never had one bad report from our customers about quality, or longevity (over about a 6 year period).

We can only hope that the recently bought out QH brand's new owners finds that manufacturer again and starts knocking them out.

There has never been a supply issue for the not so good repros, but we don't sell those (we haven't sold any type since the QH ones went).

[Slimboyfat]

uksnatcher wrote:

Thanks Dave
Have you looked into the polyurethane coupling alternative as a product you could confidently sell? Looks like Quillers have not stocked them now for some time, quality issues?

Sorry missed this bit.

We did look at it about 10 years ago but concluded with the help of a prominant polybush concern that it was a none starter.

There was some stiff tooling costs to be factored in, and I wasn't 100% convinced that it would work anyway.

[uksnatcher]

I agree with you on the QH (Quinton Hazell) items of any flavour being good quality items and 6 yrs+ with no complaints on the couplings has got to be good.

From past reading on here I believe the manufacture tools from QH have been acquired via auction from the original factory liquidation so fingers x'ed just as you say.

I don't think polybush would work either.
The polybush coupling is ok in a direct non flexing environment, great for vibration dampening but no good for excessive suspension movement or harsh torque.  Ford,Mercedes etc fit them to their vans in rubber form on the gearbox flange for the prop shaft IE direct straight drive, no flex. Marine applications for propeller shafts pollybush couplings are ideal, no vibration through the hull, straight through drive, no flex.

So either CV conversion or source decent rubber couplings for our motors me thinks, I bet somebody has bought them 200 quid couplings tho... :o

[heraldcoupe]

I think they'd be quite practical to make in poly, but I struggle to see how they could be priced competitively. Testing their longevity under lab conditions could be interesting too,

Cheers,
Bill.

[Nick Jones]

heraldcoupe wrote:

I think they'd be quite practical to make in poly, but I struggle to see how they could be priced competitively. Testing their longevity under lab conditions could be interesting too,

Cheers,
Bill.

I think you'd need a nice powerful Vitesse or GT6 "lab" and plenty of time, road and petrol.  I think I'd like to test them if you're paying the testing costs - can I apply?  :P

Nick

[Freebird]

uksnatcher wrote:

I agree with you on the QH (Quinton Hazell) items of any flavour being good quality items and 6 yrs+ with no complaints on the couplings has got to be good.

I had QH on my Vitesse when touring to Monaco in 2011. Just before the Milau bridge going south, one of the bolts holding the nearside coupling to the driveshaft sheared off leaving just two. You can imagine the deformation invloved, my son heard it clipping the handbrake cable - thats how we descovered the sheared bolt.

Not one to abandon a good holiday, we carried on and did 1500 miles like that, taking it easy. 15 miles from Calias on the way back the UJ disintegrated due to the vibration I guess. Did we stop, did we call out the recovery truck? of course not, just took it even easier. Got home and the rubber was still hanging on by a few threads.

I was well impressed.

[cook1e]

Interesting as I have steered clear of QH ones in the past just because of the rumours that only original genuine metalastic ones were any good. I did have some spares having managed to buy two new genuine one's on ebay for £25 a few years back (I think they had spelt rotoflex incorrectly as "rotaflex"  so no-one else saw them put in a bid :-) ) . I used my last spare earlier this year so from what I'm reading in this thread if I see any QH ones going cheap on ebay or at an autojumble it would be worth buying them to put in the spares cupboard.