I received my new Hellwig rear sway bar part number 55868. I bought it from a authorized dealer off of ebay. It took a few days but it's here. I found this:
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b371/Bowtie70SS/IMG_0372.jpg
A package from a helicoil kit

I also found that I needed to assemble the sway bar end links no problem except...

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b371/Bowtie70SS/IMG_0370.jpg

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b371/Bowtie70SS/IMG_0368.jpg

I fixed the steel inserts by chamfering them on my bench grinder like this

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b371/Bowtie70SS/IMG_0371.jpg

It is the one on the right. I filed the ends flat as well. I tried to push one through the bushing but the ends dug into the bushing. I am a little concerned about the one end link in the picture and how it looks welded on crooked. Are these made in China? I hate to say it but my Chinese control arms have better welds. Is there any reason I could not just use heim joints on the ends?

That doesn't look right at all. My bushing inserts were all smooth and squared. It almost looks like someone did a hack job trying to replace missing pieces in the kit.

I couldn't get the camera up far enough but the welds are clean on mine.
http://i284.photobucket.com/albums/ll18/rogers98_photos/DSCF2323.jpg

http://i284.photobucket.com/albums/ll18/rogers98_photos/DSCF2527.jpg

I did buy the kit from someone who claimed to be a authorized dealer...they have 17591 feedback with 99.6% positive (Neverenoughauto). I think they had it drop shipped from Hellwig. You are right though Genpac it does almost look like someone tried to replace some missing components. I am gonna make it work but I am just a little disappointed in the quality.

I did buy the kit from someone who claimed to be a authorized dealer...they have 17591 feedback with 99.6% positive (Neverenoughauto). I think they had it drop shipped from Hellwig. You are right though Genpac it does almost look like someone tried to replace some missing components. I am gonna make it work but I am just a little disappointed in the quality.

Give Dave Wheeler a call at Hellwig (1-800-367-5480 x36 they're on Pacific Time), or PM him on the forum here. He will be able to tell you if that ebay vendor is a dealer for Hellwig and he will probably be able to help you with the parts that look shady. He was very helpful for a previous issue I had regarding a purchase.

No offense but thats why you should buy from REPUTABLE distributors. SC&C is a supplier as well, Im sure Mark wouldnt send you that.

Point being is that in the end how much did you save by grabbing up the cheaper deal from Ebay?

Im saying this to promote the guys and shops that sell alot of this stuff at just above cost yet spend hours a day on the phone UNPAID to talk people through purchases as well as tech questions ect.

The small premium paid to the guys that stand behind what they sell should be more than worth the cost.

Shopping for the best deal is all well and good but price isnt the only factor you should consider in a purchase. Customer service, knowledgeable technical advise, good reputation all should pay that few extra bucks in price difference.

I feel bad you got screwed by an EBAY seller but at the same time a quick search of this site would have pointed you towards a dealer that more than makes up for the price.

I would suggest to anybody that Ebay is not the way to go for anything but the most mundane type of parts. There absolutely no way to tell if what youre getting is the real deal

I think they had it drop shipped from Hellwig. You are right though Genpac it does almost look like someone tried to replace some missing components. I am gonna make it work but I am just a little disappointed in the quality.

If this is true, it would have had an invoice (picking ticket) on the box with the vendor's information in the 'sold to' section and your info in the 'ship to' section. Both front and rear bars I purchased were drop shipped from Hellwig with the above picking ticket info. Another give-away would be if it came from Visalia, Ca where Hellwig is located.

*ish happens sometimes but it's how the vendor or manufacturer makes things right again is what counts. Hellwig corrected my problem and went above and beyond to make sure I received exactly what I ordered and in the condition a customer should expect. Dave has earned my business in the future for the quick remedy and his attitude through the process.

I'm with Dan in my experiences with Dave@Hellwig and the rear bar. They did send me the wrong bar to begin with so i'm not sure if they're still trying to figure out processes around drop shipments. His follow-up was good to resolve though. Everyone makes mistakes but it's how they fix the problem that matters to me and will make me buy from them again. I'm sorry you had to go through this. That truly blows...

I did have your problem with the steel inserts digging in. Wish I thought about your chamfering idea. Easy fix. Hope Dave picks up on that and is able to incorporate into the product.

The place I bought it from did seem very professional and with 15,000+ feedback on ebay they must be doing something right. I will check to see where it shipped from when I get home. Also it is a great idea to give them a call but I don't know what I can have them do since this just appears to be their design. Maybe they just need some input so they can reconsider the way the links are made/assembled.

No offense but thats why you should buy from REPUTABLE distributors. SC&C is a supplier as well, Im sure Mark wouldnt send you that.

Point being is that in the end how much did you save by grabbing up the cheaper deal from Ebay?

Im saying this to promote the guys and shops that sell alot of this stuff at just above cost yet spend hours a day on the phone UNPAID to talk people through purchases as well as tech questions ect.

The small premium paid to the guys that stand behind what they sell should be more than worth the cost.

Shopping for the best deal is all well and good but price isnt the only factor you should consider in a purchase. Customer service, knowledgeable technical advise, good reputation all should pay that few extra bucks in price difference.

I feel bad you got screwed by an EBAY seller but at the same time a quick search of this site would have pointed you towards a dealer that more than makes up for the price.

I would suggest to anybody that Ebay is not the way to go for anything but the most mundane type of parts. There absolutely no way to tell if what youre getting is the real deal


I ordered my Helwig bars through SC&C and they were drop shipped direct from Helwig, so Mark never actually even saw them. Mine took forever to get, because at the time all the bars had to be sent back to be repowdercoated due to defects. I got them and they still look like hammered ass. The powdercoating looks terrible, and everywhee there is a bend in the bars you can see the stress marks and goughes on the metal. I bolted them up and are going to use them the way they are. I just got tired of waiting. BTW, Im not throwing any disrespect toward Mark at SC&C because he has been nothing but helpful to me. My bars were drop shipped to get them to me faster. And, I never reported the problem to Mark or Helwig, but these bars should have never been shipped with the powdercoating looking like it is. I had my entire frame powdercoated in silver vein without any of the black rub marks like on my sway bars.

http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv237/317millhand/swaybars001.jpg
http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv237/317millhand/swaybars002.jpg

Mine is perfect. All parts, pieces, and performance were outstanding. Fit and finish were great. Highly recommended!

I can`t help with eBay dealers and what they do or sell. The Helicoil kit package is really freakin' strange... I do know that a reputable dealer will bend over backwards to make something right if it`s wrong. What did the dealer say when you contacted him? I worked extensively with Hellwig to develop that bar and I`ve never seen a Hellwig end link that was all screwed up like that. FWIW Hellwig makes all of their hardware in house (CA.) from US materials. Call David and he`ll sort it out. Hellwig is awesome to work with. :yes:

We get comments from time to time on the Hellwig bars finish and how the surface isn`t perfectly smooth. There`s a very good reason for that, the solid bars are hot die forged. It`s the ultimate way to build a solid bar because the grain structuture is at it`s relaxed state when it`s done and the bars are unbelievably strong. Like any forging they have a slightly rough texture and you may see a mark here or there from the die. The silver vein finish takes some flak for it`s texture as well but again there are very good reasons why they use it. Poly bushings exhibit a high degree of static friction, the silver vein reduces the sufrace contact area and reduces that friction so the bar functions more smoothly. It also forms recesses that retain grease and extend the lubrication intervals by a lot. The surface color will smudge a little with handling but it`s much tougher than regular single stage powder coating. They may sacrifice a little glamour factor for hardcore strength and better function but that`s a trade I`ll take any day. Mark SC&C

We purchase our inserts from a couple of suppliers. I'll have to look into this regarding the QC on these parts. We have shipped out hundreds of these kits w/o issues. Contact me at 559-734-7451 x36 and we'll make this right.

317 millhand - The bars you have are hot formed and heat treated 4140 steel. There will be tooling marks due to the bars being heated to 1600 deg f, formed on a die and quenched in oil. The upside is the bar will out last the vehicle as it has a 180,000 psi tensile strength. We make the bars for the US border patrol as they snap the factory bars in a matter of weeks. They put our bars on before the vehicle goes into service and we haven't had a broken sway bar in 7 years with them. As far as the finish goes, if they came out of the box like that, give me a call at 559-734-7451 x36 and I'll have them recoated and cover the shipping.

Talked to Dave today and he could not have been nicer. He is sending out a new set of end links and I even bought a front bar since I was so happy with the service. THANK YOU. I can't see where anyone would ever have an issue that they would not take care of.

Dave

Thanks for the offer Dave, but Im just gonna use the bars as is. They did come out of the box that way and I received the front and rear bars several weeks apart. The coating is rough on both bars. If it were gonna be a show car I would have called as soon as I got them. But, Im gonna drive the SH$% out of this thing and they will be dinged a scratched withing a few weeks after getting the car on the road. I may actually end up ditching the solid rear bar and getting one of the new adjustable ones through Mark later on. And I never questioned the reliability of your parts. If Mark recommends it, then its good enough for me. I only posted my problem to show that things do slip through the cracks at quality control no matter what, and its not the fault of the vendor that sells the parts no matter where you get them from. The vendors normally dont even open the parts.

Correct. As stated, we had the parts shipped to you directly from Hellwig and never even saw the parts. Had they been shipped from our location and from our inventory - honestly - we never would have saw it either as we dont open and inspect every kit that comes in or out. We make the assumption that if its cleared the manufacturers QC and went out their door - its right on. Glad to hear Hellwig took care of you though.
For future reference though if you have a problem with a part, contact us. We're the real deal and would have taken care of all this for you. That is why we have a full staff of customer service reps and we work very closely with Dave, Nancy and the rest of the gang at Hellwig. Doesnt matter so much where you buy from (ebay, website...) but who you buy from and if they'll stand behind your purchase if theres an issue. We do.
Thank you again for the order.

Wow.....no flies on you, Brad at NEVERENOUGH"TIME"AUTO this thread is 14 months old.

Fondly, Tony