[commodorenutt]

You need to allow for some movement of the shock - it changes angle as the suspension moves up & down, so you don't want anything that will try to hold the top of the shock firmly (in anything but a vertical direction) or it will create undue stress - resulting in accelerated wear, or failure.

Think of the old "wobble bar" sockets - you want to locate it solid in a vertical up/down direction, but still allow "sway" in the shaft/body of the shock, to allow it to move around in any direction (within limits). The most elegant (but expensive) solution would be a rose joint, but the repetitive chattering type movement will not only wear it out in a short time, but also transfer an immense amount of NVH.

This is where Sox was allowing for this movement by having the traditional 2-rubber top mounts for the shock. I think he had it pretty much spot on, and the only improvement would be to allow for a bit more sideways flex - but that's not so easy in the confined area.

The factory allow for this movement within the rubber - hence why it eventually wears & starts to break down.