Another MOT passed...still broken though!

[Foeux]

Dear Chums,

Continued thanks for keeping this resource alive. Had a bit of welding for the MOT but it continues to go. My volvo is 235k miles and counting; often I come here to check I am doing something right... Thank you.

I'd like confirmation that I am about to buy the right thing...

PROP BEARING

Despite the fresh MOT, the prop centre bearing is goosed (noisy and feels rough to rotate by hand when you drop the plate and detach the carrier from it and twirl it manually - no vibration driving though).

The car is specified as follows:

1995 N/A 2.3 petrol, manual gearbox (M47). It has a 1031 diff with a 3.54 ratio (no LSD tag anywhere on the diff P1216448 T102035). The prop is numbered 1340372 P10 DX95 1. VIN YV19455833S1######. YV1 - CARS, 945 - Vehicle Type, 83 - B230FD (+Pulsair and EGR), 3 - M47, S - 1995, 1 - Torslanda Plant built, ###### - chassis number

Female bit of prop going into the front bit where the support bearing is measures 29.72mm. The main chunks of prop I was able to measure were 50.95mm and 50.87mm. It looked to get a bit thinner where the bearing is pressed on but was unable to get vernier right in there.

I assume my prop is the thinner of the two, is this correct?

Here is the bearing eBay recommends. £38.99 inc. shipping and VAT.

Is there a better alternative?

SHOCKS

In cleaning the car for MOT (wheels off and 10lb+ of mud removed from inside arches) I noticed that

1) The rear shocks are very fat on top (maybe 2.5" dia), very tired looking and leaky.
2) The gaiters that run from the middle of the shock to the bottom have degraded away to a few casual rings of grubby rubber in the vicinity of the bottom of the shock shaft...
3) The shock mounts into the lower arm by a single bolt through a circular rubber bushing at the bottom of the shock. It then bolts up into a covered hole in the wheel arch.
4) the shocks seem to have been a pale blue colour at the bottom once upon a time...

Using Parts for Volvos, their Bilstein B4 kit, the HD rear springs, the standard front springs and then top mounts and bearings, the price comes to £432 inc. shipping and VAT.

Is this a good price?
Are these decent shocks?
Would you go another route for a similar price?

Thanks,

F.