Re: Axles & King Pins

Posted by carla on May 10, 1998 at 20:05:39

In Reply to: Re: Axles & King Pins
posted by H. L. Chauvin on May 10, 1998 at 17:05:25

: :redoing front end ... king pin holes ends of axle are worn oversize ... old king pins held in place with brass shims made especially for that purpose, had a couple of suggestions for fixes ... have machine shop true up the holes and sleeve them to the proper size (whatever that may be)... other, have machine shop enlarge holes and press in spindle bolt bushings ... anyone know if either of these alternatives is preferable, or if there is another fix I don't know about?Thanks.
: Hi Roger,If I read you correctly, the brass shims you describe may actually be the original bushings made for the axle, 2 per axle.
:Bratton's and Snyder's have a book by Paul Moller, "Model A Ford Restoration and Maintenance Handbook, Volume 1", $6.00 or so, which has a very good article with photographs for restoring front axles. I'd get the book first and go from there.
:Older loose bushings should be entirely removed and replaced with new bushings, along with new felts etc. depending on your situation.If king pins are worn, you may need new king pins.(See referenced book above).
:When installing bushings, (press fit, in vice or other clamping device), be sure to line up hole in side of bushing with hole in axle to allow grease to enter bushing.After both bushings are installed, align-ream both bushings with an .814 reamer tool & install king pins in new bushings.
: If bushings are loose in axle, don't give up;look into "J-B Weld" at your local hardware store for holding bushings in place, as they say "Don't scrap it, J-B it" -- good for gas tanks, axles key ways, radiators, cracked blocks, spring shackle bushings, broken castings, etc.
: Let us know what you find!
: Best wishes, Henry
:
hi henry---it looks to me as though roger meant that the bores
in the axle itself had become ovaled--in my opinion it would be best if at all possible to replace the axle--the axle can
be honed out and bushed of course but it would be a little
tricky to make a good durable job of it---the flats at the top
and bottom of the king-pin bore are likely to be worn out of
squareness--i personally would be very unsure of devcon
plastic steel or j-b weld except as a short term expedient
or for very limited service--that area sees pretty heavy
loadings as the car is hammered over ruts, potholes, etc.
thats just my 2 cts worth, tho--maybe the epoxies are a
lot better than i think.
carla

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