Darn U Joint Pin *&^%$&**

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Model T Ford Forum: Forum 2013: Darn U Joint Pin *&^%$&**
Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Bud Holzschuh - Panama City, FL on Wednesday, September 25, 2013 - 05:37 pm:

Rear end is done! New bearings, bushings, etc.
Ready to install, except ..... for the u joint pin!

It will not fit! With the U joint out the pin slips completely through the U joint - just slightly snug.

With the driveshaft aligned with the housing holes, I can pass the pin through the driveshaft easily.

But ... once the U joint is installed (and tapped lightly to ensure a good seating, the pin will not go in - even with gentle taping with a hammer.

The U joint is NOT bottoming out against the brass bushing - it just won't go on the driveshaft far enough.

Visual inspection shows that the holes appear to be lining up fine, but they must be misaligned by a few thousandths.

So ... how do I get that universal a few thousandths further on the shaft ??


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Stephen D Heatherly on Wednesday, September 25, 2013 - 05:53 pm:

Bud, how do you know the U- Joint is not bottoming out on the bushing? I would take the drive shaft out of the tube and slip on the U- Joint. Now try and install the pin. If it goes in something in the tube is preventing the U- Joint from going all the way in. If not, there is an issue with the drive shaft or U- Joint.

Stephen


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Ken Kopsky, Lytle TX on Wednesday, September 25, 2013 - 06:03 pm:

Check to see if there's dirt/crud build up inside the u-joint square end.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By John F. Regan on Wednesday, September 25, 2013 - 06:12 pm:

Is this a new repro ujoint or an original? Same question about the drive shaft?


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By oscar was on Wednesday, September 25, 2013 - 06:28 pm:

If your running the modern pinion, why pin it, been running one over forty thousand miles, not needed. O.G.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Bud Holzschuh - Panama City, FL on Wednesday, September 25, 2013 - 06:38 pm:

I put dye on the U joint facing - none transfered to the bushing therefore no contact.

U joint female end: ran a flat file inside on all 4 surfaces and the edge of the file on the champferred (sp?) corners - clean as a whistle.

U joint is either NOS or very lightly used - no play to speak of at all. Drive shaft is the original in the car (15 touring). When the original pin was removed, it was loose.

Also, when the U joint is hand fitted to the shaft its misaligned by 10 or 20 thousandths ( eyeball estimate). Tapping it on with a small hammer reduces the misalignment to only a few thousandths.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By John F. Regan on Wednesday, September 25, 2013 - 07:17 pm:

Lots of NOS parts have problems. Saw a perfect early NOS front hub. Bought it. It was wrongly machined and horribly out of round. Unusable. I think it may have been part of the loot that Henry shipped out to dealers to finance his stock holder buy out plan. Tons of parts were shipped out to dealers who were forced to buy it or lose their dealerships. Parts were from everywhere in the factory and it would appear that many of those parts were in a corner of a room for a reason.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Kerry van Ekeren (Australia) on Wednesday, September 25, 2013 - 07:22 pm:

And the rest of the 'nearly will work parts', he must have sent on to Canada to export!!


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Ted Dumas on Wednesday, September 25, 2013 - 10:09 pm:

Clean out the bottom of the u-joint a little crud there could cause your problem. Its also possible the sharp edge of the pin is clipping the edge of the hole in the drive shaft. You might kiss one end of the pin with a small chamfer.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Royce in Dallas TX on Thursday, September 26, 2013 - 07:04 am:

The U Joint might be a reproduction from 50 years ago, or a part from Pep Boys or Western Auto from 75 years ago. You just have to make it work. It's not rocket surgery!


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Larry Smith on Thursday, September 26, 2013 - 09:26 am:

If the pin passes through the u-joint holes ok, you probably didn't face enough off of the front driveshaft bushing.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Roger Karlsson, southern Sweden on Thursday, September 26, 2013 - 09:38 am:

Do you have a round file fitting the hole? If there's just a few thousands misalignment, filing to getting the rivet pin in wouldn't be so bad, the pin would grow to fit the hole when riveting anyway.

When riveting you need a screw fitting the u-joint pin access holes, screw it in so it supports the u-joint when you start riveting. You can shift sides of the support screw to rivet the pin on both sides.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Bud Holzschuh - Panama City, FL on Thursday, September 26, 2013 - 09:48 am:

Think I will try a slight chamfer on the pin first, and if that doesn't work a small round file on the U joint hole.

The misalignment is so small I could probably force it on further with a couple good whacks with a hammer ..bet, I don't want to take the chance of screwing up the pinion alignment.

I'll report back when I'm successful.

Thanks all


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By John F. Regan on Thursday, September 26, 2013 - 10:45 am:

No hammering on the ujoint allowed other than upsetting the head of the ujoint pin. Don't leave the pin out.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Norman T. Kling on Thursday, September 26, 2013 - 11:27 am:

You don't even need to unscrew the bolt and screw in the other hole! Just rotate the driveshaft one half turn and leave the bolt in the same hole for riveting.

From reading the above, I would think either a small round file or chamfering the pin would work. I'd try the pin first then you won't remove any material from the u joint or the driveshaft. Just enough to get the pin through then rivet the pin in place.
Norm


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Ken Todd on Thursday, September 26, 2013 - 11:36 am:

Why not take just a smidgen offn the end of the driveshaft?


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Stan Howe Helena, Montana on Thursday, September 26, 2013 - 12:10 pm:

The bolt from the back end of the radius rod is the correct size (1/2 x 18 threads per inch) When you insert the pin, one end should be upset to form a rivet head. Tap the pin in, turn the drive shaft so the upset head is in line with the hole, screw the bolt in TIGHT, support the bolt HEAD on your anvil or solid surface and use a center punch on the end that is accessible through the upper hole. A punch every quarter around will hold the pin in. Do not hammer on it with a big hammer without the head of the bolt being supported. Remove the support bolt and spin the drive shaft to make sure it is not hitting the inside of the tube.

Before smacking on the pin run a couple 3/8ths bolts through the holes in the end of the tube to hold it all in line or just insert the spool bolts to keep it lined up.

If you do a bunch of them like I have done in the past, 15 minutes to make a little jig to hold the assembly in the right position while you punch the ends of the pin is worth your time.

Using a roll pin seems like a good idea until it comes out and cuts the end of the drive shaft tube off while you are going down the road. A roll pin is hardened spring steel with a tapered edge that is just like a cutter and will slice right though the tube. The T rivet is soft iron and will not cut the tube before you can hear it and fix it. It probably would bend over or grind the end away before it would cut the tube. The drive shaft is turning engine speed in high gear. A roll pin will cut that tube in two in ten or fifteen seconds at speed. It is a cutter turning 1000 RPM or more. If you have a roll pin in there, take it out before it causes problems.



Make sure you drill the hole for the grease fitting before you rivet the U joint on to the shaft. It's time consuming and frustrating to have to remove the pin, U joint and drive shaft to drill the hole. Ask me how I know that.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Jerry VanOoteghem on Thursday, September 26, 2013 - 01:21 pm:

Bud,

If everything looks really close but doesn't assemble, just run a reamer through the u-joint while it's slipped over the driveshaft to remove that last little bit of interference.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Bud Holzschuh - Panama City, FL on Friday, September 27, 2013 - 06:06 pm:

Thanks all for the suggestions, here is what I finally found:

It was a combination of two things. First and probably most important, I was wrong ..... the end of the U joint was contacting the driveshaft bushing. I tried dye but none transfered so I thought I was fine there. I had also faced off the drive shaft bushing probably 60 thousandths or so, and thought no way the bushing could interfere with the U joint. Wrong.

When I realized the problem, there was no way I was gonna take the drive shaft/tube apart to pull the bushing, so I took a little off the end of the U joint. Problem solved.

The Pin still didn't want to go in but a little grinding to chamfer the end, and it fit (snuggly).

Rear end already installed, brakes tomorrow, and I'll be on the road again !!

Again, thanks for all the suggestions!


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