1915 tie rod ball caps
Forum rules
If you need help logging in, or have question about how something works, use the Support forum located here Support Forum
Complete set of Forum Rules Forum Rules
If you need help logging in, or have question about how something works, use the Support forum located here Support Forum
Complete set of Forum Rules Forum Rules
-
bobt
Topic author - Posts: 288
- Joined: Tue Aug 13, 2019 5:43 am
- First Name: Robert
- Last Name: Thompson
- * REQUIRED* Type and Year of Model Ts owned: 1915 touring 1926 roadster
- Location: virginia
1915 tie rod ball caps
I just replaced one of my tie rod / pittman arm ball caps with a new spring loaded one from Langs. When I removed the old one that I THOUGHT was spring loaded, It wasn't. the old one looked exactly like a spring loaded one but had no spring in it and had
-
bobt
Topic author - Posts: 288
- Joined: Tue Aug 13, 2019 5:43 am
- First Name: Robert
- Last Name: Thompson
- * REQUIRED* Type and Year of Model Ts owned: 1915 touring 1926 roadster
- Location: virginia
Re: 1915 tie rod ball caps
I'm guessing I fat fingered something while I was typing my question??? anyway, The old cap had TWO shims on either side of the ball. The shims were thick and had holes in the center of them?? My question is...Should I keep the one shim in on the tie rod end? I hope this post makes sense! bobt. 1915 touring
-
John kuehn
- Posts: 4433
- Joined: Sun Jan 06, 2019 8:00 pm
- First Name: John
- Last Name: Kuehn
- * REQUIRED* Type and Year of Model Ts owned: 19 Roadster, 21 Touring, 24 Coupe
- Location: Texas
Re: 1915 tie rod ball caps
Maybe the spring was missing in the old one? Or?
-
Craig Leach
- Posts: 1906
- Joined: Tue Jan 08, 2019 12:22 am
- First Name: craig
- Last Name: leach
- * REQUIRED* Type and Year of Model Ts owned: 1919 Firetruck/1922 Speedster
- Location: Laveen Az
Re: 1915 tie rod ball caps
Hi Robert,
This is one of those a picture is worth a thousand words times. It sounds like someone before you has made some shims out of washers?
The thing to find out now is just what is worn out, the drag link or the pitman arm or both? it is best to think of the APCO cap as a
maintenance item instead of a repair part. If the ball on the pitman arm looks like a egg it's time to replace it. Same goes for the other
end. I personally like & use the APCO ends, Henry liked them too because he made that system standard in 1928.
Craig.
This is one of those a picture is worth a thousand words times. It sounds like someone before you has made some shims out of washers?
The thing to find out now is just what is worn out, the drag link or the pitman arm or both? it is best to think of the APCO cap as a
maintenance item instead of a repair part. If the ball on the pitman arm looks like a egg it's time to replace it. Same goes for the other
end. I personally like & use the APCO ends, Henry liked them too because he made that system standard in 1928.
Craig.
-
Steve Jelf
- Posts: 7235
- Joined: Fri Jan 04, 2019 9:37 pm
- First Name: Steve
- Last Name: Jelf
- * REQUIRED* Type and Year of Model Ts owned: 1923 touring and a few projects
- Location: Parkerfield, Kansas
- Board Member Since: 2007
- Contact:
Re: 1915 tie rod ball caps
Yes, those shims were washers. If you have what looks like an Apco cap but it has no spring, I expect it is an Apco cap that has lost its spring.
The inevitable often happens.
1915 Runabout
1923 Touring
1915 Runabout
1923 Touring
-
Mark Nunn
- Posts: 1241
- Joined: Mon Jan 07, 2019 8:01 am
- First Name: Mark
- Last Name: Nunn
- * REQUIRED* Type and Year of Model Ts owned: 1926 Runabout
- Location: Bennington, NE
- Board Member Since: 2017
Re: 1915 tie rod ball caps
I bought a drag link with Apco caps that had no springs. They were filled with lead.
Last edited by Mark Nunn on Tue Nov 08, 2022 8:44 am, edited 1 time in total.
-
TXGOAT2
- Posts: 7391
- Joined: Sun Feb 14, 2021 10:08 pm
- First Name: Pat
- Last Name: McNallen
- * REQUIRED* Type and Year of Model Ts owned: 1926-7 roadster
- Location: Graham, Texas
- Board Member Since: 2021
Re: 1915 tie rod ball caps
Is it lead, or is it a decayed pot metal adjusting plug?
-
Jerry VanOoteghem
- Posts: 4082
- Joined: Sun Jan 06, 2019 4:06 pm
- First Name: Jerry
- Last Name: Van
- Location: S.E. Michigan
-
Jerry VanOoteghem
- Posts: 4082
- Joined: Sun Jan 06, 2019 4:06 pm
- First Name: Jerry
- Last Name: Van
- Location: S.E. Michigan
Re: 1915 tie rod ball caps
I'd completely remove any of the old, apparently cobbled together set-up, and use the new spring loaded cap as it was intended.bobt wrote: ↑Mon Nov 07, 2022 9:20 amI'm guessing I fat fingered something while I was typing my question??? anyway, The old cap had TWO shims on either side of the ball. The shims were thick and had holes in the center of them?? My question is...Should I keep the one shim in on the tie rod end? I hope this post makes sense! bobt. 1915 touring
-
Allan
- Posts: 6609
- Joined: Sun Jan 06, 2019 7:21 pm
- First Name: Allan
- Last Name: Bennett
- * REQUIRED* Type and Year of Model Ts owned: 1912 van, 1917 shooting brake, 1929 roadster buckboard, 1924 tourer, 1925 barn find buckboard, 1925 D &F wide body roadster, 1927LHD Tudor sedan.
- Location: Gawler, Australia
Re: 1915 tie rod ball caps
The ball caps are on the drag link, not the tie rod. There is a way to do this job to avoid any cobbling together of various worn bits.
New pitman arms and standard ball caps are available A new straight shank tie rod end ball is available. Its shank can be threaded. The old ball on the tie rod can be cut off, the rod drilled and tapped to take the new threaded ball. The only worn parts left to work with are the two yokes on the drag link. Shims are available for these. Doing it this way gets you back to round balls on the joints and a smooth action with no binding.
Allan from down under.
New pitman arms and standard ball caps are available A new straight shank tie rod end ball is available. Its shank can be threaded. The old ball on the tie rod can be cut off, the rod drilled and tapped to take the new threaded ball. The only worn parts left to work with are the two yokes on the drag link. Shims are available for these. Doing it this way gets you back to round balls on the joints and a smooth action with no binding.
Allan from down under.