MTFCA Forum

How do I remove the driveshaft bushing?

They make a puller for that purpose or you can try to carefully drive it out. I tried to drive it with my drive shaft (which I was replacing) and sheared off some of the rivet heads holding the ball on. I was able to replace them but it made what looked like a simple job much more complicated. Langs sells a puller for $27 - maybe someone on the forum will read this and offer to loan you one. I would but I don't have one.

I believe I built mine from a tinkering tips manual. It consists of a 1/2" pipe cap machined a bit to fit into the base of the bushing & 4 wide notches to clear the rivets. The cap is screwed onto a pipe one foot longer than the drive shaft. Carefully align the cap to clear the rivets & hit the end of the pipe. Very effective. Be sure to clear the rivets. If you shear those rivets, you made a whole lot of extra work to fix, to the point of being easier to start over with a second D.S. tube.

The pipe cap machining looks like the business end of that Langs tool.

I’ve used this several times with success. I took a thick washer and ground down the sides to clear the rivets inside of the tube. The washer fit over the threaded end of an old steering shaft and was just the right length to be able to knock out the old bushing. You could also use a length of pipe instead of a steering shaft.

Will wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 24, 2025 10:45 am

How do I remove the driveshaft bushing?

DIY tool https://modeltfordfix.com/rebuilding-the-drive-shaft/
The tool is made from 1/2″ galvanized pipe, a piece that is 60 inches (5 feet) long. 1/2″ water pipe measures .840″ on its outside diameter, the size designation refers to the inside diameter. The cap measures a little less than 1 inch outside diameter at its smallest dimension – perfect for our tool.
The notches need to be deep enough & wide enough to clear the rivets. Insert from the spool end

TRDxB2 wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 24, 2025 2:42 pm

Will wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 24, 2025 10:45 am

How do I remove the driveshaft bushing?

DIY tool https://modeltfordfix.com/rebuilding-the-drive-shaft/
The tool is made from 1/2″ galvanized pipe, a piece that is 60 inches (5 feet) long. 1/2″ water pipe measures .840″ on its outside diameter, the size designation refers to the inside diameter. The cap measures a little less than 1 inch outside diameter at its smallest dimension – perfect for our tool.
The notches need to be deep enough & wide enough to clear the rivets. Insert from the spool end

Yea, thats the tool.
Good article.
The only thing I would add is to lap the pinion gear to the D.S. taper. Makes for 100% taper contact. Wont get loose or turn.

You also need the tool for reaming the bushing to fit the driveshaft.

Mine is just like Frank's. Variations in the pipe cap shapes and galvanised coating may mean you have to run a bit off the outside Of the cap, but this just makes the register on the raised collar that much cleaner and better.

Allan from down under.

Thanks everyone for your help, Being this is my first time removing the bushing I'm going to wait until I can get a friend to walk me through it. I could be only one sheered off rivet for a major from job.

Oldav8tor wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 24, 2025 10:55 am

They make a puller for that purpose or you can try to carefully drive it out. I tried to drive it with my drive shaft (which I was replacing) and sheared off some of the rivet heads holding the ball on. I was able to replace them but it made what looked like a simple job much more complicated. Langs sells a puller for $27 - maybe someone on the forum will read this and offer to loan you one. I would but I don't have one.
126l.jpg

I used this tool when I did mine this last winter. It works great! but I also added a big flat washer under the nut and smeared grease on both surfaces and on the threads. Turns so much easier and popped the bushing out effortlessly. You also want to get the installer and ream tool to face off the new bushing when putting the new universal on. Don't forget to drill the grease hole in your new bushing before installing the driveshaft.

A 3/4" pipe tap is the perfect size to screw into the old driveshaft bushing. With the tap in place, its an easy job to use any stiff rod to drive the tap and old bushing out of the driveshaft tube- no special tools required.

Dan McEachern wrote: ↑

Tue Aug 26, 2025 4:11 pm

A 3/4" pipe tap is the perfect size to screw into the old driveshaft bushing. With the tap in place, its an easy job to use any stiff rod to drive the tap and old bushing out of the driveshaft tube- no special tools required.

What he said^^^

Dan McEachern wrote: ↑

Tue Aug 26, 2025 4:11 pm

A 3/4" pipe tap is the perfect size to screw into the old driveshaft bushing . . .

I’ve had good results using a tap to remove “blind” or flanged bushings. Perhaps Frank’s shop-made tool would be economical for some. The cheapest 3/4” pipe tap listed in McMaster-Carr is $97.87. YMMV

The use of a tap is easy, use a tap to remove spindle bushings too.

On my removals, I have an old steering post, the end is tapered, no fear of hitting torque tube rivets. To the threaded end added a std. bushing driver, from a China made set of bushing drivers. Nut fastened to the pitman arm threads.


A whack with my favorite Model T tool takes it out!

Rich P. Bingham wrote: ↑

Tue Aug 26, 2025 6:57 pm

Dan McEachern wrote: ↑

Tue Aug 26, 2025 4:11 pm

A 3/4" pipe tap is the perfect size to screw into the old driveshaft bushing . . .

I’ve had good results using a tap to remove “blind” or flanged bushings. Perhaps Frank’s shop-made tool would be economical for some. The cheapest 3/4” pipe tap listed in McMaster-Carr is $97.87. YMMV

The cheapest 3/4" tap on eBay is $8.98, with free shipping.

While I often over think things and fabricate fixtures for the close to dozen driveshaft bushings I have removed I go simple.
Dig in the toolbox and find a socket that has the OD to clear the rivets and not go in the shaft hole.
Drop it in the shaft to the bottom and shake into place.
Stand it up on a wood block
Drive it out with a rod of your choice (a junk driveshaft or pipe works great) and remove all the pieces.
Done, proceed with cleaning.

And on the one driveshaft I re-riveted due to replacing a broken flange, those rivets are a big pain to install.
Mike

Oldav8tor wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 24, 2025 10:55 am

They make a puller for that purpose or you can try to carefully drive it out. I tried to drive it with my drive shaft (which I was replacing) and sheared off some of the rivet heads holding the ball on. I was able to replace them but it made what looked like a simple job much more complicated. Langs sells a puller for $27 - maybe someone on the forum will read this and offer to loan you one. I would but I don't have one.
126l.jpg

I found out this week that this replica bushing puller tool will not work on a two piece driveshaft, or at least on the one that was installed on the early 1914 Touring that I am working on. The internal diameter on the two piece driveshafts is apparently smaller at the end with the rivets, because the tool was too big to get even to the rivet area. I spent time with a grinder and file making it smaller and smaller until it would get to the bushing, but it was still getting caught on the squashed rivets.

I finally decided to contact one of the members from our local T club who has the Stevens driveshaft tool set. That bushing extraction tool has some pop out arms, but otherwise works similar to the tool available from Langs etc. Yesterday I went to his house and the bushing was out in about the time it took to type this up! He also used the Stevens driveshaft sleeve puller to take off the sleeve so that I can install the Birdhaven/Fun Projects adjustable spool. Wow, that tool works really well to remove an otherwise stubborn sleeve.

Henry had a saying about the right tool for the job.
It fits here. Stevens made some of the best tools.
Sure hope he had the reamer for bushing and you used it while there.

Dan Hatch wrote: ↑

Sat Aug 30, 2025 8:17 am

Sure hope he had the reamer for bushing and you used it while there.

I will go back to use his Stevens reamer after I install the new bushing. At the same time, I'm planning on using his NOS magnet charger made by some company back in the day, to freshen up the magnets in the car's engine. It is really nice to have a friend with the right tools for the job!

Stevens also made a dud or two. Their early cast iron driveshaft sleeve puller was one. A really stubborn sleeve could see the puller breaking before it would budge. I was given one such broken tool. They made a revised version which was much better.

Allan from down under.