Honing king pin bushings

[twistedtree]

I'm replacing my king pins and will need to ream or hone them to fit.  I tried the new pins in the old bushing and there is still lots of side play, so I need to replace both the bushings and pins.  I have an hydraulic press and can replace the bushings, but will still need to ream or hone them.

What kind of luck have you had with honing?  I've got a small brake cylinder hone that I figured I could use.  Is this realistic?

I know most people recommend taking it to a machine shop, but I don't know any in my area and don't want to experiment on this car.  Besides, the closest shop would be 45 minutes or more drive each way, hence really inconvenient.

[Benz Dr.]

I drive an hour and half one way just to get work like this done. You need all the right equipment to do this job right and I'm pretty sure you won't save anything by trying to do it yourself. I tried years ago and realised it just wasn't worth all the effort.

First of all, the bushings won't come out easily. Then they don't go back in easily. If you fit the bushing over a new king pin it will slide on freely but once you install the bushing the king pin won't fit at all. The bushing material will squeeze a bit which is why you need to hone the bushings. The hone needs to be long enough to do both bushings at the same time.

[ctaylor738]

I have always wondered why the bushings aren't supplied in the correct diameter.  Anybody?

[tel76]

Why not purchase from a mail order tool supplier a reamer and do it yourself,(they are not expensive) if you go down this route make sure you order the correct size adjustable reamer together with the correct pilot. The pilot may have a different name in the US.

[ja17]

Hello,

The bushings are actually forced into the housings. The tight sqeeze actually compresses the bushing enough to cause it to become a smaller internal diameter.  Since the amount of collapse is undetermined, reaming the bushing after installation is required.

In many cases the old bronze bushings do not wear, and simply replacing the king pins, gets everything back in specs.

I have a 14mm adjustable reamer which is fast and easy to clearance newly installed bushings.

[twistedtree]

I've ordered a new set of king pins and bushings to replace the tarnished ones I received earlier, and I've ordered an adjustable reamer.  I'll report back on how it works out.  I've replaced a lot of bushings, bearings, etc with my hydraulic press in the past, and hopefully it will get me through swapping out these bushings. 

Having to haul the parts off to a machine shop will effectively kill a whole day for me, so I'd really like to be able to do this myself.  Plus, I have 3 more cars after it, and so far 2 of the 2 cars I've inspected need king pins, so I'll be doing it again not too long from now.

[ja17]

Hello,

 Store the bushings in the freezer and warm the housing in the oven prior to installation to make installation much easier.

[twistedtree]

Even with a press?  Thanks for the tip.

[ja17]

Hello twistedtree,

It is up to you.  Less resistance during installation will result in less distortion of the bronze bushings.

[George Des]

I've had good luck using dry ice on these types of bushings. It's readily available at Harris-Teeter supermarkets. The bushings may just slip in w/o using a press once they are cooled this way. Like Joe said, there will be less possible distortion if you can avoid the press especially if you don't have a properly sized mandrel to press the bushing in with.

George Des

[ja17]

Hello,

Good suggestion on the dry ice. Heating the housings may not be practcal since any grease on it would create a  lot of grease smoke in  the wife's kitchen!

[twistedtree]

Yes, and in my case I still have the wheel and rotor attached.  But I'll still put the bushing in the freezer and perhaps heat the spindle with a torch before pressing in the bushings.

By the way, the adjustable reamer tool I ordered arrived today.