I posted about my knackered kingpins over in Readers Rides, well I got a chance to put them back in last night. Had a (new) mate ream the bushes for me and he's done a top job. This is an old vs new comparison:
Check out the step, that's got to be bad
It's transformed the car, the steering is tight as it should be, doesn't wander about and the brakes now pull the car up in a straight line as it should do
Some pics, cleaned up spindle with the brake back plate bolted up. Decided to clean out and re-pack the wheel bearings while I was at it:
Round the back of that is where the kingpin goes. Drops through the top of the spindle, through the axle and through the bottom bush in the spindle. It's held in place by a big cotter pin and there's a bronze bush under the axle to steer on:
Then I drove it from deepest darkest Kent up to the Frankie and Bennies on the A21 as there were a few hotrods and chops meeting up. Great drive getting it all out of shape on the roundabouts and generally being irresponsible but meh you only live once and it's not as if I was going very fast. There were a couple of really tidy rodded Pilots and a fresh out grey Pop running a modern 4 cylinder and sitting real low over a narrow axle. Quite a few Harleys down there.
Needed some money so jumped back in the car to find a cash point. Got about 50 yards up the road and it conked out completely and wouldn't start. Right on cue a drunk bloke with a kebab turned up "aaaaaah thaaaas a well niiiiice motor...." staggering about in the middle of the road. Thought it was sparks again but when I checked the filter it was blocked up solid and no petrol was being pumped through. Cleaned it out, fired it up and drove on and it's been fine since. I need to post a picture of how much curse word I cleaned out the tank already. It's about a third of an ice cream tub of silty sandy rusty stuff, but obviously didn't get enough out. Better leave that tarp in the back...
Check out the step, that's got to be bad
It's transformed the car, the steering is tight as it should be, doesn't wander about and the brakes now pull the car up in a straight line as it should do
Some pics, cleaned up spindle with the brake back plate bolted up. Decided to clean out and re-pack the wheel bearings while I was at it:
Round the back of that is where the kingpin goes. Drops through the top of the spindle, through the axle and through the bottom bush in the spindle. It's held in place by a big cotter pin and there's a bronze bush under the axle to steer on:
Then I drove it from deepest darkest Kent up to the Frankie and Bennies on the A21 as there were a few hotrods and chops meeting up. Great drive getting it all out of shape on the roundabouts and generally being irresponsible but meh you only live once and it's not as if I was going very fast. There were a couple of really tidy rodded Pilots and a fresh out grey Pop running a modern 4 cylinder and sitting real low over a narrow axle. Quite a few Harleys down there.
Needed some money so jumped back in the car to find a cash point. Got about 50 yards up the road and it conked out completely and wouldn't start. Right on cue a drunk bloke with a kebab turned up "aaaaaah thaaaas a well niiiiice motor...." staggering about in the middle of the road. Thought it was sparks again but when I checked the filter it was blocked up solid and no petrol was being pumped through. Cleaned it out, fired it up and drove on and it's been fine since. I need to post a picture of how much curse word I cleaned out the tank already. It's about a third of an ice cream tub of silty sandy rusty stuff, but obviously didn't get enough out. Better leave that tarp in the back...
