Front axle restoration
 

Contained in Model A News (J/A 2007) and The Restorer (J/A 2018) were
articles on the restoration or strightening of the front axle.

Has anyone attempted these process and if so, could you please give me your opinion on them and any other advice on the process and which would be the best way to proceed.

Thanks.

Pluck

Re: Front axle restoration
 

I have done the 2007 article - and the article is right on the money.

Others have opined that an axle can be straightened "on the car" using channels, pullers, pull-backs, fulcrums, pieces of 2" pipe and brute strength.

I have much less faith in this, particularly to knowing what exactly you have when you're done. You may correct a problem, or you may substitute one problem for another. And the worst part - you'll never know what you did.

The four "sight bars" are IMHO, the proof of the pudding. The only reservation I might have on this examining the article is the spring perch hole which in my experience is a little "oversize" compared to the forged spring perch used within it. Cone-fits at the top and on the nut are what "locates" the spring perch. Providing you can duplicate this cone/taper in your sighting rods (the original Victor Page illustrations used in his Model A book but taken from his earlier Model T book seem to do this) then all should be fine.

http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/411944/430604.jpg


IIRC, the article neglected these "cones" and substituted straight pieces of larger rod made to fit the hole(s)?

Joe K

Re: Front axle restoration
 

I got your message Steve and I will call you later, but in the interim, using rods to sight with and a press to straighten is the easiest way.

Re: Front axle restoration
 

Our car was hit on the drivers side front end at the wheel.

Accident broke wishbone top mount finger at axel on drivers side. The new/replacement wishbones mounting bolt holes on fingers would not line up with axel mounting holes. Axel was bent.

We took axel to truck front end shop. They fixed problem. Everything went back together properly. Front end alignment was than done. Car drivers and handles correctly.

If I had another bent axel. I would not try to fix it myself. I would again have a front end shop take care of it. They did not use heat. They had a big press. Enjoy.

Re: Front axle restoration
 

The hardest thing to straighten is when an axle has had a good bend in it at one time and a person has tried to straighten but ended up with a kink in it. This indicates too much stretch happened initially and straightening only made it worse.

Mild bends will come out with minimal or no blemishes left and a lot can be done cold. Heat can be used in straightening but it has to be done with experience and fore thought. They have dropped these axles for years without too many failures. Those that fail are generally not done well to begin with.

A person can get one straightened and still run into problems with the wish bone. They can be reformed as well but it doesn't have as many control points to check it from

Re: Front axle restoration
 

I've had good luck using drill rod and wrapping one end with enough masking tape to fit tightly in the perch and spindle holes. I space out two rings of tape so that one locates in the top of the hole and the other in the bottom: almost 2 inches apart. This way they center in the holes very well. The second picture shows white paper that I put up to provide a good view of rod alignment. This axle was way out.

Re: Front axle restoration
 

Sighting Rods are known to have been used by ancient "Primitive" people for whatever surveying they did! They work! However, one question, looking at that axle in the picture, It will come out of the process with no caster. Shouldn't or wouldn't it be better to add the caster angle now while it's out of the car? It seems like it would or does the car's weight etc. change it somehow?
Terry

Re: Front axle restoration
 

The pix is of a Model T axle which happens to be the pix used by Victor Page in his Model A Book. I think he was demonstrating use of the rods (and only two of them) I'm not familiar enough with the Model T axle to make a statement about Model T caster.

The Model A News and Restorer articles had FOUR rods IIRC - which to my mind will give more positive and repeatable results.

As to caster, that is controlled entirely by the condition of yoke end, wishbone rods or physical positioning of the wishbone. At least one in this thread mentioned damage to the wishbone as a possible cause of front end misalignment. I mentioned positioning with reference to the aftermarket wishbone ball seat which lowers the back end of the wishbone a smidge (technical term) and will increase caster. Fortunately not to any noticeable change in steering in my experience.

I am not aware of any standard or method to measure one's wishbones and assure correct caster. But how to apply this number to either an axle assembly or a wishbone out of the car? A number DOES exist. I think that was discussed earlier. BUT - technology to the rescue - don't most modern alignment machines measure caster? It is adjustable on modern cars, unlike the Model A with its limited defined by structure adjustment. One imagines the Model A caster number was a sort of "discovery" item found when someone actually put a Model A to an alignment machine?

IIRC, the front control arms on the VW Golf had "shims" at their inner pivot which could be moved front to back to change caster. The top of the McPherson strut was fixed on the car. The camber was adjustable at each strut to bearing housing connection. Toe was done on the rack & pinion tie rods.

Of course finding caster "out of spec" on a Model A would involve bending (straightening?) the wishbone to correct it.

And yes, caster will be modified as the front spring compresses and relaxes while driving.

Maybe just adding to the "dynamic experience?"

Joe K

Re: Front axle restoration
 

Are the holes in the Model A axle parallel as they appear in post #2, or angled as they appear in post #6. If angled, what is the angle and what are they referenced to?

Re: Front axle restoration
 

WHN,

You make a valid point and there are a lot of people that would agree with you. However, you have to remember many people on this forum like to work on their Model A's themselves and take a lot of pleasure and pride in fixing things themselves.

David Serrano

Re: Front axle restoration
 

They should be angled. The angle is the camber angle and I will have to rely on others to come up with the degrees figure. I loked through Les Andrews' book for you but couldn't find it.

Re: Front axle restoration
 

IIRC camber angle is 5° total, 2.5° on each wheel. Is that built into the axle? Or the spindle assembly? What about the spring perch hole?

Re: Front axle restoration
 

Front end geometry is more complicated than most people imagine. The camber is set at the king pin hole in the axle AND by the stub axles/king pin angle and there are reasons for that. The end result is what counts.

Re: Front axle restoration
 

I believe the referenced articles use the sighting rods to check the king pin hole by use of a "template." 7 degrees is the correct tilt. (Ref. "Lets Get This Straight'' Restorer Magazine Page. 12)

Joe K

Re: Front axle restoration
 

When trying to straighten mine a little over a year or so ago, I couldn't find anyone to touch it with a 10 foot pole. The truck shops more or less laughed at me and the front end or frame straightening shops said their equipment would make it look like a giant pretzel. I ended up having to by one that was already straight.

Heck, they wouldn't even straighten my frame rails because they either couldn't hold them, or were afraid of ripping the frame apart. I had only one choice, live with it, or learn how and do it yourself, ... so that's what I did.

Regards
Bill

Re: Front axle restoration
 

Where can I get a copy of that article?

Re: Front axle restoration
 

Restorer Magazine July-August 2018. TRO (The Restorer Online) exists and your subscription option includes a bi-monthly Email PDF of the complete magazine (since January 2018). I didn't opt for TRO in 2018, but this year I have it. So I can't help you with 2018, but perhaps another respondent can?

Somewhere else I saw 8 degrees as the magic number.

Joe K

Re: Front axle restoration
 

I recall 7 degrees. No other number comes to mind and I believe the 7 may be in the red book by Les Andrews. Mine is out on loan or I would check.

Re: Front axle restoration
 

The caster is set by the radius rod (AKA wishbone), and the axle should be dead straight, that's why they're using the "sighting rods".

Re: Front axle restoration
 

Do you have any farm tractor repair shops near you? We had no problem getting a shop to do the work. There were very interested. Enjoy.