The Ford Barn

amclass · 09-01-2022, 07:17 PM

After removing and looking at the bushings of the brake cross shaft, the question arose whether the bushing is pressed onto the shaft and the ball has to be able to rotate in the two mounting brackets, or whether the two halves of the mounting bracket clamp the bushing and does the bushing move on the shaft? On my shaft one side the bushing is loose and the other side firm. First I thought the bearings are plastic or brass and then don't need to be lubricated in the brackets, but after I found out that these are made of metal and the insides of the brackets don't show any signs of friction, I wondered why the bushings have a spherical shape if they are clamped by the brackets. My question again: Do the bushings have to operate on the shaft or in the mount? And why do they not have a grease nipple, but the handbrake does? Why does Ford made the bushings have a spheric shape for no obvious reason?

Grumps · 09-01-2022, 08:13 PM

I'm also working on the brake cross shaft and found a lot of side-to-side movement where these bushing are placed on the shaft. I don't understand why it doesn't have a grease fitting either. I think the shaft is made to move inside the spherical bushing but I'm not sure.

Bleedblue4life · 09-01-2022, 08:20 PM

The shaft rotates on the spherical bushings. Most of the time they need to be built back up with weld or a sleeve to correct the wear. I try to spray them down with a lubrication spray to keep them lubed up. I would assume they are spherical because the frame flexes and if it was a solid mount they would not be able to twist or move without binding.

Bob from Northport · 09-01-2022, 08:43 PM

The shaft can be redone and new two piece bearing can be installed. Off the car, take the two metal sections from each side and bolt them together with the new bearings centered in each section. On a drill press, drill out an opening from the lower side of the metal brackets and install a grease fitting in each side. Lube the brake shaft with good quality grease, and install each side back onto the vehicle with the shaft. Check operation of the shaft after installation. My shop has done it a number of times. Can be easily accomplished. I have some photos of it somewhere.
The shaft moves inside the bearing on each side.

History · 09-01-2022, 08:51 PM

That’s a great modification Bob! Thanks for sharing!!

amclass · 09-02-2022, 06:23 AM

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Bleedblue4life

The shaft rotates on the spherical bushings. Most of the time they need to be built back up with weld or a sleeve to correct the wear. I try to spray them down with a lubrication spray to keep them lubed up. I would assume they are spherical because the frame flexes and if it was a solid mount they would not be able to twist or move without binding.

Your explanation of spherical shape makes sense. This also means that the cross shaft needs side-to-side movement to adjust. I think Ford designed it that way, also so that the small amount of tension the cross shaft receives from the brake rods (if any) helps the cross shaft adjust itself into a comfortable position. This ensures that pedal braking power is never compromised by a somehow pinched cross shaft.

amclass · 09-02-2022, 06:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bob from Northport

The shaft can be redone and new two piece bearing can be installed. Off the car, take the two metal sections from each side and bolt them together with the new bearings centered in each section. On a drill press, drill out an opening from the lower side of the metal brackets and install a grease fitting in each side. Lube the brake shaft with good quality grease, and install each side back onto the vehicle with the shaft. Check operation of the shaft after installation. My shop has done it a number of times. Can be easily accomplished. I have some photos of it somewhere.
The shaft moves inside the bearing on each side.

That's exactly what I had in mind. I wasn't sure if it was a good idea to drill a hole through the bracket and bushing for the grease fitting. Your picture shows that it's been done before so I will do the same. I wonder, if the split bushing has the same ID than the original bushings or do they come with undersized ID? The splitted bushing is a nice and easy fix. Do they work well or would a solid bushing be the better way to do it?

Oldbluoval · 09-02-2022, 06:40 AM

The bushing had a woven insert to retain oil/grease. Grease fitting is a good add.
Yes, the shaft rotates inside the bushing; the bushing should be fixed.

Grumps · 09-02-2022, 07:26 AM

I am going to do this before I bolt the cross shaft back in. Great fix.

amclass · 09-02-2022, 08:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oldbluoval

The bushing had a woven insert to retain oil/grease. Grease fitting is a good add.
Yes, the shaft rotates inside the bushing; the bushing should be fixed.

You're right. I was just checking out the different styles at Snyders. I actually like the woven insert. When properly lubricated, they keep the entire interior sealed. The two-piece bushings are made of brass and should be externally lubricated to prevent excessive wear. And ... there is also a repair kit available. Thank you for the information. It's always nice to have multiple options to tackle a problem...

amclass · 09-03-2022, 08:02 AM

I tackled the task of installing a grease fitting on the bushing mount the same way you see in the picture Bob provided. The grease fitting is bolted into the bracket and I drilled a hole through the bushing. I bolted it together for a grease gun test run and noticed that the grease leaks out between the bushing and the bracket and doesn't go through the bushing as expected. Due to the shape of the bracket, the bushing is not pinched at its highest point to seal against the bushing, allowing grease to find its way between the bushing and bracket. I decided to screw the grease fitting into the bushing instead into the bracket. Now the bracket needs an elongated hole so that the nipple would not be compromized by the movement of the bushing. With an elongated hole, however, I would have weakened the bracket at such point to such an extent that it need to be reinforced. That's to much work for a bushing that only makes less than a quarter of a turn when braking. I will plug the hole in the bracket with a rubber plug and reinstall the bushing without the grease nipple. However, to ensure the bushing is lubricated, once a year I will remove the bracket, screw the grease fitting into the bushing to lubricate the bushing while rotating it at the same time. I guess ol' Henry knew what he was doing. He just put a woven insert in the bushings and sold the cars with a lifetime filling of grease. Sometimes, I think, one need to leave things alone ....

I wonder how you guys tackled this task? Does the bushing needs a way bigger hole in order the grease has less restriction to flow? What's your experience or solution?

09-01-2022, 07:17 PM	#1
amclass Member Join Date: Aug 2022 Location: Naples, FL Posts: 58	Brake Cross Shaft Bushing After removing and looking at the bushings of the brake cross shaft, the question arose whether the bushing is pressed onto the shaft and the ball has to be able to rotate in the two mounting brackets, or whether the two halves of the mounting bracket clamp the bushing and does the bushing move on the shaft? On my shaft one side the bushing is loose and the other side firm. First I thought the bearings are plastic or brass and then don't need to be lubricated in the brackets, but after I found out that these are made of metal and the insides of the brackets don't show any signs of friction, I wondered why the bushings have a spherical shape if they are clamped by the brackets. My question again: Do the bushings have to operate on the shaft or in the mount? And why do they not have a grease nipple, but the handbrake does? Why does Ford made the bushings have a spheric shape for no obvious reason?

09-01-2022, 08:13 PM	#2
Grumps Member Join Date: Jun 2022 Posts: 88	Re: Brake Cross Shaft Bushing I'm also working on the brake cross shaft and found a lot of side-to-side movement where these bushing are placed on the shaft. I don't understand why it doesn't have a grease fitting either. I think the shaft is made to move inside the spherical bushing but I'm not sure.

09-01-2022, 08:20 PM	#3
Bleedblue4life Member Join Date: Aug 2012 Location: Carey, Ohio Posts: 57	Re: Brake Cross Shaft Bushing The shaft rotates on the spherical bushings. Most of the time they need to be built back up with weld or a sleeve to correct the wear. I try to spray them down with a lubrication spray to keep them lubed up. I would assume they are spherical because the frame flexes and if it was a solid mount they would not be able to twist or move without binding.

09-01-2022, 08:43 PM	#4
Bob from Northport Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: 215 E. 6th Street Northport, Michigan 49670 Posts: 955	Re: Brake Cross Shaft Bushing The shaft can be redone and new two piece bearing can be installed. Off the car, take the two metal sections from each side and bolt them together with the new bearings centered in each section. On a drill press, drill out an opening from the lower side of the metal brackets and install a grease fitting in each side. Lube the brake shaft with good quality grease, and install each side back onto the vehicle with the shaft. Check operation of the shaft after installation. My shop has done it a number of times. Can be easily accomplished. I have some photos of it somewhere. The shaft moves inside the bearing on each side. __________________ Bob from Northport Northport, Michigan Last edited by Bob from Northport; 08-07-2023 at 05:59 PM.

09-01-2022, 08:51 PM	#5
History Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2017 Location: NC Mountains Posts: 689	Re: Brake Cross Shaft Bushing That’s a great modification Bob! Thanks for sharing!!

09-02-2022, 06:40 AM	#8
Oldbluoval Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: Signal Mtn, TN (SE TN) Posts: 2,382	Re: Brake Cross Shaft Bushing The bushing had a woven insert to retain oil/grease. Grease fitting is a good add. Yes, the shaft rotates inside the bushing; the bushing should be fixed.

09-02-2022, 07:26 AM	#9
Grumps Member Join Date: Jun 2022 Posts: 88	Re: Brake Cross Shaft Bushing I am going to do this before I bolt the cross shaft back in. Great fix.

09-03-2022, 08:02 AM	#11
amclass Member Join Date: Aug 2022 Location: Naples, FL Posts: 58	Re: Brake Cross Shaft Bushing I tackled the task of installing a grease fitting on the bushing mount the same way you see in the picture Bob provided. The grease fitting is bolted into the bracket and I drilled a hole through the bushing. I bolted it together for a grease gun test run and noticed that the grease leaks out between the bushing and the bracket and doesn't go through the bushing as expected. Due to the shape of the bracket, the bushing is not pinched at its highest point to seal against the bushing, allowing grease to find its way between the bushing and bracket. I decided to screw the grease fitting into the bushing instead into the bracket. Now the bracket needs an elongated hole so that the nipple would not be compromized by the movement of the bushing. With an elongated hole, however, I would have weakened the bracket at such point to such an extent that it need to be reinforced. That's to much work for a bushing that only makes less than a quarter of a turn when braking. I will plug the hole in the bracket with a rubber plug and reinstall the bushing without the grease nipple. However, to ensure the bushing is lubricated, once a year I will remove the bracket, screw the grease fitting into the bushing to lubricate the bushing while rotating it at the same time. I guess ol' Henry knew what he was doing. He just put a woven insert in the bushings and sold the cars with a lifetime filling of grease. Sometimes, I think, one need to leave things alone .... I wonder how you guys tackled this task? Does the bushing needs a way bigger hole in order the grease has less restriction to flow? What's your experience or solution?