Kingpin questions

I did a search but came up empty. I have a new set of kingpins in the box waiting to go on my '63. Is this a project that can be done at home or do I need to pull the axle and take it to a shop? I've heard of guys doing this in their home garage, but I've never tackled this particular project myself. If anyone knows any secret tips or tricks to save me from going to a machine shop, I'd love to hear them. My kit has the bronze bushings, by the way. Thanks in advance

Shop = if ur not set up to do this - easier & best for most. Did the kingpin set come with a reamer? Avtually a machine shop is best- or a truck shop as those still will have the tools to do the straight front axle stuff. The stuff from JCWhitney used to have the reamers with them- yet im speaking from a time gone buy-yet never know??

Howdy,

Did the kingpins on my '63 myself - but had an engineering shop fit the bronze bushes and do the reaming, and real happy to.

Do a search on kingpins as many of the available sets don't fit without modification.

Cheers,
Rhys

thanks. That's what I figured. I'll just pull the axle and take it to a machine shop. It's my daily driver, so I've been in a bind. I can't afford to have it down very long.

Yes - maybe there is a truck shop close?? Austin should have some Seems there were some old macjine shops around congress ave long ago?? south areas??

I did mine on my own, bit of a pain to do, but i managed in the end.

https://vintage-vans.forumotion.com/t13940p30-1964-econoline-camper-in-the-uk

I hate paying other people to do work on any of my cars, as they usually do a worse job than i could do myself....

Sy

Didn't attempt mine but the machine shop that did it said they'd never do another one! I got that comment third hand so I don't know the reasoning behind it, but apparently it wasn't too easy.

I do king pins all the time on Freightliners. A little bit of a pain when the pin is seized in the axle, but just take your time and ream, fit, ream, fit, then shim. Getting ready to tackle this myself on my Ford. Don't have a reamer, but those round sandpaper things with all the flaps should work. Or a cotter pin wrapped with emery cloth placed in a drill. toad

The reamer i bought and used in the thread i linked to earlier was an adjustable one and only cost about $25.... Well worth it i reckon... I was really nervous about doing it, but it was a piece of cake compared to getting the old kingpins out....!!!!

Unless your axle is beat out eggshaped then you don't need to pull the axle .... The new pins should fit snug into the axle ..But it's a great idea to take the spindles to the machine shop and let them fit the new bushings to the pins. I just had mine done last year... Good luck to you.

Be very careful buying new king pins. Somewhere along the way the king pins being sold today got cut with the locking groove too deep. The right pins should measure .662 from the bottom of the locking groove to the outside diameter. Incorrect grooves measure .644 at the same place. If you have the wrong pins a machine shop can cut a new groove to the correct depth. The king pin needs to be locked down tight with the locking pin. If the groove is too deep then it will wobble back and forth on the locking pin and will wear out the axle bore and you will have to replace the axle as the bore is not repairable. I'd guess that 90% of the pins being sold today have the wrong cut. Best to double check them and be sure. Another opition is to drill out the locking pin hole and use a larger locking pin to make up the difference in the groove. You will need to make a locking pin the right size for this opition.

Duane in Tennessee.

Sy Hollinshead wrote:I did mine on my own, bit of a pain to do, but i managed in the end.

https://vintage-vans.forumotion.com/t13940p30-1964-econoline-camper-in-the-uk

I hate paying other people to do work on any of my cars, as they usually do a worse job than i could do myself....

Sy

Thanks for that link. After seeing what you did, I think I'll spend the money to have a machine shop do the work. It would be just my luck that I'd screw them up somehow. If the machine shop screws anything up, that's on them. Thanks for all the advice, everyone.