spindle pin lock bolt

[yetterben]

One of the lock bolts wont go back into place. Yes the pin is in the right way. Seems to be carving a new hole when i pound it in. Like it has a bur on it but it does not. So should i ream the hole or sand the bolt and try again.

[MikeW]

I'd put something smaller through the hole first to try and figure out how much clearance there is. It's possible that the spindle pin itself is slightly rotated and the slot is not completely vertical.

[yetterben]

hm.... shinning a light down there reveals a perfect slot. tap the pin one way and its not anymore if you get what i am saying. it will go down about half way just enough for the threads to come out the bottom. I cant for the life me get it in any further with bfh or without.

[70 Cam Guy]

If I recall, you had the old pins pressed out by the machine shop. Do you, by chance have the old one to compare?

I have yet to do my spindle pins (coming this month) but can you slip out the new one to see how far the lock bolt fits through before bottoming?

it's a tapered hole right? Is the taper facing the right direction?

[yetterben]

i will try the removal of the pin and see how far the lock bolt goes then but i can see in the hole the new lock bolt made a gouge in there.

[ezzzzzzz]

Don't worry to much about it. If you can get a couple of threads showing that's all you need. The purpose of this bolt to prevent the spindle pin from rotating when tightening the nuts on either end. Once the nuts are snugged the bolt's job is over. Most people try to drive these bolts in way too tight. That only deforms the spindle pin making it's removal far more difficult for bushing replacement down the road.

[yetterben]

with two or three threads shown on the bottom there is still like 4-5mm of bolt sticking out up top.

[ezzzzzzz]

That's okay. It doesn't need to be flush. Again, it's only there to prevent the spindle pin from rotating. Nothing more, nothing less.

[yetterben]

what about when the car is rolling

[ezzzzzzz]

It doesn't matter when the car is rolling. The spindle pin is only the fulcrum for the strut housing and LCA. Once it's in place it doesn't move when the lock bolt(pin) is installed. The bushings at either end provide the rotation as the suspension compresses and extends. The spindle pin simply provides the connection between the housing and LCA via the bushes.

[yetterben]

so youre telling me its fine to roll down the road with two or threads on the pin

[Walter Moore]

If you tighten the lock bolt too much you will swag the spindle pin requiring it to be pressed out by a machine shop the next time you need to change it.

I don't know what to tell you about the thread engagement. It seems like you ought to be able to pull the lock wedge far enough to fill the nut. However remember that there really isn't any force exerted on the pin to push the lock wedge up in operation. It just keeps the pin from turning when you tighten the nuts on the end.