Spindle pin removal tool survey

[zKars]

The lock/wedge pin provides a critical function, at least from the original design point of view. It has to do with how the rubber bushings are designed to work. They are designed to have their center tube locked, and the suspension motion flexes/twists the rubber to provide movement and isolation. The joint is not intended to be free to "rotate". The center pin thus has to be locked in position so that the pin stays locked with respect to the center tube of the bushing.

Same for the inner control arm bushings. This is why the FSM has you torque them to final spec with the car at ride height, not with the wheels dangling off the ground. You want the neutral point (locked with no twist or torque) of the bushing to be in the center of the suspension travel so the bushing can flex either way without exceeding its elastic limits.

Now that said, little harm is done if it all does rotate. What makes me the most nervous is the possible tendency of the nuts to back off since they are both RH thread with you let the pin rotate with respect to the bushing. I know it hasn't happened to anyone yet, but....

Edited September 5, 2015 by zKars

[Travel'n Man]

The puller failed - if there is a "next time" I will use a hacksaw and a press and save my $75 for something else.

[Patcon]

Mitchell

If there is a next time you can use mine. I might even deliver it,,,

[Jeff G 78]

I cut the rod and pipe today and roughed out the thrust washer.  I need to bore and tap the rod, machine the washer, and weld the washer to the pipe.  The puller is very heady duty as is the bearing.  I will likely machine a handle that fits the nut since the nut is a 1-5/8" hex and my large adjustable wrench isn't big enough.  I might CNC plasma cut several 1/4" plates to fit the nut hex, weld them together and machine/grind them into a comfortable handle.  I'll add pics later.

[Captain Obvious]

About that wedge pin... Once the two bushing nuts are tightened, the whole thing (spindle pin, nuts, and inner bushing sleeves) should all be pinched together, locked up and move as a unit. The only way it wouldn't move as a unit would be if the inner bushing sleeve slipped on the surface where it contacted the bottom of the strut housing. The nuts pinch the bushing sleeves against the strut housing and that should be enough force to keep the bushing sleeves from slipping. Just like on the front inner bushings... They don't have a wedge pin on the front, right?

 

I think the purpose(s) of the wedge pin is a little different... I think the wedge pin:

1) Prevents the spindle pin from rotating as you are trying to tighten (or loosen) the nuts, and

2) Keeps the spindle pin centered between the two bushings such that about same amount of threaded length is poking out at both ends.

 

Without the wedge pin, not only could it be difficult to get the whole thing tightened or loosened, but you could also potentially tighten one end until the nut runs out of threads and bottoms out on the tapered portion and then have too few threads left sticking out of the other end.

 

I'm no suspension guy, but that's my read.

[EuroDat]

+1 The wedge pin or cotter pin as its often called (google: cotter pin crank) does exactly what Captain Obvious described. It stops the spindle pin from roataing and positions the pin for final tightening.

Without it the nut with the least resistance could tighten until it bottoms out and the other nut will be hanging on by a threw threads. The front suspension inner bushing has a bolt and nut where this can not happen.

In principle you could remove it once the nuts are tightened to spec and it wouldnt effect performance.

[grannyknot]

Even though I did this job a couple of years ago I was trying to picture it in my head and then remembered I have all these parts on hand, so for anyone else having trouble seeing this in their head.

Outer surface of this bushing is friction fit inside of the rear control arm, inner sleeve of the bushing being longer is sandwiched between hub/strut housing and the spindle pin nut, wedge pin holding the spindle in in place until final torqueing.

Chris

 

 

[Jeff G 78]

I finally got around to making my acme thread puller.  I thought I took a picture of the internal threads, but I guess I didn't. 

 

 

 As planned, I used 1" acme threaded rod and a S30 front strut top bearing.  I have enough material to make a few more, but I will hold-off until I try this one to see if the design needs any changes.  I might machine flats or a hex on the nut end of the acme rod to aid threading on the spindle pin.

 

I haven't tried it yet though since my spare corner modules are buried in storage until spring. 

 

[Travel'n Man]

Keep us posted how it works - when I pulled my last year (or maybe the year before last) my puller lasted for a few rotations.  There went $65 down the drain.  Ended up with a hack saw to seperate

[Jeff G 78]

Will do Mitchell.  I know that some pins simply will not come out, but I wanted to make a puller with the best possible chance of success.

[Patcon]

Jeff,

How are you attaching to the pin? Boring and threading the end of the rod opposite the bolt and bearing end?

[Jeff G 78]

Jeff,

How are you attaching to the pin? Boring and threading the end of the rod opposite the bolt and bearing end?

Yes, I just forgot to take a photo of the business end.  

 

It is bored and tapped with a chamfered lead-in to match the spindle pin's taper..