Spindle Pin Installation

[ea6driver]

So tonight's' job involved installing new spindle pins into the rear strut assemblies.  The question I have is...how tight/loose is an acceptable fit for the spindle pin in the strut housing hole?  I tried reaming/cleaning out the inside of the hole passage by wrapping some sand paper around a dowel rod and passing it through the hole a few minutes.  Then I greased up the pin real good. I can get the pin to pass through the hole, but only by tapping it with a hammer.  It's so tight that the only way I can pull it out is by clamping down on the pin with vice grips and working it back and forth real good.  I guess I'm really thinking I need to ream out the hole a little more and was hoping for some ideas on the best/easiest way to do that.

[ea6driver]

This diagram from the FSM makes it look like it should be fairly easy!

[gwri8]

First of all,  Lucky you that your old pins came out without too much trouble.  I believe the spindle pin is supposed to be a precision fit,  however you might still have some rust buildup still there.  You don't want any wobble in there.  Have you visually looked down the hole?  Try finishing the hole with a liquid like PB Blaster and check the fit again.

[ea6driver]

I didn't mean to give the impression that the old spindle pins came out easily.  To the contrary.  I had to use a sawzall to cut each pin into 3 pieces.  Then I had to take the lower control arms and strut assemblies down to NAPA to have them press them out.  They said getting the pin pieces out with their press was very difficult.

I agree though...precision fit...no wobble.  Right now, I'm not even close to the wobble stage.  It's tight...very tight.

[gwri8]

Gotcha, I did one similar last summer, I used sand paper like you did.  Sounds like you're close, I would suggest a fine grit like 1500 or 2000 to make it smooth inside and rinse it with PB Blaster. 

[ea6driver]

Thanks for the tip...I'll do some more sanding on it tomorrow...another fun filled Saturday in the garage!

[Dave WM]

keep in mind they are not supposed to spin inside the control arm, the spindle pin lock holds them in place. Overtightening that lock will deform the spindle pin, making removal very hard.

Keep that spindle lock in mind when reinstalling them, it needs to be precisely lined up to get the lock in place.

[Patcon]

Are they tight from the very beginning or when they are halfway in? I found that the area around the locking pin had been deformed by over tightening and I had to use a flat file to make that section round again. If your pins are brand new, then sand the control arm holes until they go into each section easily. Don't try to slide them through all 3 sections at once. If they will go through each section easily then I would say that is the correct size. I greased all of this up, although I don't know that that is FSM correct but I wanted the corrosion protection the grease provided. It is also possible that the extra effort needed to remove the spindle pin sections damaged the bores on your suspension pieces. I wonder if a ream could be purchased to true up the bores for installation. Do you have a micrometer? What is the OD of the spindle pin?

[ea6driver]

The spindle pins are new.  And they do seem to slide in fairly easily on both ends of the strut holes.  Only after they've slid in a couple inches does the going get tough.  So perhaps your idea about the area closer to the lock pin being a little deformed is in fact the problem.  I'll try sanding/filing down around that area today to see if I can get things to fit better.  Thanks!

[Zed Head]

1 hour ago, Dave WM said:

keep in mind they are not supposed to spin inside the control arm, the spindle pin lock holds them in place. Overtightening that lock will deform the spindle pin, making removal very hard.

Keep that spindle lock in mind when reinstalling them, it needs to be precisely lined up to get the lock in place.

You don't need a precision fit, as Dave WM says.  Making it looser is probably actually bad for it in the long-term because it gives it more room to flex in the bore, concentrating load on the lock-pin area.  The purpose of the very tight fit and the lock-pin is to make the pin become "one" with the casting.  Ideally, once assembled, the pin does not move at all in the bore of the casting.

An alternative view.  If you can get it jammed in to where the lock-pin lines up correctly, you're done, essentially.  Lock it down and call it good.

[Zed Head]

The thoughts above were developed while I was working on my own spindle pins.  I found that the area in the bore of the casting around the lock-pin was deformed, as well as the spindle pin in itself.  A rat tail file will clean up the bore.

[ea6driver]

thanks zed.  all good advice.  i realize that "tight" is good...at least to a degree.  right now i'm concerned that the fit is so tight that, once the holes in the control arm "ears" are aligned with the strut hole and the pin is pushed into place that it would be extremely difficult to rotate the pin any at all if necessary to align the notch in the spindle pin with the lock pin.  Especially since, at that point, the only part of the spindle pin available to work with is the threaded ends.

I'm off to the garage to pull out the rat file and some sandpaper.

Edited March 9, 2019 by ea6driver