Okay Lower mainland guys and gals, I have read all the threads on here about how to do it. I haven't reamed a set of bushings since trade school twenty years ago, but its pretty straight forward. I just need to get my hands on the proper reamer. Does anyone in the lower mainland of BC have or know of where I can get a proper piloted reamer for sizing the new bushings I pressed into my spindles? Or does anyone know of a shop that can do it for me? I would like to do it myself but my time line is pretty tight right now. So I am fine with paying some one to do it for me at this point. Any input would be appreciated.
In less you plan on going into the business take it to a good shop and have it honed to the correct diameter. Be sure they align the top and bottom bushings when they hone it. Charlie Stephens
if you buy the tool you can use it on future projects , plus do it for friends i have the reamer and have used it many times...and plan on using it again! i have never charged anyone for doing it , but have traded favors
Take them to a GOOD engine shop. The Sunnen rod machine can be operated by a Journeyman (not one of the guys that says "I think we can do this"...) He can align the top with bottom, and hone them to spec. CAUTION: Keep them to strict king pin spec, NOT his 'educated guess' for clearance!
Don't F'ing hone them! They end up barrel shaped. I have the piloted reamer. Or you can buy a real piloted adjustable straight fluted ream from KBC. I think they are in Delta. Thomas skinner can get them but they are more money last time I checked. Around a couple of hundred dollars.
If you have them honed with the proper long mandrel that hones both bushings at the same time and have a machinest that knows what he is doing, the job will be much more accurate than any reamer can do.
Exactly,I do them all the time. You need a 4 stone mandrel,to align both bushings and I use a sunnen ag300 Guage with a wrist pin fixture that uses the king pins to set the Guage and fit it to .0005 clearance. That's a 1/2 a thousandth for those who are not use to reading to the tenth. A hone finish is always superior,that's why it is the preferred method in the aircraft industry for a bushing fit. A good engine rebuilder should have what you need,or a honing shop that does aerospace work can as well,there are 3 in my area alone.i get 30 bucks per to blast,install bushings and hone. Not including parts. Use this price as a basis for a shop near you. Good luck, Gary
I had two different reamers and tried unsuccessfully two different times to ream my own Ford kingpins to the proper size; gave the reamers away and took the third set to a competent machine shop who did a much better job than my 2 previous attempts. Let a professional do the job!
Uh guys I am a machinist. I work on aviation, helicopters specifically. A hone is not as good. Use the ream.
I bought a set of reamers like Dumprat's many years ago at an auction for about $30, I think. I did my 1st set of kingpins with one this spring. Came out very nice and no chance of any hone grit left behind, imbedded in the bushings. Gary
I bought a used long tapered reamer for $18 from a local machine shop and have done several sets, all of which worked out perfectly, including my avatar. Always turn the reamer clockwise only and continue all the way through till you come out the other end. Very simple.
Thanks for the offer Internet, But part of my rush is to get this thing on the road again for Deuce Days.
All my life I have taken my spindles to a local machine shop and paid $50 ish to have them installed and honed. But I finally decided to buy the proper reamer and try it myself. I found a professional set of about 8 reamers at Turkey Run for $ 160 and bought it. I figure if I do only 3 sets I have gotten my money back. We just did the first set, a new set of kingpins for my 27, and they came out great. The reamer indexes on the other bushing, so it is a simple matter of ream a little and see how the kingpin goes in, then ream a little more till you get a nice press by hand fit. I took my time and cut just a little at a time and snuck up on the final fit. Now I can do the ones on my altered project. Should have bought a set a long time ago. Don
Watched my old man rebush Ford truck front ends with reamers for years. Always a top notch job and never heard of a customer complaint. Done a few myself but was nowhere near in his league. Still have his set of reamers. Range from early Econoline to SuperDuty trucks. I'd sell them but the set weighs a ton.
I'm a retired machinist (general job shops and aircraft, not automotive) now getting close to 50 years of "making chips", and never did a set of king pins, but lots and lots of rebushing various brackets on aircraft. Where possible, we actually bored the bushings to finish size in a vertical or horizontal milling machine, with application determining which type of mill. This way you had absolutely total control of alignment and size, but the labor cost of doing this way for automotive would be prohibitive, considering fixtures, etc. But the obvious fact that you can't just pull over to the curb when an airplane breaks down in flight makes a difference in how you look at cost! Reaming does maintain a better control of hole roundness and a lack of embedded honing grit, but the process does depend on a good set of sharp reamers and proper alignment bars. A dull reamer can really do a lousy job. I've seen it done both ways, but unless you maintain contact with the end user of the vehicle where used, you never will know which worked the best or lasted the longest.
ream or hone...your choice as long as it's done with a good fit on the kingpins i prefer to ream and always had good results. i have a tool like dumprat. you can stop over to my place to test drive my `36 Ford and see for yourself next question....Ginger or Mary Ann?
Hey guys, thanks for all the input. I just thought I would let everyone know that Lordco machine shop in Langley is capable of doing them and I have installed the spindles and they are perfect. When I picked them up, the guy I talked to didnt know weather or not they ream or hone them. Only one guy there does it and he was off the day I picked them up. But they looked good and feel good so I am happy.
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