I beam axle problems continue! I need to vent!

The lock pin hole is in fact (like stated above) a strait hole. If the pin don’t go, run a 9/16” bit or ream thru it.
The part of the lock pin that contacts the king is the only part that is tapered.

BTW no aftermarket axle looks like ford axle and no new axle can compare in steel quality.

 

Agreed.

The So-Cal axle looks retarded - it is way to skinny as it nears the kingpin bosses. The CE axles look alright if you are in a pinch.

Get a Ford axle, and have someone drop it. Plenty of good places around - on both coasts if shipping is a hassle for you.

Fordaxle.com is around the corner from my shop here in Florida.

 

I couldn't agree more. I only use genuine 32 HEAVY axles

The only aftermarket that comes close is Chassis Engineering's forged steel axle.

 

Why not use the Guy above his axles are bad ass-best I've seen. Shipping isnt a big deal.
Dave Hitch

 

This was the last thing I wanted to hear. I havent even opened the box on mine yet.

Picked it up at the Nationals. Got home and put all the parts I got on the table in the garage and forgot about them till now.

 

agreed. wonder if they are the same chinese "forging" quality as the performance VW cranks that came out about 10 years ago were. they started breaking and all the breaks looked REAL similar to a casting. steel of the quality henry used is expensive and cannot be found in china at all.

 

what I don't understand is if what you are saying is true ( and I think it is ) how can they do anything to you? You are stating facts not making them up.

 

If you are thinking of buying a new forged axle , contact Eric (VAPHEAD) @ Riley Automotive. I bought mine from him. He sells most major brands. Great guy, good prices.

 

The lock pin hole maybe is SUPPOSED to be straight, but mine is indeed tapered. Believe me, I would love to run one of your dropped axles, but I couldn't justify the expense for this project. I originally was not planning on keeping my Model A long enough to finish it, but if I do, I'll look you up.

amsvette

 

Hey, could just be my bad luck. Perhaps mine was built on a Friday afternoon or a Monday morning. I'm wondering if mine had a heat treat/forging issue or if it just missed some final machining. I would check yours out just to be sure, but no one else has had a complaint. In either case, So-Cal refunded my money last night and issued an apology.

amsvette

 

I missed this earlier. I put a So-Cal axle under my 32 PU with no problems. We have put 100s of straight axle chassis together over the last 25 years and there have been minor issues with many axles, Both Super Bell and CE. I didn't consider the problems you are having to a big deal. In our shop we address it as a part of the assembly process. I have owned a reamer since the beginning and have had to use it many times to get the king pins to fit correctly. The king pin retainers are another issue, they are all over the place depending on the manufacture. I like mine to be flush with the front of the axle and in most instances the axle or the pin have to be dressed to get this fit. I don't use Magnum so can't comment. I have gotten used to having to make parts work although I can understand your frustration with expecting a part to fit correctly. I would have done the same with your part or at the least replaced it with one that worked.

 

why did you not send it back or at least call them before you even reamed the holes an tell them it is not rite?

 

Amsvette:
Unless I'm misunderstanding your post, bronze king pin bushings always have to be reamed to fit. As you insert the bushings they compress and then need relief to fit the pin. I did a Chevy Van once where the replacements were plastic bushings that didn't need reaming.

As for the retainers, I've only seen one-sided installs, but they're practically invisible and I doubt anyone would notice.

 

What am I missing here? Seems to me you'd want the king pin boss to be reamed to give you that tight fit. I know when I rebuilt mine, it had to be reamed.

Also no big deal to run a drill or reamer through the retainer hole.

Basic mechanics in my book.

 

on a new part??

the king pin boss is held tight and in place by the tapered steering stop bolt. I've never seen a factory ford piece requiring any such "basic mechanics" having to be done.....

 

Yep you are misunderstanding it. He's talking about the king pin holes in the axle, not the bushings in the spindles.

 

So, they did treat you right, that's good to hear. I'd file this one under the category of "shit happens", and let it go If you can manage to salvage the axle then you're that much further ahead!

 

Click this---> http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=253845

This is where my axle will be going when I get to that point... period... end of story!

next time... BUY AMERICAN!!!

 

I did a lot of reading before I bought an axle for my current coupe build. Ended up with a Chassis Engineering.
Looks good
built right
forged

 

$50 should buy a good early Ford axle, 296 drops one for $250....& you're shipping a new one anyway.

The price difference really isn't that much. Sometimes you're better off to save a little longer & buy better parts or the parts you really want.

JH

 

296V8 has THE BEST axles out there....the correct look and they fit perfectly. Plus he's a fellow Hamber and a stand up guy.

Buying "American" doesn't neccessarily mean it's putting $$$ into American workers pockets.......

 

Just got a 4" dropped axle from 296 V8, from the HAMB. Very nice. Would not have considered a Chinamen part. Thought about the other aftermarket ones, but it's nice to use gennie when you can.There have been a ton of posts here about axles, sounds like the one you got needs to have all their parts to work. How nice of whoever decided to make their stuff overseas to also make it hard in other ways. Just goes to show you. We should all buy American for our HotRods. (Those are the folks who are slowly wrecking everything.)

 

If we add up:
Cost of imported axle + adjustable reamer + ball hones + extra time + a bunch of aggravation = $$$

how much did you actually "save" ?

 

Looks like they did the right thing. They refunded and you still have the axle?

It also sounds like you were dealing with one of the stores, (which are franchises) and not So Cal in Pomona, which might explain the lack of customer service (maybe not).
I have to wonder why you didn't return or exchange it instead of modifying it.

And were the brand of Kingpins possibly (Probably) the problem?

 

They did better than I had hoped for. I did promise them I would retract my earlier statement about getting satisfaction from throwing it through their front window. I was just blowing off steam in the heat of the moment, but in retrospect that wasn't the best thing to think or type. I would never really do that anyway, Karma is a bitch that way!

As far as the customer service is concerned, there were some unforeseen circumstances that added the the delay and lack of communication. I totally understand, life can get in the way in a hurry especially while trying to run a business. Like I said, they did much better for me than I had hoped for so it's all just water under the bridge. No feelings were hurt in the making of this mess!

We had initially decided to send it back to have it machined there, but we decided a new set of So-Cal king pins would be in the easier/quicker way to go. Unfortunately those unforeseen circumstances I mentioned came up and the new king pins were never sent. In the mean time I have an appointment to get my chassis built that I've had to cancel while waiting for things to work out. I had the axle reamed because I need it now, not some point down the road.

I was also asked to state "I used aftermarket king pins" and they could possibly be part of the problem.

No point in playing the blame game anymore, what's done is done. My faith in this particular dealer has been restored and I look forward to doing business with him again as my Model A progresses.

Bottom line is I have been given more than fair compensation for my time/money/effort making THIS axle work for me. I learned a few tricks along the way and now life moves on.

If the dealer in question is reading this, all I have to say is "Thank You" for helping me make lemonade out of lemons!

amsvette

 

Very good of you to step up and tell the rest of the story, something a lot of people here don't seem to do. I'm sure the So Cal store will be happy as well.

 

I know that my king pins fit. I tried one. I have not tried the retainers yet.

I bought my set and spindles from them.

I deal with the one in Sactown and they are very helpful and will do what it takes to make things right.

Plus it is a pleasure to here Lindsy's voice when I call down there.

 

First off, all you guys with the kind words ………thank you very much, It means a lot, because I really do try and do a quality part.

As you all can guess I think new axles are shit and some of the others that drop old ones are………….(only because of the first hand stories from my customers)

I have plenty of core axles and nothing is in stone.
amsvette and anybody else…. your totally welcome to call me (# on the hambOdex page) and talk about what you need.
But please after 4:00 pm west coast time , I work full time and it’s very hectic there most of the time.