Steering column rebuild
- Thread starter Hoghead
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The notchy is usually the fragile races giving out (NLA). The balls can be had at any hardware store. Rust, wear & dirt win every time. I'm machining some Delrin outer bushings with S.S. inserts that will replace the bicycle bearing. The compression spring and circlip must still be used. I'll let the groups know how the testing goes.
Warren
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Probably from the same English bicycle that they got the accelerator cable from
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I had some success on one 'notchy' race by using a large socket with a rounded top edge, and used that as an anvil to smooth the 'notchy' bumps by tapping with a light small nylon head hammer when race was then set on top of the socket to shape. Worked on one, but another was too far gone and from memory cracked - so easy does it. Spares getting harder to find and hate to mention that you can try to find spare from Alpine column (sorry Alpine owners). To add, removal of the bearing safest from outside using small brass punch on edge of race outside of column tube gently, do not try to hammer bearing/race out out using the center column shaft as a drift - the race is very soft material and will 'ding/notch' easily.
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I have heard see this problem a lot over the years and hope your delrin solution works (and if it does, suggest you make several spares with bet you can sell easily).
Austin Healer
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I do have an Alpine steering box available....
Austin Healer
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you're welcome!
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FYI an Alpine steering column bearing (only has 1 bearing) is the same as both bearings in Tiger column - so you can usually find a replacement bearing from Alpine spare steering column/box assembly (they are one assembly in an Alpine, you will need to find 2 if you need both bearings) - suggest you look into Alpine steering box/column bearing to see what I mean. Again, my apologies to Alpine owners.
Yes, but replacing a bad bearing and more importantly a bad unobtainable race with another used problematic part is not the route I want to take.
A better solution is needed using a proper sealed bearing, with the goal of maintaining a stock appearing steering column. The first concept was a sealed needle bearing running directly on the stock steering shaft - a simple and compact solution that would look stock, but a bearing directly on the non-hardened shaft ran an unacceptable risk of vibration causing the bearings to gall on the shaft and possibly seize.
The easy solution is to machine an external collar to hold a standard sealed ball bearing, but this would not meet the requirement that the end result should appear stock. Unfortunately, there is no standard sealed ball bearing that would fit internally, however I did locate some double sealed, non-standard, 25mm ID x 40mm OD x 12mm ball bearings that would work.
It is necessary to machine the stock 1” shaft to fit the 25mm bearing and bore the outer pipe sleeve .030” to the bearing OD. A collar was machined to preload the bearing and centre the spring. The stock spring, spacer washer, and snap ring is used, and with the snap ring in the stock groove, the column appears stock.
Both my cars are early MKI Tigers, and use the same spring arrangement on each end of the shaft. The later Tigers used a different arrangement on one end of the shaft, however a similar strategy can be used.
The machine work was about 1 - 1 1/2 hours, and I bought a few extra non-standard metric bearings if anyone wants to give it a go
The easy solution is to machine an external collar to hold a standard sealed ball bearing, but this would not meet the requirement that the end result should appear stock. Unfortunately, there is no standard sealed ball bearing that would fit internally, however I did locate some double sealed, non-standard, 25mm ID x 40mm OD x 12mm ball bearings that would work.
It is necessary to machine the stock 1” shaft to fit the 25mm bearing and bore the outer pipe sleeve .030” to the bearing OD. A collar was machined to preload the bearing and centre the spring. The stock spring, spacer washer, and snap ring is used, and with the snap ring in the stock groove, the column appears stock.
Both my cars are early MKI Tigers, and use the same spring arrangement on each end of the shaft. The later Tigers used a different arrangement on one end of the shaft, however a similar strategy can be used.
The machine work was about 1 - 1 1/2 hours, and I bought a few extra non-standard metric bearings if anyone wants to give it a go
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Before embarking on this journey, I googled a bit and found that Jim Barnes used an expensive (100 USD ea.) combination axial & radial bearing from Grainger, that still required a similar amount of machine work. I decided that as one has to machine anyway, it would be better to use a simple ball or needle bearing. As I could find no suitable standard size bearing, I had no alternative but to import several sets these non-standard bearings from my last supplier source of choice.
If there is a bearing that would work, I am all ears