The Front Axle Is Mounted!

My wife and I mounted the front axle and tie rod Saturday evening. It went very smoothly and took only about 15 minutes.

Before I disassembled the tie rod for straightening, sandblasting and painting, I carefully measured the length of the tie rod with the ends still mounted in their original positions. The measurement was exactly 52 - 5/16" between the centers of the Zerk fittings.

When I mounted the new tie rod ends I used that same measurement and I have to believe that the toe-in setting will be very close to the factory specification. I plan to take it to a front end shop just to make sure the setting is perfect. How close will I be?

As always, you can see larger versions of these photos at my Flickr website. Be sure to return to this page by using the "Back" button on your browser.

Progress Report

I finally finished the painting of the front and rear axles. After sandblasting and removing all traces of sand, I primed the axles and the tie rod with lacquer prime.

The next day I gave the axles and tie rod three coats of black lacquer. Yesterday I took the rear axle to the machine shop at Tri County Automotive Parts in Glens Falls to have all new bearings installed. As soon as I get it back it will be reinstalled. The inside of the rear axle was flashed with lacquer primer to prevent rusting.

These are various shots of the finished front axle which is to be installed today, Saturday.


I purchased all new bolts, nuts and washers to mount the new Monroe Gas-Magnum shock absorbers.


Very shortly, all new brake components that are currently stored in boxes will be installed. This is quite literally a "Ground Up Restoration!"

Just in case you are wondering why I use the reddish background for many of the photos in this blog, this is the simple answer.....it makes the subject of the photo pop. There is no distraction and you can see exactly what I am trying to show you.

The background is actually red rosin paper that comes on a 36" wide x 167 feet long roll at your favorite building supply store. It costs about $10 and is very useful around the house and garage.

Larger versions of these photos can be viewed at my Flickr website. Please use your browser's "Back" button to return to this page.

3 - 2 - 1 - Blastoff !!!

This was a job that I really did not look forward to. It was messy and tiring.

My wife screened 50 pound bags of sand and filled the tank of the sandblaster. In total, we used 700 pounds of sand to clean the front and rear axles and the tie rod. 700 pounds!



As I wrote in a previous post to this blog, this type of sandblaster costs under $100 and comes with everything that you need except for the sand. A filling funnel and protective head shield were included with the sandblaster.

I did not use long pants and a long sleeve shirt as I normally would have (should have!) worn for sandblasting. I was careful to make sure that most of the sand would not ricochet back to me. Occasionally, I was peppered by sand. Take note of the fan which aided in blowing the dust away from the work area.


After sandblasting the three pieces, I used lacquer primer to keep rust from forming on the freshly cleaned steel. Bare steel and iron will rust very quickly if not sealed quickly. In fact, I tested the sandblaster the day before and because of the morning dew, the test area showed signs of rust.


The entire sandblasting process took about four hours. It took an additional hour to put the tools away and clean the sand from the driveway. We were exhausted!

Larger versions of these photos can be viewed at my Flickr page. Please use your browser's "Back" button to return to this page.

Enjoy the Ride!

Blast Off!

Some folks have asked me about my blasting equipment so I figured that it was time for a little "Show and Tell."

My blasting cabinet is from TP Tools, model # 780-TL and it is made in the USA. The cabinet costs approximately $300 but in reality you have to expect to spend about $500 with extras.


I made a base from 3/4" plywood and four pieces of 4" x 4" cedar post material. Drywall screws and glue fasten the wood pieces together and more of the same screws were used to attach the cabinet legs to the four posts. I used small casters so that the cabinet would not be so high that it would be uncomfortable to use for a six footer like myself.

Using a vacuum cleaner is a must. Without one, the dust that is created by the blasting process would make it impossible to see inside the cabinet. I used a small Rigid (Home Depot) shop vac so that it would fit on the base under the cabinet. That makes the whole blasting station easy to move around.

I find a top loading cabinet to be very convenient. The drawback is that you cannot add an extension to a side to allow for blasting longer items.


The small shop vac comes with a filter that allows small abrasive particles to pass through the filter, ruin the motor and make their way out of the exhaust. So, I changed the vacuum's included filter to one from the Home Depot that traps fine particles. The combination of small shop vac and fine filter is a very inexpensive alternative to a large dust collection system. The downside is that the vacuum has to be emptied and the filter cleaned more frequently.

About abrasives.....

TP Tools sells abrasives at reasonable prices and I get them within two days after placing an order. The abrasive material that I use most of the time is Silicon Carbide which is pretty expensive....$75 plus shipping for a 50 pound box. Silicon Carbide is fast cutting, long lasting and very low dust producing. I occasionally use glass beads on items that require a smoother finish. TP tools sells Glass Beads for $35 for a 50 pound box.


I use about 16 pounds of material whenever I change the abrasive material so a 50 pound box lasts a pretty long time.

Do not think that you can save money by using sand in a blasting cabinet. Sand doesn't last long and it produces so much dust that you cannot see what you are blasting. Also, sand dust is quite dangerous to breathe. Think silicosis!

Notice the switches and receptacles that I mounted to control the vacuum cleaner and lights. Having the switches close by really helps.


For very large items that will not fit into the cabinet I use this sandblaster. You can buy them from Harbor Freight, eBay etc for about $80 to $100 and they use real sand.


The sand must be screened before use to prevent clogging and it is not recycled as the blasting media in a cabinet is. These sandblasters are not to be used indoors and don't forget to wear long sleeve shirts and full head protection! They also use a large volume of air so a large and expensive compressor is necessary.


As always, you can see larger versions of these photos at my Flickr site. Make sure you click on your browser's "Back" button to return to this page.

Another Trip to the Machine Shop is in My Future!

Until today I thought that the only bearings that had to be replaced in the rear axle were those on the axle shafts. I just had them pressed on and the shafts were ready to reinstall. I surely was well on my way to having the rear axle back in the truck by the end of the weekend. Yippee! Nope! Not so fast!

After I took the pinion shaft seal out, I looked at the outer bearing.....pitted. I decided to delve even deeper and found the case bearings pitted along with the inner pinion bearing. Not only pitting but a lot of free play.

Did you ever take something apart and wish you didn't? Did you ever take a clock apart to see what makes it tick? Well, as of now I have no regrets about taking the rear axle apart but I wonder how long it will take for me to put it all back together and have it work properly!

Welcome to the inside of a rear axle.

The only remaining components in the axle housing are the two pinion shaft bearing races. The removal of the old and installation of the new races will be done at the local machine shop.


These are the differential case, ring gear and pinion shaft from the 7.25" integral carrier type axle. I do not plan to disassemble the differential case. I will, however, have new bearings installed.


The pinion shaft bearings preload spacer is on the left along with the outer pinion shaft bearing on the right.


The closeup photo below shows how badly the bearing has pitted. The differential bearings and the pinion shaft bearings have the same pitted condition.


You can see larger versions of the photos on my Flicker page. Don't forget to hit the "Back" button on your favorite browser to return to this page.

Two Pieces Done and Thousands to Go!

The deflector after brazing and media blasting. Nobody ever said that I was an expert at brazing but nobody will ever see the bead after it is painted and under the truck!


The yoke (flange) and deflector finally come together as an assembly ready to install on the pinion shaft.


It may seem counterproductive to refinish parts before assembly but media-blasted steel and iron rust very quickly if not sealed with paint. When the axle is fully assembled, it will be painted as an assembly and that will take care of any chips and flaws in the painted components.

There is Always Something to Keep Me Busy!

The rear axle project is taking longer than I expected. I spent a couple hours cleaning someone's poorly applied paint from the axle so that I can repaint it properly.



I removed the yoke from the pinion shaft in order to replace the seal and I discovered that the bearings had too much play (too little pre-load) in them. I hope that a bit of extra tightening on the pinion shaft nut will allow the pre-load spacer to compress enough to allow me to eliminate the play in the bearings.


This is the yoke which Ford refers to as a "Flange" in the shop manual. Notice the groove cut into the sealing surface. That groove must have been made by the "deflector" rotating in that area over many years and miles.



The deflector has a large tear which has to be repaired. I plan to braze it back together and more than likely a bead of brazing rod material will make the deflector as good as new.

As always, you can see larger versions of the photos by clicking on the "buttons" on this page or for even larger versions, go to my flickr site. Please make sure that you return to this page by clicking the "Back" button on your browser.

Rear Axle Progress

The machine shop at Tri-County Motor Parts in Glens Falls, NY bead-blasted the axle shafts and installed new National brand bearings. The total cost for the bearings, bead-blasting and press time was $102. I have to believe that was a good price.



After painting.....




The above photos of a painted shaft were taken before I noticed that the shafts had pitted grooves in the areas where the seals rubbed material away.

The photo below shows the area on the axle shaft that the original seal rubbed against. Notice the extreme pitting and the groove that was cut into the shaft after many miles. I had Tri-County put both axles on a crankshaft lathe and polish the sealing area.

When I install the new seals, I will install them at a depth that will allow the seal to rub against a polished, smooth area instead of the pitted groove.


For more and larger photos of the axle restoration progress, please visit this link. Use your browser's "Back" button to return to this page.