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Taking out the lower wishbone was interesting. Removal of the shaft required an air wrench on the nut and a 24 inch breaker bar/socket on the head. Only then (after removing the cotter pin of course) would the nut come loose.
The left side shaft came right out with too much ease, as the leaking rack had left it dripping with steering oil, what our neighbor calls Automatic Rust Protection.
The right side shaft was almost completely seized in the bushings and required a Lot of Effort, Brute Force and Awkwardness to get the shaft free. (This situation explains why the car was so soft on the left front and so harsh on the right.) The shaft is a bit scarred but there are none available so it will have to go back in.
Pressing the old bushings out was not hard at all with one of husband's many vises and a couple sockets; 7/8 impact to push the old bushing out, into a 36mm socket we call Sarge. After the rubber broke loose from the bore it pushed right out.
After a bit of cleaning (including sandpaper to get all the rubber bits out of the bore) and painting it was time to put the new bushings in. The ROM calls for an obscure compound that turns out to be a mixture of 1 (one) part liquid soap and 12 parts water. We tried that and experienced a resounding failure!
Husband called around and finally talked to a helpful mechanic (who spoke on conditions of anonymity) who has good experience with wishbones in general and Jaguar wishbones in particular. He told husband, "I've used silicone adhesive for years. DON'T get the good stuff! Get the cheapest you can find because it's slippery! And be sure you get the bushings centered in the bore because that sets the camber." So that's what we did.
He found some suitably cheap RTV at a local AutoZone; Permatex Adhesive Sealant. Husband was told that some guys have success merely pushing the new bushings in with their hands but that didn't work for him, but then he doesn't have his full strength back yet either.
He set up Sarge on the work table, over a leg of one of the box-iron saw horses, slathered the bushing with the Cheap RTV, got it started in the bore by hand, and then used his biggest dead-blow hammer and pounded it into place. He made up a quick-guage beforehand to check that the bushing extended the same on both sides of the bore and if it wasn't enough, he hit it again; or in one case, we put it in the vise for final adjustment. He said it was Very Satisfying.
The socket is a terrible mess after this job but cleans up well if the RTV isn't allowed to set up, Unlike the good stuff he was told to avoid, which you can Never just wipe off.
(';')
Somehow, I missed out on the scissors bit. A bunch of them around here. some I got and some by my dear departed. Some elegant and some utilitarian, guess which is which. She didn't sew, but was a marvel ant knitting and crocheting. Her fingers just flew!!!
Some time ago, I collected a few and took them to a pro sharpener. Much better than my efforts.
I have a decent pair here in my office. Payola from my former profession!!
And,a decent, but not as good a pair in the shop. Some weird, highly touted, ones that don't live up to the hype, as well.
Sarge: Oh, yeah! My dad was a professional soldier. A top kick when he retired.
But amongst his MOS's was Farrier. Known then as black smith. He shod horses and mules. Immensely powerful arms and shoulders til the day he passed.
An old army story is that the first sergeant was the man that could and would whoop any man in the unit.
Over the years, I've used a couple of concoctions as a lube to ease tight fitting parts together. Vaseline and hand soap work quite well. And decades ago, at a garage sale, I got a lube intended for food processing machines. Works well on any device.
I did see one lister here turning his own shafts on a lathe. Impressive.
Thank you, Carl,
Yes, I too noticed the turned shafts, but that's beyond our talents and abilities, and we don't know anyone who has those talents and abilities.
Mine are a little rusty and scarred but not unusable I don't think. The biggest problem seemed to be lack of lubrication at assembly. That will not be the case when this goes back together.
(';')
Everywhere we go on this car something was done incorrectly!
While cleaning up the cross member husband found a stack of shims in a place that is said to be disadvised on this car as it's hard on the upper wishbone bushings.
Shims totaling 1/8 inch thick are stuck between only one end of the upper wishbone shaft and the outer member. This was doubtless an attempt to set caster by someone who didn't know they were working on a Jaguar and not an American car.
The correct way to set caster according to the ROM is with shims beside the upper ball joints; each shim adjusting 1/4 degree.
The other day, when I wasn't looking, husband put the strangest comb like tool on my desk. I had an idea what it was but I asked anyway. (It makes him feel good when I ask him things like that, gives him a chance to show his more lengthy experience). It's for straightening radiator/condenser fins.
I know where I can use that!!
When I took the radiator out the condenser was a Mess! Not only did it have rice straw in it but also a Lot of bees and plastic strands from a tarp, and the fins had Definitely seen better days, being somewhat flattened. The back side wasn't so buggy but the fins were actually flattened way worse and the top was almost completely flattened.
Where a large area was flattened, I worked on one fin at a time, slowly so as not to damage any tubes. Even so, there were some shards of brass dislodged, especially from the front where a bird had collided with the car.
So I spent about an hour working on it. The radiator is made completely differently so the tool is of no use there, but the condenser being out front like it is, it caught all the krud.
Below are the before and after pictures of the condenser. I'm gonna say the air flow is now improved markedly. I can actually see through it now!
(';')
2. Perhaps, I don't have the perspective right, but, I don't see how that pile of shims had any effect on caster???
3. Way back when, Bear was a major maker of front end service equipment. Pre ball joint front ends had limited mechanical adjustments. The bear stuff included jacks, levers and chains to bend the forged parts to get the desired alignment.
4. Yup, I've heard of fin combs, but never saw one. Neat.. Great job, lottsa patience to align the fins to get air flow.
5. As you live in "road debris" country, have you considered a disposable or serviceable screen to mount in front of the condenser? Those were popular at one time.
Think of it as a triangle, Carl, with point 1 absolutely fixed.
If you move point 2, point 3 has no choice but to move.
The upper wishbone shaft is one leg of the triangle; each end being a point on this triangle, and the ball joint is the 3rd point.
If the aft end of the shaft is forced away from the frame the ball joint MUST move backward, resulting in positive camber adjustment; because positive alignment is adjusted Out and Back.
(';')
Each bolt has 3 washers; 2 "thin" and one Very thick.
The lower wishbone was aligned with the sub-frame using a Large pry bar, long enough to go completely through the hole, and a long socket on the other end (12mm Deep Impact) that Just fit inside the bore.
WARNING: Don't forget the washers! Washer sequence:
Bolt head > wishbone bushing > thin washer > frame > thin washer > wishbone bushing > Thick washer (groovy side to bushing) > castellated nut.
The bolt was cleaned and smoothed of any burs.
To avoid the bolt rusting into place next time, necessitating the need for a drift and Big Hammer (or worse), husband slathered the bolt with Anti-Seize compound.
He wiped off the excess.
After he slid the bolt into its place (with the help if a Large dead-blow hammer) he also wiped away any excess that might have collected under the head of the bolt.
Installed fulcrum bolt.
The ROM (Blue Book) says this nut/bolt is not to be tightened until the weight of the car is on the wheel.
As I've written before, we're rank amateurs at this Jaguar thing, this being the first Jaguar in either of our experience. This is the way we've figured out how to do these things but they might not be procedurally correct; *The Right Way.*
If I've posted something wrong, someone with more experience Please chime in and correct me. I would far rather that than mislead someone through well-intentioned ingorance.
(';')
Looks good to me Lnr, the only thing I misread the first time was castellated nut.....for a second I thought hubby may have had an accident
Just kidding well done!
Looks good to me Lnr, the only thing I misread the first time was castellated nut.....for a second I thought hubby may have had an accident
Just kidding well done!
Thank you, Daf,
I KNEW someone would mention that nut! I thought it would be Graham.
(';')
2. Got it. View the upper control arm as the triangle it is in plan view. Thanks. yeah, domestic critter alignment include open end shims for that purpose. Interestingly, a Corvair in m y past had a pair between the starter and the bell housing. It looked too "Mickey Mouse " for me. I rem,oved them. Nope, the starter howled awful.... Put them back. Should've looked for the "correct way to shim a Delco starter!!!
3. That bottle of "antiseize" is exactly like the one in my "Goop" drawer. I've used t a lot over the years. Son and I had a debate on it's use on wheel lug nuts. He, "no", I "yes".
Side bar: Spent a bit on a Malware program. It took most of yesterday AM to scan and cleanse this computer. So much better, durn "pop ups" gone......
Mowed part of the front "pasture" yesterday with one of my weed whackers. The electric one. Not as effective as the gas unit, but lighter and easier on my shoulders.
Jag to get in the air today, mebbe. New starter went bum or electrics???
I need a source for switched 12v. Aha the "white" wire to my dormant CC. In the engine cavity,. no need to open another scuttle!!
Thank you, Carl,
That bottle of anti-seize was here when I came. At one time I posted a picture of his Extensive collection of exotic, obsolete, arcane and little known chemicals. I'm sure some of them are less than legal by now, but I won't tell anyone if you don't. LOL
(';')
I've no cause to tattle, I've a bunch of stuff of my own!!
Better take down that picture. In these days of cyberspy, who knows.
Jaguar up on jack and jack stands. good ones. chocked as well. Down and under with jumpers. New started dead as a stone.
Pulled the battery. took it to bench and bench tested old one. Same answer.
So, all I got is two done for starters and a couple of blisters. Well, tomorrow, I'll drop the starter. Disconnect the electrics top side. One wobble socket and one long, each 9/16" and down it comes.
Then, send in "new" for warranty. decide source for replacement.
The upper wishbone bushings were Much easier to deal with than the lower. Husband picked up some genuine Rubber Lubricant which he's since learned was unnecessary.
A mixture of one part liquid soap and 12 parts water is basically the formula of the magic elixir recommended by the ROM. However, since he bought this stuff he insisted on using it.
He was advised not to use a lot, so he put it on with a Q-tip, just on the surfaces that needed to slide into the bore, and a bit in the bore itself.
Then he put both halves in the bore and twisted them together, then squeezing them by hand so they got the idea what they were supposed to do.
To keep from deforming the thin outer washers we put standard washers in the recesses, just thick enough to fill the void and make it flat, then stuck the whole thing in the vise (the jaws cushioned with wood) and squeezed then together until the wood began to complain.
He goes through an astonishing quantity of blue gloves during a project like this.
This is one bushing completed.
The first component to go on the shaft is the chromed conical washer. Then the bushed wishbone, another cone washer, a heavy flat washer and a nyloc nut.
Husband got new nuts as the nyloc part probably isn't what it used to be but it was soon discovered that new American nuts are too thick!
You can see in the picture below the nyloc doesn't even engage!
So he cleaned up the old nuts and put them on with Loctite. They aren't going anywhere.
After the upper wishbones were complete they were ready to receive new ball joints.
According to the ROM (The Blue Book) this is not the proper place to set caster on a Jaguar, stuffing shims on the shaft. Doing that shortens the life of the bushings because the wishbones are forced into a cocked angle and not perpendicular to the shaft.
I like to have things correct so I took these shims out.
It's a good idea to label the shims as to where they came from when you take things apart.
The new ball joints are sitting loosely between the wishbones, bolts in place but not Even tight! There were 2 shims behind and one in front.
To correct the erroneous attempt above, I put 2 shims in front and only one in back. This moves the joint back like the shims on the shaft did but this is the correct way to do that.
They're easy to put in; slip the inboard notch and drop the outer end. No worries!
The left side has the opposite shim arrangement; 2 behind, one in front.
After Nix is back in running order the alignment will be set correctly if it isn't now.
(';')
Very nice illustrated write up. I am sure it helps a lot of present viewers and in the archives, future ones as well.
Way back when, I worked at a real full service station while going to college. We did a lt of tire work. Sudsy water was the lube for the tire beads.
Much later, still mounting and dismounting my own tires, I turned to dish soap.
No more tire work here. but, when I need a clean or rubber lube, I go to my mechanic's hand soap.
Never could do auto work with gloved hands. I lost my two pair of them. Smooth vinyl like ventral and woven dorsal sides. HMMM.
Wonder where my box of blue went. probably gave 'em to daughter for cat litter box service. Ugh.
Old mechanic tip. Oil up hands with oil. So, when wash hands time is upo, they clean up nicely. Well, sorta. No issue, a badge of honor as I see it.
Decades ago, I was invited out on a party boat to fish for salmon. Fun, in spite of my just barely avoid sea sickness. One of the guy's business was the restoration of vintage furniture. He was a bit embarrassed by the toll of the work on his hands.
No such thing, sir. It is a badge of hard honest work. As good as it gets. Kinda like calluses.
Thank you, Carl,
I think I've mentioned how I wrote tutorials for a graphic art program for a couple years. I had to be clear and understandable and I used lots of screen shots. To make sure I didn't leave anything out, I actually created the graphic as I was writing the tutorial. That all kind of stuck I guess.
Harbor Freight blue gloves are staples around here. Husband wears gloves in the shop way more than I do.
I wear gloves because they're necessary for my work and I've got into the habit. It's pretty hard to effectively deal with rose clippings, mower blades or chain saw slash with bare hands and keep my nails in good condition as my customers have come to expect. In my world work gloves are perishable goods (like work shoes) and are necessities.
When I was in college we weren't necessarily encouraged to use gloves as it was a rural area, unless we were working Inside the car. They hampered my work anyway, making it harder to start spark plugs or oil line fittings for example, or to guestimate the depth of a ring ridge. Those things are easy with bare fingers.
Some classmates asked my roommate how I kept my hands so clean. She just told them I scrubbed them.
I kept a stealth jar of Go-Jo in my tool box and at the end of class I slathered my hands with it when no one was watching. That got the vast majority, and when I got back to the dorm room I used a nail brush, Lava soap and Boraxo to get the rest. By evening I was ready to go out and there was no evidence I had been handling an engine block (or wheel bearings, or a valve body, or brake cylinders, or a fuel pump) only a couple hours before.
Admit it! If I posted pictures of my greasy dirty hands you guys would be Seriously disappointed! I know how it is, it's OK for a man to be dirty doing this stuff but Not for a woman! We're held to a Higher Standard! We have to be twice as good at everything to be considered worth half as much as a man: Fortunately this is not difficult.
(';')
04-14-2015, 06:49 AM
Lower Wishbone Bushings
