I bought one 1932 Ford heavy axle yesterday but it's bent from couple of points in the middle. I know people have straightened those, but without heating the axle. I was thinking of using a pressing machine but do you have any instructions how to keep it in shape?
It probably will need the king pin bosses redone also, I'd suggest sending it to a pro who can do both.
I'd leave that kind of work to someone who specializes in axles. it can be bent good as new, just call Okie Joe. He will straighten it and take care of the bosses. He'll drop it and drill it too if you want.
The cost of shipping it from Finland to Okie Joe and back might be prohibitive - I know it worked out cheaper to buy a heavy axle from 296V8 and have him drop it than to send mine there to have the work done. I just sold my stock one here to offset the cost. I have another that was was bent back from mild curbing or something and straightened it fairly easily on a 30ton hydraulic press. You just go at it slowly, and not all in one spot. The axle will spring back a bit after you release it, so use a rule to measure how much you deflect it and how much it springs back, then carefully work at it until straight and square.
That´s right, I would like to get a pro straighten it, but unless I find him from Finland, it´ll be too much money to send it to US. I rather buy fixed one in that case. I think it must have been bent even more and someone just straightened it to be able to use it under horse carriage back in the day. I might eventually buy one done by pro, but it might be worth trying to fix this axle also. King pin bosses seem to be fairly good, spring perch bolt holes have some wear.
Greg, 296V8 here on the Hamb has my brothers 32 Heavy right now fixing it back to stock. It had a few bends. It's only about $35 to send it from Michigan but Findland might be expensive. However, weigh that against buying 32 Heavys until you find a straight one and........ Sent from my Droid powered Samsung Galaxy S
A lot depends on where and how it's bent. Front to back from hitting a stump is pretty easy to straighten with a press. Go slow. A little at a time. Any bends in the center are largely cosmetic and only affect the eye. From the spring perch holes out is where the alignment is done. After you get it pleasing to the eye then any good truck shop should be able to align it by bending it between the perch holes and the king pin holes.
Sounds promising, thanks for good advice. Problem is not sending the axle to US, but when it´s sent back to Finland I need to pay tax + VAT of all expences. I don´t even want to count what would be the total cost.
I didn't even see that he's in Finland. That changes things quite a bit. Do everything you can to seek out a local expert in forging. A blacksmiths shop may have the equipment and skills needed and you can provide the technical input on final dimensions.
Don't heat it. Keep it cold. Set it up in a press and work out where it needs to be bent, Sight down the length of it to identify the exact point of the bend. Work slow and careful. You will have to bend it past where you want so when it springs back, it will be where you want. Mart.
Here is a link to part of my thread where I show how I straighten an axle. I also drop the axle but I straighten a bend in the middle first, I do it cold and its not too hard to do. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=596032&page=10 David
I would offer the idea to you to find a truck shop over there that does heavy spring work. Usually they also do I beam axles that are still used a lot today in big dump trucks, etc. Back her around Louisville Ky. they are generally quite affordable. I have done this twice for a couple of projects that I built. They have the equipment, knowledge, and experience to do it right as well as reaming out for kingpins, etc. Hope that helps.
Your setup looks simple enough, but your axle is a bit better than mine. Anyway, it´s worth trying. I always like to learn new things, that´s why I probably will try it on my own.
Good to know, at least after I get the axle straight, I can those guys to do the reaming. I also know one very affordable machining shop back here, so I think I´m covered if I first get the axle straight enough. If I don´t, I´ll find another one, simple as that.
Some more good tech covering multiple axle hurts: http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=677274&highlight=axle+shrinking&showall=1
Ilari, The trick is to straighten the middle and keep the king pin bosses in the same angle as they are stock. You are correct the best way to straighten one is to do it without heat, you will need to do it in a press. I would find a good axle to make a fixtur to check the king pin angle with, then start straightening a little at a time checking the kig pin angle evey little bit. If when you are done straightening the axle if the king pin bosses are a little off you can bore them and bush them to get them back in the correct angle.
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