Hey, quick question.... Moog tells me their ES416R tie rod ends have an 8 degree taper... I can only find 7 degree tapered reamers as the closest to that ... A) Are they lying? B) Is 7 degree ok to use? C) Is the hole meant to be 1 degree less to create some type of fit? D) am I over thinking this and just use the damn 7 degree reamer and call it good Thanks all EDIT: question answered. He said 1 in 8 taper which is like 7.13 degrees. I misheard him to say 8 degrees. Leaving this here Incase it's helpful for other overthinkers like me. Job is done successfully
I made a steering linkage for a Chevy 3600 and my measurement was 1mm of taper for each 1cm of length. I found this to be true for both American made tie rod tapers as well as BMW tie rod ends ( that´s what I used, it was easier for me). I bought a tapered 1:10 reamer with a min dia of 5 mm and a max dia of 15mm. https://www.hoffmann-group.com/DE/de/hom/p/161000-5X15?tId=875 Here´s a link to where I bought it. It was expensive but also one of the best quality tools I ever owned. Cuts through forged steering arms like a charm.
There's an SAE (and international) standard for the tie rod and ball joint taper. The only thing that changes is depth. You should be able to buy any generic tie rod end reamer and have it "just work"
Ball joints are not exactly 7degrees, they are 7.125. but not sure they are quoting 8, ball joints tapers are an SAE standard, none are nominally 8 degrees. Get a SAE ball joint taper reamer not a 7 degree reamer.
Guessing the original spec, was expressed as Taper Per Foot. Ran into that situation, measuring a R8 taper for my Boss. My math was correct, but expressed in Degrees, it made no sense. Boss insisted I was wrong. I changed the units, and suddenly it made sense. Cylindrical Grinders were frequently calibrated in Taper Per Foot.
I have the Speedway unit. No idea who made it. I've had it for over 25 years. Says made in the USA on it. Nice tool.
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