MAKING BEST USE OF THE FORD.
Page 15
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Valuable Advice on Every Phase of Ford Transport, Which Will Appeal to the Owner, Driver and Repairer.
IN THIS series of hints concerning the Ford light chassis and ton truck wherever they are employed for commercial purposes, we endeavour to deal with the subject from every view-point, so that the advice given will appeal to the owner, driver, maintenance engineer, or mechanic. Valuable sources of information are being tapped-for this purpose, and it should . be understood that the advice given will be derived from those with an intimate knowledge of the
subject. .
We shall welcome for inclusion among the hints those which have proved of value to individual users, and will make suitable remuneration for any published. What we desire are the results of practice.
167.—A Cure for Loose Steering on the Ton Truck.
The yoke and track rod of the s eering on the ton truck sometimes causes trouble o 'ng to wear on the threads of both parts, in spite of he nut on the ball pin being kept as tight as possibl This causes an objectionable rattle and also prevents the wheels from tracking properly. Apparently the only cure for the trouble, if the means of adjustment is to be left, is to fit new parts, but if care be taken this may be avoided by brazing the yoke on to the track rod. Be very careful that the proper tracking of the wheels is obtained before the yoke is finally fixed in position.
Before brazing the yoke into position it is advisable to drill a hole through both yoke -and rod and drive a taper pin into this this will not only strengthen the whole job, hut will prevent the yoke moving while the brazing operation is being performed.
168.—A Useful Jig for Remetalling Big,end Bearings.
Owing to the low cost of replacements, remetalling the connecting rods of the Ford is not always an economical proposition for the man in charge of a small fleet. Cases do arise, however, where it is justified. For instance, a crankshaft was recently dealt with in which the journals, after truing, were over .015 in. undersize. Letting together the halves of a standard rod, in this case, would have entailed the wastage of a useful amount. of bearing metal. Therefore, it was deemed advisable to renaetal and rebore to size.
To do this, a simple jig was constructed. The base was marked off and bored for a mandril and gudgeon pin, 1 in. diameter and 23-32 in. respectively. An old gudgeon pin was then driven into the smaller hole, barely flush with the bottom of the base. The pin was then lined up perpendicularly to the base by means of a square, and a Fin, washer slipped over it and brazed to the bottom of the pin. After cooling, the pin complete with its washer was driven out and the hole in the base eased and
elongated in. endwise. Naturally, the base must have a reasonably flat surface, as on the true alignment of the pin depends the accuracy of the jig and its usefulness as an accessory. A piece of 1k-in. steel tube was then placed in the chuck and turned down to I 5-32 ins., faced and cut to an overall length of lf ins. The base was recessed in., and the tube brazed to it, care being used in this operation so that very little spelter was required.
If interchangeability of the mandrils is necessary a solid mandril fixed by a setscrew may be employed, but a hollow mandril is preferred by the writer, as it secures more uniform heating and lessens the risk of oxidization, -which is difficult to avoid when heating up a solid mandril.
A 11-in. washer was then bored out to 1 19-32 in. and secured to the base concentrically with the mandril, thus leaving a space between its inner edge and the mandril, which allows for the extension of the bearing Metal in the lower side of the connecting rod.
Another washer of the same size and a bridge piece complete the jig. Frem centre to centre of gudgeon pin and mandril the distance is 7 ins., and the size of the base should be approximately 10 ins. by 2?-,. ins. The bridge piece may be 3 ins, long, in. wide and in thick, and of the shape shown in our sketch. The bridge piece is held in position by a bolt passed right through the mandril and the hole in the base.
On setting up the connecting rod a little care is needed. When the correct position is found the bolt and nut at the pin end can he -tightened up, the washer laid on the bearing end and this end clamped by means of the bridge piece. Ordinary putty has usually proved satisfactory for stopping any little holes through which the white metal is likely to run. After running in the metal and before it is quite set, it is sometimes advisable to place the core and mandril end of the jig in a handful of waste soaked in waterthis allows the bearing to cool from the bottom instead of the top, thus reducing the risk of blow boles through uneven setting. It is always advisable to check the connecting rods for truth before setting them up in the jig,as, if they have to be straightened afterwards, this will throw the 'bearings out of alignment.
[We would point out., for the sake of many of our readers who do not wish to construct their own tools, that useful jigs specially designed for remetalling all parts of the Ford which require this work are sold by most accessory dealers. If difficulty he experienced in obtaining them, application should be made to Lake and Elliot. Ltd., Braintree, Essex, makers of the well-known Millennium equipments.—En.]