Anyone know what this is for?

stickshift

stickshift

Senior Member
I found this box under my seat mixed with the tools. I never saw anything like this or needed to use one before. Is this something I will need? Thanks
 

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It’s a king pin set, jack up each front wheel, grab top- bottom and wiggle, look for movement where end of axle connects to spindle, when it is good there will be no perceptible movement except slight wheel bearing play
The parts places sell a kit of all the small pieces to make up for what is missing.
 
Eventually yours will wear out and need replacement - or yours are already worn out and the last owner got the parts but never installed them. They are the king pins that hold the spindle to the front axle. It easy to check if yours are worn by jacking up the front wheel.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trQaA7dKSfU
 
More...the old and the new....

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King pins are new to me... I do remember my Dad mentioning them many years ago, but the cars I worked on didn't have them. I did the wheel rock test after jacking up the front and the driver side wheel was tight. The passenger side rocked about 1/8 inch top to bottom but I didn't see any movement on the kingpin or brake drum. It seems like a loose wheel bearing that needs to be snugged. The box looks older than dirt, maybe the previous owner was like me and hoarded parts for the future. I'm sure I will use them someday. Thanks for the replies.
 
stickshift said:
King pins are new to me... I do remember my Dad mentioning them many years ago, but the cars I worked on didn't have them. I did the wheel rock test after jacking up the front and the driver side wheel was tight. The passenger side rocked about 1/8 inch top to bottom but I didn't see any movement on the kingpin or brake drum. It seems like a loose wheel bearing that needs to be snugged. The box looks older than dirt, maybe the previous owner was like me and hoarded parts for the future. I'm sure I will use them someday. Thanks for the replies.
Click to expand...

Or your outer bearing cone has been spinning on your stub and has worn your stub od. If you quietly “snug” up the bearing nut and you still have the movement, remove the bearing and check that area, a common fault on old
Stubs.
 
I think I'm o.k. on the wheel bearing. I snugged it to the next slot on the castle nut and the top-to-bottom play was gone. I usually snug these up to seat the bearing, then back off and let the weight of the wrench determine where to place the cotter pin. I learned the hard way about overtightening wheel bearings. School of hard-knocks. One question though, I only saw one through hole on the spindle for the cotter pin. Maybe the grease was in the way, but I thought there might be two holes for more options.
 
And King-pin change out CAN be a bear. Best done with the front axle removed entirely from the car, stripped down to the wishbone and done with a press.

As a young fart I did it by the "hammer loose" method while on the car, which I don't recommend. A porta-power might make this work if you can arrange a proper "strongback" to work against.

There have been reports of "defective" king pins among the modern repops. Either made incorrectly (i.e. the wedge bolt slot which hold them in place) or bad metallurgy. Yours don't appear to be this. Yours would be a "saver" for me. "New Old Stock." (NOS)

And you'll need the appropriate "king pin reamer" for sizing the bearings/sleeves. These can be bought new, or a much better buy found on Ebay. I think I paid $28 for mine with shipping - but I was patient.

Joe K
 
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