Perch nut concern

W

wrndln

Well-known member
I have a frontend I am restoring and I have noticed a strange thing with the perch bolt nuts. Note: the perch nuts have a tapered bottom on them. I am posting a picture of the nut on the bottom of one of the perch bolts. Sorry the picture isn't a little better, but you can see that the cotter pin hole is below the castellated nut slots. Obviously a cotter pin wont do any good until the nut(s) are quite loose. The nut is very tight and probably the nut would never loosen. However the nut/end of the bolt doesn't look right. Both sides are like this, but this is the worst one. The perch bolts look like authentic Ford, however I can't tell for sure. Could the perch bolts be made too long? Has anyone seen anything like this before?
Rusty Nelson

Perchnutconcern_zps26082c99.jpg
 
Dudley,
It is sandblasted and ready for DP90. I got one nut off, but the other is one extremely tight. The nuts look right. The one I got off is .810 from top to the tip of the taper. Do you have one that you can measure? I checked on the coupe and it appears to have the same projection of the perch bolt through the axle. It would them seem to be the nuts not being right or the wishbone nut sockets are worn (doesn't look that way however). I suppose I could get a washer and "shim" it out to where the cotter pin would be functional. I will keep trying to remove the one that is the worst (in the picture). Maybe that nut is shorter than the one I removed. The one I removed was a little better as the cotter pin hole was almost where it might lock the nut, but not quite.
Rusty
 
Rusty,

Several questions...

Are the Front Spring Perch Assembly's original? There were two types I think according to the JS's.

Are you mating up the correct "perch" with the correct Front Radius Rod? There were three or four versions of that.

The "nuts" I thinks were the same for all years except for the Cotter key area within the nut themselves as one style is "U" shape and the other, I think, is square shape.

Review your standards and make sure the mating is correct...this may be your problem...if not then you just might have some repop perch assemblies.

Heat the nut slightly then douse with cold water...this should expand the nut so as it will be easy to remove.

Pluck
 
That's about the same way my perch nuts look. Was that way when I bought the truck. I just figured that it had the wrong nuts on it. I bought new nuts but haven't put them on yet. Guess I need to check if they are the same or different from the ones that are already on there.
 
Just looked at the original front end I moved yesterday, there isn't much threaded area below the nut. I'd just drill new holes, and cut off the ecesss if your car was mine. Bob
 
329s said:
Rusty,

Several questions...

Are the Front Spring Perch Assembly's original? There were two types I think according to the JS's.

Are you mating up the correct "perch" with the correct Front Radius Rod? There were three or four versions of that.



Pluck
Click to expand...

I also thought about that,...my 2 PPL's show the same perch and nut,
except for the VE-28 perch.
 
Both my 1929 cars have about two to three threads showing on each perch below the nut.

Most perch's have the part number on the perch...not quite sure just how to tell an aftermarket or repop perch from an original as I have no aftermarket or repop perch's to check with.

Pluck
 
Rod,
The steering arm nuts don't have a tapered end on them do they? The nuts on the perch bolts look right. Like I wrote above, the total length of the nuts is .810". It would be great if the nuts were too thin, but I think they are correct. I guess I could cut off the perch bolts and drill new cotter pin holes, or try to make curved washers to shim them out some. The perch bolts look very good, not like the cheesy Argentine ones from 40 years ago. I have a pair I bought back then, probably from Rick's or Warshawsky's I will never use. The machining on them is pathetic.

BTW, I measure about .8" from the very bottom of the C shaped part of the wishbone to the end of the perch bolt. This seems about right.

Vince,
I don't know if the nuts are original, but they sure look like it. Do you have any original perch nuts? If so, maybe you could measure them and post the results here.
Rusty Nelson
 
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No they are not tapered, but they are stepped and might go into the recessed part of the wishbone far enough they looked tapered. Just a thought I had while taking apart the last of the 8 frontends I am salvaging brakes and spindles off of. Rod
 
Here is what my NOS perch with an original nut looks like on the axle.

The cotter goes through the side, the nut is lined up but I have not put one in yet.

Please ignore the cob webs and dust.

For what it is worth, most of what you see is original Ford parts. The grease fittings are repro.
 

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Marco,
Thanks for posting the perch nut height. Your measurement is the same as my perch nuts, so they must be original or correct repros. As far as the cotter pin hole direction, I checked my 28 special coupe and the cotter pin holes do run left to right, parallel to the axle. If that is the way they were made by Ford, I must have a repro perch bolt on one side in the frontend I am rebuilding (picture). It is strange that the perch bolt cotter hole on the side I didn't take a picture of does go parallel to the axle, whereas the one in the picture is perpendicular to the axle. Both perch bolts look very well made if they are in deed replacement parts.

I am posting a picture of the perch nuts on the frontend I am working on. Vince, note the nuts do have taper ends.
Rusty

Perchnuts_zps3001cbd1.jpg
 
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All four front axles here in the shop have the cotterpin running left to right. All 3 origianl perches in y parts stash also run left to right as well as the 4 repops do. I am wondering now if the perch may be broken in the bore, twisted or bad repop. Rod
 
I posted a picture of the perch nuts in the post of mine above. Kevin,
thanks for posting a picture of an authentic perch bolt and nut. I must have a repop perch bolt in the side in the picture as the cotter hole in perpendicular to the axle (the other perch is parallel to the axle - go figure. I guess you never know what you will find on a model A.

Rod,
When I finally got the nut off and it was tough to do, I don't think it could be broken or twisted. The hole is exactly 90 degrees off from parallel to the axle. I think it was made that way. It probably doesn't matter that much is as far as function, but to be authentic, which I try to be, it should be parallel to the axle.
Rusty
 
Take a picture of the tops of the perches.

The repros I have seen are stocky around the shackle hole and look different.

The originals are slender and well look real.
 
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