Worst spring shackles I've ever seen.

Neil Mylar LakewoodCA

Neil Mylar LakewoodCA

Well-known member
I just replaced the rear end in my recently purchased 1929 woody.
I did not realize how bad the rear shakles were.
 

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From the looks of that spring hangar, I think the entire running gear has not had maintenance in a long long time.
 
I took off a pair a couple of months ago that were worn about 50% through, but yours beat mine hands down! Check for wear in the axle housings as well, mine were worn through the bushing and into the housing. Good catch, that's not something you want to have let loose on the road.
 
Here is a great article from Vince Falter. https://www.fordgarage.com/pages/brokenshackles.htm

I had one break exactly as shown in Vince's and Tom's articles. They seem to break right thru thr grease hole. I found it when I was installing my Mitchell O/D. I don't really know how long it was broken.

548243
 

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Y-Blockhead said:
Here is a great article from Vince Falter. https://www.fordgarage.com/pages/brokenshackles.htm

I had one break exactly as shown in Vince's and Tom's articles. They seem to break right thru thr grease hole. I found it when I was installing my Mitchell O/D. I don't really know how long it was broken.

548243
Click to expand...

I had a shackle do that and I've heard of others. I suspect it was a bad batch from (I hope) a no longer used manufacturer. My first clue that something was wrong was when I greased them.
 
Look closely at the photos in Post #7 and 8. One hole in the link that bolts to the end of the shackle is elongated from wear. That will put a bending stress on the shackle at the lube hole and cause it to break. It may be that the nuts were not tightened sufficiently.
 
nkaminar said:
Look closely at the photos in Post #7 and 8. One hole in the link that bolts to the end of the shackle is elongated from wear. That will put a bending stress on the shackle at the lube hole and cause it to break. It may be that the nuts were not tightened sufficiently.
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Or it could have been the other way around. The Shackle broke wearing the hole in the cross bar oval over time. You don't want the nuts too tight or the shackles will not "flex".
 
Y-Blockhead said:
Or it could have been the other way around. The Shackle broke wearing the hole in the cross bar oval over time. You don't want the nuts too tight or the shackles will not "flex".
Click to expand...
This was kinda my thought as well. The shackel has to move relative to the cross bar to get that wear, and to my mind it would only move if it was separated first.
 
I finally removed the rear spring.
The shackles wore into both axle housings.
One of the shackles was actually broken in two.
 

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The shackle will have just enough length to be able to hinge when the nuts are tight if properly manufactured. The shackle is highly stressed and depends on the nuts to be tight against the plates in order to restrict any flexing of the hinge parts while in service. Looseness will cause failure as much as lack of lube service. Fatigue is another factor that can be exacerbated by looseness of parts. I'm sure that the engineers never expected these parts to last 90+ years in the case of OEM parts. Parts of dubious manufacture and poor manufacturing practices will not take the designed stress of an OEM part. If they don't fit and function right then find another source for the affected part.
 
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