Front suspension and steering rack this week. I finished assembling the new front suspension assemblys. This included: New major trunnion kit and new ball joints. I also took the steering rack apart into it’s component parts and cleaned them. Re-assembly will be next week.

With the frame taken away last week, I started to do some more painting. I have painted the engine, coils springs, and the front suspension components (after I had taken them apart that was)

Well, I did a few things this week. First, with the help of a few friends, I took the tub of the car of the chassis, the chassis was then taken to be sand blasted (I have not gotten this back yet).

In preparation of removing the body from the chassis, I have removed all of the bolts that hold the two pieces together.

No photos this week. I did not work on this car this weekend, and in fact, spent my time taking apart the rear axles for the other spitfire. It’s crazy working on two cars at the same time, but hey, it’s a lot of fun. The steering rack is still a focus of concern for me and I will attempt to do some work on this during the week. This will more than likely involve taking the steering linkage apart and cleaning the gears.

This week I completed building the rear axles and started on the stearing rack. I took the gaters off the rack and cleaned all the grease off the rack to inspect the mechanicals. The motion is very rough, there is a problem somewhere. bugger…

This week I cleaned all the gunk of the differential and started to rebuild the axles

Well, I actually managed to get some work done with the rear end this weekend. The rear axles were returned from napa with the trunnions pressed off the axle. I now was able to take the front and rear bearings out. The main front bearings are shot and will need to be replaced.

I also repainted the axles, brake plates, sway bar, and also put the sway bar back together with new bushings:

Photos (before painting):

After Painting:

Here are the bearings all cleaned up:

I had to work this weekend so I didn’t’ get anything done. Have to have an entry though.

Well, This week I have started to dismantle the rear axles. Attached are some e-mails that I have sent and received regarding the rear axles. I had several issues while working on the axles. My initial goals for this week were:

Dismantle
clean
repaint
rebuild with new seals, gaskets, brake shoes, & dust covers

Ahh.. Well, First of all, I needed to use the “original factory tool” to remove the axle flange from the trunion set. This turned out to be easy because there was a guy that lives 15mins from my home that has one of these tools. If you can’t get the factory tool then you will have to use some form of press with sufficient support for the flange. Bend the flange and you’re done.

My next issue was the removing of the outer wheel bearing. Here is the email I sent out:

OK, I’m taking apart the rear axles and I have run into a problem.
Somebody out there must know this:

Ok, I have removed the axle hub.
Now, according to the directions, I push the inner hub down the axle shaft
to expose the outer bearing so I can remove it. Here is my problem, the
axle is machined so that the inner hub can only go down the shaft a certain
distance. With the inner hub pushed down the shaft as far as it will go, I
can not get to the far side of the bearing to remove it. Wassup??

question:

What is the proper way to dismantle the rear axle so I can replace all of
the oil seals and check the bearings??

thanks.

This is the response:

Huw,
I just finished disassembling the rear axle assemblies on my 70 spit. I
completely removed whole rear axle assembly from the vehicle so I could work on
a bench. After removing the Drum, brakes, and of course the hub flange, I
removed the 4 bolts which hold the brake back plate to the trunnion. I removed
the grease shield, and grease seal. Now using my 2 jaw gear puller, I pushed
the axle shaft out of the trunnion which now holds the bearings and seals, Then
using a wooden dowel, I tapped the main bearing out of the trunnion. It’s a bit
over the top, but I am working on reconditioning the entire rear axle assembly.
It is also much easier to work on a bench top than down along side the car.
Good Luck. Let us know how it turns out.

I am going to take the axles to napa to have them press them out.

Photos: