I am replacing all the bushings on our 75 and 79 F-250 2wd shortbed SC's. I just received the I-beam pivot bushings and since I have only had 4wds in the past, can anyone confirm that the ones in the picture; which are oblong not round, are the correct parts for the trucks?

 

Yes.. oblong/oval!

 

Sweet. Now what do you guys think, should i send the spindles in to have new King pins installed or should i do it myself?

 

If you use the nylon bushings, you can do it yourself. If you use the bronze bushings, they will need to be reamed/honed to fit the king pins.

 

IMO, find a machine shop and have metal bushings reamed to fit new kingpins.

The nylon bushings are convenient but in this particular circumstance I would definitely go with how the factory did it.

 

I would also recommend the metal bushings. They feel tighter when driving down the road and if properly lubed will last a very long time. These trucks are heavy and require regular maintenance. Remember the grease gun is your friend!

 

Ball park what is the going rate having them done? I am going metal for sure. Should I buy the king pin kit for them as I done mind spending on good stuff. Does the kit come with oversized bushing that allow them to be reamed?

 

The kit should come with everything you need to replace the bushings and king pins. It'll also include the grease caps for the king pins and seals, thrust bearings and locking pins.
The bushings are already undersized, that's why they need to be reamed.
Also, be prepared, don't expect to "tap" the old pins out with a hammer. Sometime you're lucky and that happens, but expect to have to really hammer them or maybe even have to use heat to get them out.
This is what a complete kingpin kit comes with.

 

I had the machine shop get the pivot bushings out and the king pins. The machinist said the metal shell holding the old rubber bushing was destroyed in the removal, do you even need the metal shell when using the poly replacement bushings?

 

Yes...the shells are required. Your machine shop should have known to be careful with the shells. They should be responsible for finding and installing replacements.

Couldda burned out the bushings and left the shells intact.

 

Metal shells/bushings are available at rockauto.com.

 

Any clue if the shell can be separate from a new one so i can use the polys?

 

I drilled out the rubber with a holesaw. I just left the shells in the beams, and then lubed up the poly and slid them in.

 

Totally get it now, would have been nice if when I ordered there was a disclaimer. I also saw 2 sizes a 1.45 and a 1.75. Wondering if I should have the new ones pressed in and then drill out the new(harder to get out now rubber? Then installed the polys.

 

Or soak the new ones in some paint stripper or something, in order to eat the rubber, leaving you with easy access to the metal parts.
I would clean off the shells really well, and attempt to install the poly bushings into the shells with the shells not yet installed on the truck.

I wonder if those oval bushings are the same as the ones in the rear control arms of some Fox body Mustangs...