Kingpins
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Senior User
Joined: Mar 2021
Posts: 287
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From: WV
Kingpins
The passenger side of my front end started making some clunking today, & I’m assuming it’s my kingpin. How big of a job is this going to be to change & should I go ahead and do both sides while I’m at it?
FTE Legend
Joined: Nov 2015
Posts: 30,860
Likes: 4,106
From: Angier, NC
First you need to find out want it is making that noise as it could be a loose shock, suspension bushings to name a few.
If you find the pins are bad you do both sides and you will need to press out the old ones, press in the new ones and ream to size.
Dave ----
If you find the pins are bad you do both sides and you will need to press out the old ones, press in the new ones and ream to size.
Dave ----
More Turbo
Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 596
Likes: 58
From: West Plains, MO
With the wheel jacked up, push/pull at top and bottom (12:00 and 6:00). If there is play in the kingpin it'll be pretty easy to feel/see. (of course this assumes you have proper wheel bearing clearance).
Hopefully they will be a tight fit in the axle bore - but could be really difficult to get them out if they're rusted in place. A few people have had to remove the axle entirely and put it in a BFP (Big Press).
Although it's not hard to remove and replace the spindle bushings yourself, I would advise against reaming the bushings. They not only have to be reamed to a tight (.001) tolerance but both bushings have to be on-center, so you need a reamer that is long enough to do both at the same time. Or a fixture to keep it perfectly centered.
Depending on your location, you may find that not every machine shop can do this job- nobody in my small city, but O'Reilly has a big one in Springfield and they don't charge freight to truck them back and forth. And the truck repair places are set up to do much bigger kingpins so they were no help either!
Hopefully they will be a tight fit in the axle bore - but could be really difficult to get them out if they're rusted in place. A few people have had to remove the axle entirely and put it in a BFP (Big Press).
Although it's not hard to remove and replace the spindle bushings yourself, I would advise against reaming the bushings. They not only have to be reamed to a tight (.001) tolerance but both bushings have to be on-center, so you need a reamer that is long enough to do both at the same time. Or a fixture to keep it perfectly centered.
Depending on your location, you may find that not every machine shop can do this job- nobody in my small city, but O'Reilly has a big one in Springfield and they don't charge freight to truck them back and forth. And the truck repair places are set up to do much bigger kingpins so they were no help either!
Cargo Master
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 3,014
Likes: 91
From: Concord, CA
With the wheel jacked up, push/pull at top and bottom (12:00 and 6:00). If there is play in the kingpin it'll be pretty easy to feel/see. (of course this assumes you have proper wheel bearing clearance).
Hopefully they will be a tight fit in the axle bore - but could be really difficult to get them out if they're rusted in place. A few people have had to remove the axle entirely and put it in a BFP (Big Press).
Although it's not hard to remove and replace the spindle bushings yourself, I would advise against reaming the bushings. They not only have to be reamed to a tight (.001) tolerance but both bushings have to be on-center, so you need a reamer that is long enough to do both at the same time. Or a fixture to keep it perfectly centered.
Depending on your location, you may find that not every machine shop can do this job- nobody in my small city, but O'Reilly has a big one in Springfield and they don't charge freight to truck them back and forth. And the truck repair places are set up to do much bigger kingpins so they were no help either!
Hopefully they will be a tight fit in the axle bore - but could be really difficult to get them out if they're rusted in place. A few people have had to remove the axle entirely and put it in a BFP (Big Press).
Although it's not hard to remove and replace the spindle bushings yourself, I would advise against reaming the bushings. They not only have to be reamed to a tight (.001) tolerance but both bushings have to be on-center, so you need a reamer that is long enough to do both at the same time. Or a fixture to keep it perfectly centered.
Depending on your location, you may find that not every machine shop can do this job- nobody in my small city, but O'Reilly has a big one in Springfield and they don't charge freight to truck them back and forth. And the truck repair places are set up to do much bigger kingpins so they were no help either!
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Senior User
Joined: Mar 2021
Posts: 287
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From: WV
twin I beam & probably originals
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Senior User
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From: WV
I married into a family of machinists & one of my BILs works at a well equipped machine shop, so he will be doing any machine work that I need done
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FTE Legend
Joined: Nov 2015
Posts: 30,860
Likes: 4,106
From: Angier, NC
With the wheel jacked up, push/pull at top and bottom (12:00 and 6:00). If there is play in the kingpin it'll be pretty easy to feel/see. (of course this assumes you have proper wheel bearing clearance).
Hopefully they will be a tight fit in the axle bore - but could be really difficult to get them out if they're rusted in place. A few people have had to remove the axle entirely and put it in a BFP (Big Press).
Although it's not hard to remove and replace the spindle bushings yourself, I would advise against reaming the bushings. They not only have to be reamed to a tight (.001) tolerance but both bushings have to be on-center, so you need a reamer that is long enough to do both at the same time. Or a fixture to keep it perfectly centered.
Depending on your location, you may find that not every machine shop can do this job- nobody in my small city, but O'Reilly has a big one in Springfield and they don't charge freight to truck them back and forth. And the truck repair places are set up to do much bigger kingpins so they were no help either!
Hopefully they will be a tight fit in the axle bore - but could be really difficult to get them out if they're rusted in place. A few people have had to remove the axle entirely and put it in a BFP (Big Press).
Although it's not hard to remove and replace the spindle bushings yourself, I would advise against reaming the bushings. They not only have to be reamed to a tight (.001) tolerance but both bushings have to be on-center, so you need a reamer that is long enough to do both at the same time. Or a fixture to keep it perfectly centered.
Depending on your location, you may find that not every machine shop can do this job- nobody in my small city, but O'Reilly has a big one in Springfield and they don't charge freight to truck them back and forth. And the truck repair places are set up to do much bigger kingpins so they were no help either!
I checked 4 placed and they all told me of 1 shop that could press the bushings out & in and ream.
Checked with them and they said yep we can so I left the parts with them.
Few days later they were done and I picked them up.
Months later I went to put the parts together and found I could not get the pins to go all the way through?
The pin would fit 1 bushing and the beam but no the other bushing?
Turn it around the the pin fit that bushing and beam but no the other bushing that the pin fit on first try?
When I pull the spindle and tried the pin through it it would not fit through both bushing WTH!
When they reamed the bushings they did 1 bushing at a time for the pin to fit not centered to both!
I have since found I can press the bushing out / in using threaded rod / washers & nuts.
I have also bought the right reamer to do both at the same time to make them centered.
BTW this was the only part of my 4 year re-build of my truck I did not do and the shop messed it up!
Live & learn I guess
Dave ----
Logistics Pro
Joined: May 2015
Posts: 4,463
Likes: 954
From: Tri Cities, TN
Those bushings can be honed to size as long as the mandrel and stones are long enough to do both bushings at the same time. About any automotive machine shop can do it. They hone stuff to a lot closer tolerances than the .001 to .003 that those bushing call for. The plus with using a hone is you know you will end up with a round hole.
FTE Legend
Joined: Nov 2015
Posts: 30,860
Likes: 4,106
From: Angier, NC
Those bushings can be honed to size as long as the mandrel and stones are long enough to do both bushings at the same time. About any automotive machine shop can do it. They hone stuff to a lot closer tolerances than the .001 to .003 that those bushing call for. The plus with using a hone is you know you will end up with a round hole.
I used a wheel cly brake hone as it fit the bushings but could only do 1 at a time.
I did them just enough to get the pins started and so the spindle would flop on their own when the beams were turned side to side.
1 was still a little too tight but I went with it any way as I did not have the reamer at the time.
The only thing I found once on the road the wheels will not return to center.
It has gotten a little better with the 5000 miles I have on them now but still not right.
I was told the aliment is with in spec but thinking if I could add more caster would help but no one around here bends beams (I have twin beams on my 81 F100) or axles.
With a straight axle you can cheat and add wedges to get the caster better not so on beams.
Dave ----
More Turbo
Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 596
Likes: 58
From: West Plains, MO
Yes, about any shop CAN do it, but they won't. See my previous post and Fuzz Face's post...
Definitely need a long enough reamer (or hone) to do both at once. The more accurately it's done, the less slop and the longer the job will last.
Tbm3fan, I would look closely at the bores where those kingpins fit. As rusty as they are, if you could push them out with finger pressure, the hole is probably oversized now...
Definitely need a long enough reamer (or hone) to do both at once. The more accurately it's done, the less slop and the longer the job will last.
Tbm3fan, I would look closely at the bores where those kingpins fit. As rusty as they are, if you could push them out with finger pressure, the hole is probably oversized now...
FTE Legend
Joined: Nov 2015
Posts: 30,860
Likes: 4,106
From: Angier, NC
Maybe he is lucky and the brass bushings took the hit and not the spindles.
BTW I was able to find the right size & type reamer on Ebay a few years back and the price was not to bad.
My pins were frozen and had to heat up the assy. using MAP gas and pound the crap out of the pins to get them out.
Being told mine was an old farm truck I dont think they seen grease after the truck left the dealers lot LOL
Dave ----
BTW I was able to find the right size & type reamer on Ebay a few years back and the price was not to bad.
My pins were frozen and had to heat up the assy. using MAP gas and pound the crap out of the pins to get them out.
Being told mine was an old farm truck I dont think they seen grease after the truck left the dealers lot LOL
Dave ----
Logistics Pro
Joined: May 2015
Posts: 4,463
Likes: 954
From: Tri Cities, TN
Here is a reamer on e-bay if any body wants to take a chance on it being sharp. Certainly is cheap enough. Combined Ford King Bolt Bushing Reamer and Driver # 5188 53-70 F-100-250-USA BOX | eBay
I have a Sunnen P180 portable hone but for the $30 the local auto machine shop charged to hone the last bushings I did. It wasn't worth me buying the mandrel and stones for my hone.
I have a Sunnen P180 portable hone but for the $30 the local auto machine shop charged to hone the last bushings I did. It wasn't worth me buying the mandrel and stones for my hone.
Fleet Mechanic
Joined: Jun 2019
Posts: 1,898
Likes: 234
From: Southern California
When I did mine I took the spindles with the bushings already pressed in (by me) to a local machine shop and the old fellow that owned the place honed them on the Sunnen piston pin hone. It fit both sides at the same time and the pin slid through very slowly when inserted.
After I got it back together with all new KP, bushings, springs, and shocks it drove worse than before I started. Got the alignment checked and the caster was negative. I searched for a month or more before I found a shop that would bend the I-beams. This guy gave me 9 degrees of positive caster and straightened up the camber. Charged me 500 something dollars but I can let go of the wheel at 80 and it tracks straight as an arrow.
I know some of you are saying "Nine degrees no way" But it works great.
After I got it back together with all new KP, bushings, springs, and shocks it drove worse than before I started. Got the alignment checked and the caster was negative. I searched for a month or more before I found a shop that would bend the I-beams. This guy gave me 9 degrees of positive caster and straightened up the camber. Charged me 500 something dollars but I can let go of the wheel at 80 and it tracks straight as an arrow.
I know some of you are saying "Nine degrees no way" But it works great.