Mike -
Sorry to hear about the poor quality parts!
I normally have my front tires balanced by having the tires spun on the axle
so any other loose suspension part or out of balance part can be balanced
out with the weights.
I used to do this myself at the shop when we had a Hunter Spin Balancer.
It's a machine you wheel under the tire after the front of the truck has
been raised and supported on jack stands at the radiator support so the
suspension hangs off the ground "free". This method requires the operator
to install a special cage on the rims so a special balancing fixture can be
attached to the cage. This fixture has three balancing knobs that allows
the operator to move internal weights around to balance the tire. When the
tire comes to rest, the fixture point to the location where the weights need
to be installed and the required amounts.
I liked this machine because like I said.." it would take into account the
wear in my king pins and other suspension parts to balance all the parts as
an assembly. I could place a glass of water on the fender and once
balanced, the water would barely move in the glass.
Check if out, it might be just what you need!
Joe
-----Original Message-----
From: MKlepp4335@cs.com <MKlepp4335@cs.com>
To: old-chevy-truck@egroups.com <old-chevy-truck@egroups.com>;
oletrucks@autox.team.net <oletrucks@autox.team.net>
Date: Sunday, July 08, 2001 2:34 PM
Subject: [oletrucks] Brake conversion
>Last winter I rebuilt the front end on my '48. When the Huck brake drums
were
>inspected, I found they were toast. Jim Carter was importing some repo
drums
>and I ordered a pair. They had to be turned slightly to fit over the new
>shoes, but I thought nothing of the made in Argentina stamp on the drums.
>Now that I have been driving the old girl some after final assembly, I have
>noticed a shake (wobble) in the steering at about 50-55 mph that was not
>there before. I couldn't tell if it was drive train or the front end.
Well,
>I used my 6" bench grinder to spin one front wheel at a time. Both shook
>quite badly. (The wheels were just balanced.) While the wheels were still
>spinning, I stuck my head behind the wheel and noticed the drums are badly
>out of round, one of them by about a 1/4" or so. I took the drums off and
>with a caliper determined these castings are good material for a boat
anchor.
> They are loop-sided (thick on one side and thin on the other) and probably
>not safe to use. Now to my questions.
>What parts will I need to convert my front Huck brakes to Bendix style?
Will
>my spindles and bearings work with the Bendix backing plates and hubs?
Maybe
>some who have converted to discs up front have Bendix parts laying around
>collecting dust. Ping me off list if you have any parts I need. Thanks as
>always.
>If anyone from Jim Carter is monitoring the list, maybe you should check
your
>stock of drums and see if they are all like this.
>
>Mike Klepp
>'48 3100
>Wichita Falls, TX (Fed up with Huck brakes)
>oletrucks is devoted to Chevy and GM trucks built between 1941 and 1959
oletrucks is devoted to Chevy and GM trucks built between 1941 and 1959
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