1950 rear axle cotter pins

[Damian]

Trying to inspect my back brakes tge mechanic said some previous attempt at removing pins welded them in place. He’s afraid to go forward without having new axel parts there in case he ruins it and can’t get car off hoist.

Suggestions?

[Sniper]

Cotter pins are fairly generic, if the garage doesn't have the size needed on hand one has to wonder about the garage.  I believe they are 1/8" by 2", but I just took my old ones to the parts place and bought replacements.  Went out to the garage and measured an old one I took off,  and it's 1/8" by 2".

 

As a side note, when I did my fronts I converted the nut and cotter pin assembly over to a more modern setup like my 65 Cuda uses.  Dorman 04991, one per side, was the ticket.  This gives you a better bearing preload setup. 

 

 

[Sam Buchanan]

1 hour ago, Damian said:

Trying to inspect my back brakes tge mechanic said some previous attempt at removing pins welded them in place. He’s afraid to go forward without having new axel parts there in case he ruins it and can’t get car off hoist.

Suggestions?

 

Hmmmm.....that's a tough one. Have to wonder why welding occurred on the axle nuts. Was it because the threads on the axle are shot and the previous "mechanic" wanted to make sure the nuts don't give way and the wheels come off? Drastic action can be taken by cutting the nuts off the axles but what will be found once that is done? If the threads on the axles are worn away then the axles will have to be repaired by a machine shop or replaced. I can certainly understand why your guy is hesitant to touch this one.

 

I can relate to this problem because the first time I pulled the drums on my P15 the threads on the left axle were heavily worn and the nut was barely holding any torque when I removed it. I was so concerned about ever being able to fully retorque that axle that I made a special trip to a fellow forum members house to salvage axles out of his old Dodge rear axle.

 

Turns out I worked around the problem by buying new axle nuts at a John Deere store and the sharp threads on those high-quality parts gripped the old axles enough to allow full torque to be applied. Whew! But I have a set of good axles on the shelf now in case the old threads pull during future maintenance.

 

My suggestion-----If your rear brakes are working properly now you might want to postpone pulling the drums until later down the road after you have chased other maintenance items. But this is going to have to be addressed at some point.....

Edited January 22, 2021 by Sam Buchanan

[kencombs]

As most replied to your first question, a different mechanic may be the first solution.  Second opinions from someone with experience on these would be helpful.

 

There are two other approaches to the issue that come to mind. 

1:  Purchase a replacement axle along with a hub and drum to provide to the mechanic.

 

2: post some good pics of the problem nut and key.  Maybe some better ideas will be offered.

 

From your description of the issue it seems the shop is a high volume shop that doesn't work on classic (another word for OLD) cars often and is concerned with clogging the workflow with a stalled vehicle on the lift and no parts.  I appreciate that having been is similar situations. 

 

So, you either have to cater to his needs or search for alternates

[Plymouthy Adams]

well, you have his take on the situation....based on your inspection, what did you find wrong?  Is he confusing welded as opposed to rust fused.  your thread did not say the nuts were welded....only the pins are at issue  and should he get the pins out, the nuts off, is he equipped with the correct puller to removed the drum without doing further damage....second opinion may be needed but only after you form one on your inspection...

Edited January 22, 2021 by Plymouthy Adams

[ccudahy]

If your mechanic is worried about your cotter pins, make sure he doesn't strip your left hand wheel bolts.

 

I was in high school when I had my '64 Dodge and took it to the little garage near our house cause I was having brake problems. Told them what was going on and they even knew the car from the previous owner, said they would look at it. Went to pick it up later that day they said "nothing was wrong no charge".

A few days later still had weak brakes, took it a different shop that specialized in brakes run by an older gentlemen. He called said, "All 4 wheel cylinder were blown and 7 out 10 driver side studs and lug nuts were stripped, and missing the cotter pin and washer on the drivers rear." If I could find the parts he could finish it by next day, I had a hell of a time finding those left hand lug and studs in the 1990s. I end up going to every auto part store in town. Finally found enough from 2 store to get it fixed, and never went back to the first garage.

 

Moral, if you mechanic is giving you a weird vibe, find a different one. Also, talk and ask questions before hand.

[James_Douglas]

A photo would help.

 

On my 1947 when I purchased it I could not get the nut off no matter what I tried. In the end, I made a "cup" that sealed over the nut and hub and filled it with penetrating fluid for a week. I them put on the wheel puller and hit with the impact wrench. It did nothing. I let it sit like like for several hours then"bang", Sounded like a bomb went off. It came off, flew about 2 feet.

 

On my 1949, I have an axle with bad threads. I was lucky to find an NOS one. The other option was to weld the threads up, by a pro, turn it down on a lathe and cut new threads. Then it would have to go to the hardening shop to have the threads properly hardened. A NOS axle is a lot less expensive that the 2nd alternative.

 

James

[Dodgeb4ya]

On 1/22/2021 at 5:11 AM, Damian said:

Trying to inspect my back brakes tge mechanic said some previous attempt at removing pins welded them in place. He’s afraid to go forward without having new axel parts there in case he ruins it and can’t get car off hoist.

Suggestions?

We need pictures....otherwise all heresay.