Here is how I converted idler arm to ball bearing. Left
assembly shows the ball bearings with machined custom Delrin spacers. End result
it looks like original when assembled.
Gary The Parts Doc
Sent: Wednesday, April 26, 2023 1:05 PM
Subject: RE: {Chrysler 300} Idle arm and other
delights...
I am with the Johns. A couple of years ago I had the front
end aligned on my 300C. idler arm was total trash material. Went online and
found a polyurethane bushing and pressed it into the idler arm. The general
consensus from the front end guy was that the idler arm bushing was too close to
the exhaust pipe to last very long. Fast forward about 1000 miles and the idler
arm is all over the place. I pressed out the poly bushing, it looked perfect,
except for the hole. Do I have to do this every 1000 miles?? I rooted around in
my parts bin and found an original idler arm with the Chrysler/IBM punch card
attached to it showing the original, correct part number. No rubber….just a
steel bushing pressed into the cast iron idler arm and two ball bearings, one
sits on top of the bushing on one underneath.
The other Henry
300C
From: chrysler-300-club-international@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
<chrysler-300-club-international@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of
johnlchesnutt@xxxxxxxxx
Sent: Wednesday, April 26, 2023 9:55
AM
To: 'John Grady' <jkg@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>; 'James Douglas'
<jdd@xxxxxxxxxx>
Cc: 'Dave Dumais'
<dave.dumais@xxxxxxxxx>; 'Chrysler 300 List Server'
<chrysler-300-club-international@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: RE:
{Chrysler 300} Idle arm and other delights...
Hi John Grady,
Many years ago, I replaced the rubber idler arm bushing with
a real metal bearing which I do not recommend. That was in the 1960’s. Went back
to the factory rubber bushing. The purpose of the rubber bushing is to dampen
the steering. My experience is with our 1957 300C which we have owned for 64
years. I agree that there are other adjustments that may be incorrect. Thanks
for your comments.
John in Portland, OR
makes sense , are stops ok ? i thought stud hits , sorry .
This vaguely brings to mind a Ford i once worked
on that had wrong front end parts installed or symmetrical offsets were uoside
down or something ? I forget details but drove me crazy
.
FYI The classic front end failure on mopars of this era is
the passenger idler arm bushing . stock rubber one gets loose , oil turns it to
jelly , it can fall down vertically , not obvious . . and the impact or
inaccurate pivot varys with steering angle .
In fighting that , I found one aftermarket supplier made one
with a real metal bearing in it , no rubber — keeps it straight . I found that
metal bearing one in an F put there by someone else long ago . Again from
memory I think OAL of arm may vary by year and car line or wheelbase
, vaguely remember two different lengths but look the same and fit in same place
At the time I chased metal one down , but disorganized , i do
not have that number .
Yours probably has been changed , but try pushing up and down
vertically on it . Or chase down metal bearing one . Might be sagging …
Tie rods in center of range. It is the top of the tie rod
that is rubbing on the underside of the torsion bar on an extreme right
turn.
The fact that there is a ¼ inch more clearance on the
steering arm side than the idle arm side is what is telling me that I may have
a bent idle arm. Someone may have gone over a curb at some point or someone
may have stuck a jack under it to change a tire and did not realize they were
on the arm and not one the frame.
James
from quick description ,? not adjusted right , —-as
you could still get correct wheel alignment readings but tie rod itself not in
center of adjustment range ? if understanding right, and alignment
right ?
see if equal exposed adjuster threads
?
otherwise ? ?= a bent spindle arm
piece —but doubt that , a rugged piece
?
admittedly not a specialty of the house …
If stud hits grind clearance , live with it if
alignment ok , maybe frame welding issue or control arm location forced “end
of range“ adjustment . I think there are end stops somewhere ,
maybe it is going too far , ?
Maybe stud projection varies by mfg?
How about this one ? ! drum mount surface of front
hub apparently not orthogonal to spindle axis ? Makes drum wobble in and out
if spun on turning machine , can’t grind drum . does it on car too . If
you do grind on wrong (slightly tilted ) center, trying to take out
eccentricity (essentially,), pedal pulsates . Gets complicated what goes
on.
Can’t be bent — it is 1/2” thick solid steel ring
that studs press into . Made wrong ? Why all this weird stuff lately . Cosmic
misalignment —
Hi Dave,
The idle arm bearings are new and greased. All the tie
rods are new.
I have all the parts for the control arms and struts to
replace.
I was under the car on the rack and could see where the
tie rod had contacted the torsion bar. When I stuck my finger up there, I
noted that the distance on the idle arm side was less than the steering arm
side.
On an extreme right turn the tie rod of course goes up
and on the right side that ¼ of an inch matters. This distance is fixed and
is not subject to the springs (bars) other than if the front end moves due
to worn bushings.
I measured them and the distance on the steering side was
1-1/2 inch on the steering side and 1-1/4 inch on the idle arm side. From
the bottom of the torsion bars to the center of the tie rod
stud.
I would like to see what someone else gets when they
measure these distances.
James
James,
The 64 suspension members are available
NOS at the Virginia warehouse.
There is a 64 N Yorker currently on the
rack
Not able to access measurements until next
week.
Went to Carlisle swap meet last Saturday.
Obtained idler. Pitman, drag link and upper control
arms.
Check the lower control arm bushings for
play
D
On
Tue, Apr 25, 2023 at 7:06 PM, 'James Douglas' via Chrysler 300 Club
International
*** I am still hopeful that someone can
measure the distance from the bottom of the torsion bars to the center of
the tie rod studs on a ’63 or ’64 for me so I can see if my idle arm is
bent.
*** I sent an email to the Detroit Public
Library asking if they had the AMA sheets for 1964 Chrysler in the
National Automotive History Collection at the Skillman Branch Library
where it is housed. Turns out that some billionaire is building some
big thing in downtown Detroit, and they closed the branch until it is near
completed due to parking and other disruption. The real burn is that the
Detroit Public Library reference librarians do not have access either. So,
anyone wanting or needing information from the National Automotive History
Collection In Downtown Detroit… is screwed until some
rich guy gets has edifice built.
*** We ran the 300K hard for the first
time these last 10 days. From our place in San Francisco up to our place
near Lake Berryessa a 160-mile round trip plus a lot of drives down to
Vacaville and back to Winters for runs to Home Depot. The car is
running ok. Not perfect, but OK. I need to sort out what is wrong
with the steering geometry, I think is may well be the idle arm. It could
also be a lower control arm bushing or a combination. I need to get into
the brakes. I also heard a small ticking-rumbling sound and I think it may
be a universal joint or a wheel bearing. I plan in replacing all of them
soon.
*** Door Panels. On my car the driver’s
door top is through the upholstery. Other then that the door panels look
fairly good. I know that if I want to replace the vinyl on the panel, I
will have to do them all to get them to match. I really do not want to go
there as getting new panel material and tearing into them is a long job to
do correctly. I know as I have done them twice before on a ‘64. I
did have a thought and would not mind people’s thoughts on it. There
is a stainless strip the wraps around the top of the panel. The inside
belt whisker attaches to it and then it wraps just around the top to cover
the top edge of the vinyl. I wonder about making up to replacements for
that strip that wrap around and down past the level of the two outboard
panel screws. Say 1/8 inch below the screws. These would then allow me to
keep from having to rebuild all door panels. It would also help with the
fact that this is the spots that always wear through. Of course, on
a hot day it would get hot!
*** Power Master wrote be back in the
subject of the 90 AMP round bottom early 1960’s Alternators that have the
“correct” case. I sent them all my data and findings and they confirmed
it. The larger the output beyond 40 AMPS and the sensing circuit using the
MECHANINCAL voltage regulators causes the system into an overvolt
situation. They made a change in their catalog suggesting that people
should use an electronic VR with it. Company double speak as opposed to
just admitting that it may not work correctly with a mechanical VR.
I would like to talk with someone who is an EE with a background in
alternators and generators to understand exactly what is going on. I
suspect that as the current levels go up the magnetic field becomes more
sensitive to the voltage sensing circuit or something along those lines.
By the way, the Transpro V1200 electronic adjustable voltage regulator I
set for 13.8 volts (shows 13.7 at the cigar lighter gauge) has been dead
steady. Interesting in that the brake lights use .2 volts.
*** I purchased a set of those new (eBay)
’64 circuit boards for the dash. With the 90 AMP alternator putting out
about 50 at idle and those board the lights in the dash at idle at night
with everything on is great! I recommend them.
I hope all are having a good
spring.
Best, James
--
For archives go to http://www.forwardlook.net/300-archive/search.htm#querylang
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google
Groups "Chrysler 300 Club International" group.
To unsubscribe from
this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to chrysler-300-club-international+unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
To
view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/chrysler-300-club-international/CY5PR19MB6171B9E957D92480B54617A893649%40CY5PR19MB6171.namprd19.prod.outlook.com.
--
For archives go to http://www.forwardlook.net/300-archive/search.htm#querylang
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google
Groups "Chrysler 300 Club International" group.
To unsubscribe from this
group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to
chrysler-300-club-international+unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
To
view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/chrysler-300-club-international/CY5PR19MB61713801890693EFE0E0A7EF93659%40CY5PR19MB6171.namprd19.prod.outlook.com.
<hitting_on_hard_righht_turn.JPG>
--
For archives go to http://www.forwardlook.net/300-archive/search.htm#querylang
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
"Chrysler 300 Club International" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and
stop receiving emails from it, send an email to
chrysler-300-club-international+unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
To view
this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/chrysler-300-club-international/8ED6EA46-5220-4956-A0AA-94DC6A99018A%40gradyresearch.com.
--
For archives go to http://www.forwardlook.net/300-archive/search.htm#querylang
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
"Chrysler 300 Club International" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and
stop receiving emails from it, send an email to
chrysler-300-club-international+unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
To view
this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/chrysler-300-club-international/031c01d9785f%24cc683d30%246538b790%24%40gmail.com.
-- For
archives go to http://www.forwardlook.net/300-archive/search.htm#querylang---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
"Chrysler 300 Club International" group. To unsubscribe from this group and
stop receiving emails from it, send an email to
chrysler-300-club-international+unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx. To view
this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/chrysler-300-club-international/002301d9787a%24657c79e0%2430756da0%24%40mindspring.com.
--
For archives go to http://www.forwardlook.net/300-archive/search.htm#querylang
---
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Chrysler 300 Club International" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to chrysler-300-club-international+unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/chrysler-300-club-international/9F0939661A8C4437824F6C5CDEB1F70C%40OwnerPC.
|
Back to the Home of the Forward Look Network
Archive Sitemap
