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Spindle cap left side

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akleyla

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 26, 2011
Messages
299
displayname
Amy J. Kleyla
Ok, Im finally getting a chance to work on my 2nd IHCC 104 model. I installed a new head gasket and tuned the motor up an it runs great. I noticed my father in-law instead of changing the ball joints he wired the left side to the spindle cap and seen it was loose , it wiggles up an down. Ive not had a chance to take it off to see why but thinking theres a bushing under it ? I know I need to order 3 ball joints for it because the originals are still on it and 2 are worn badly. So if anyone knows why the spindle cap could be loose it would help me in research.

Wouldnt ya know it I get 1 running again and my 1st 104 the throwout bearing went out on me. So the creeper I bought a few years back ill finally be installing while the driveshaft is out. Any videos out there showing how much of a task this is? Ive never done that before so this is totally new for me.

Any help or advice is greatly appreciated ty !!!
 
Here us the 2nd cub tie-rods and loose spindle cap
 

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These are on my 1st cub I changed tie-rods many years ago an they are still good as is the spindle cap is still tight and doesn't wiggle up an down.
 

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These are on my 1st cub I changed tie-rods many years ago a they are still good as is the spindle cap is still tight and doesn't wiggle up a down.
I’m assuming you’re referring to the steering arm where the steering rod connects to the front axle. Usually the hole in the spindle or the steering arm or both are wore which creates a lot of slop. There is a roll pin that connects the steering arm to the spindle. You may be able to go a size larger on the roll pin to take up some of the slop.
 
I’m assuming you’re referring to the steering arm where the steering rod connects to the front axle. Usually the hole in the spindle or the steering arm or both are wore which creates a lot of slop. There is a roll pin that connects the steering arm to the spindle. You may be able to go a size larger on the roll pin to take up some of the slop.
Yes, thats exactly what im talking about. Ty, I thought maybe there was a bushing or something under the cap. Ill check that out in a bit ty for your reply :)
 
That should be a coiled pin and not a roll pin. This is a very common wear point on these machines. The best fix is to ream the hole with a tapered reamer and install a tapered solid pin.
 
What I saw done and have done, is drill out the hole for the pin to 1/4 inch then remove the arm from the tractor and cut thru it 90 degrees from the whole from the bottom to the plate that the drag link attaches to. That way the collar can conform to the spindle when the bolt is tightened. I used a grade 8 bolt and tightened it until the collar bent/crushed to the spindle. All slop is gone as the pitman arm is pinched to the spindle.
 
What I saw done and have done, is drill out the hole for the pin to 1/4 inch then remove the arm from the tractor and cut thru it 90 degrees from the whole from the bottom to the plate that the drag link attaches to. That way the collar can conform to the spindle when the bolt is tightened. I used a grade 8 bolt and tightened it until the collar bent/crushed to the spindle. All slop is gone as the pitman arm is pinched to the spindle.
What I was thinking may be the cause is after many years turning left and right the top of the spindle gets tapered at the top from wear causing the spindle cap to become loose. So id wondered if taking a ballpeen hammer an hitting the top of the spindle to swell the top of the spindle to fit tighter on the spindle cap ? Nothing super hard just enough to swell the top part of the shaft for a tighter fit. The coiled pin is still tight i just checked it. I will be removing it later to install new ball joints so ill know more tonight.
 
What I was thinking may be the cause is after many years turning left and right the top of the spindle gets tapered at the top from wear causing the spindle cap to become loose. So id wondered if taking a ballpeen hammer an hitting the top of the spindle to swell the top of the spindle to fit tighter on the spindle cap ? Nothing super hard just enough to swell the top part of the shaft for a tighter fit. The coiled pin is still tight i just checked it. I will be removing it later to install new ball joints so ill know more tonight.

Sort of, but not really...the pin hole gets worn egg shaped in both parts, and yes, if that is left that way too long, the spindle and bellcrank will both wear on each other. Once this has happened, there is probably no saving either one, and it's time for a better used spindle assembly and the taper pin repair I described above.

The pin needs to fit with an interference. This is the issue with the original pin- it isn't tight enough of a fit, and allows relative motion between the two parts that eventually develops into lots of wear. There are all kinds of ways people have tried to fix it (drill for larger pin, drill for larger bolt, etc) and the only one that works long-term is the taper pin.

Sorry Wade, the clamp-up from a bolt there is not enough to keep that tight enough to prevent any movement, long-term, and it won't stay that way. I've had quite a few of these tractors that were repaired in a manner like you suggest, and they were still completely worn loose.
 
Like Matt said a bolt won't get enough tension,a coil pin is the proper part.Here is what I did and I'm not saying its the best way.I wish I still worked in the machine shop I would bring home a adjustible reamer,easy peasy.But they are expensive and I don't have access any more.So I purchased about 4 coil pins.I measured them,and squeezed one down a bit in a vise trying to guess what size whole would work.I then looked in my Grainger Catalog at all the drill bits,they have Metric,Fraction,Number and Letter.I tried to guess what would fit the best and ordered a couple sizes.I did well and got lucky. I drilled my parts and started the pin with a hammer.I had a tight fit going ,but I didn't want to mushroom the pin badly.I finished by using a large C-clamp that had that swiveling thing missing.The little end fit nicely in the center of the pin and it walked the pin in nicely. Don't remember the sizes but hope I explained well enough.Good luck,tight steering is so nice I.M.O
 
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