"Play in trailing arm".... or is it something else?

2571 Views 19 Replies 6 Participants Last post by gbak, Jun 10, 2007

gbak

Discussion Starter · Jun 8, 2007

When rebuilding my parking brake I noticed that there is a pretty large play in the left rear rotor assy.
I can twist/tilt the lefte rear wheel ~1/8" (right is ok, no play at all)

What can be done?
Is it the bearing inside the trailing arm that have worn out?
And is it safe to drive the car?

1 - 20 of 20 Posts

MYBAD79

· #2 · Jun 8, 2007

Sounds like the wheel bearing ... Didn't you just pass your inspection ??? I'm surprised they didn't check that. It appears you were lucky.

Gary's paper about the bearing setup is great, unfortunately you'll need some special tools to do this job. If you add up all the tools (and your time) you can just buy two rebuilt spindles for not much more money ...

redvetracr

· #3 · Jun 8, 2007

you might also have some side yoke end play.....
...redvetracr

gbak

Discussion Starter · #4 · Jun 8, 2007

The big play is in 6-12 direction.
There is a nearly no play in 3-9 direction.

Mybad79:
I had to give the rotor a few punch to loosen it, was rusted.
This happend after the inspection.
I feel like an idiot, should have known better.......

I did like your old avatar better than the new one!
Besides, it really looked like you :laughing: :laughing: :laughing:

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MYBAD79

· #5 · Jun 8, 2007

gbak said:
The big play is in 6-12 direction.
There is a nearly no play in 3-9 direction.

If it's the bearing you should have the play 12-6 as well as 3-9 o'clock.... now it sounds more like worn strut rod bushings and/or too much yoke play.... maybe that c-clip is gone and the yoke can move in/out of the differential.

MYBAD79

· #6 · Jun 8, 2007

gbak said:
I did like your old avatar better than the new one!
Besides, it really looked like you :laughing: :laughing: :laughing:

ok... changed it back...

gbak

Discussion Starter · #7 · Jun 8, 2007

This part is moving up/down.

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gtr1999

· #8 · Jun 8, 2007

That is the spindle flange and it should not be moving up/down only 360* rotation. If you disconect the 1/2 shaft will you still have the play? Were these recently rebuilt? If so maybe done by some of the same "rebuilders" I've had to correct things for? The spindle nut should be at 100 ft/lbs minimum.
If you remove the 1/2 shaft then check the side yoke play as well. You should have under .040" there. Over .040" and you might want to consider replacing them.

Here is a well worn yoke right down to the snap ring.

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gbak

Discussion Starter · #9 · Jun 8, 2007

Gary!
I'm definitly a newbe in this area, so I need all the help I can get here!

No the spindle flange havn't been rebuilded the last 3 years.
I should also have noticed this play earlier if it have been there before, it must have come now, when I was rebuilding the brakes.
The former owner of the car should have told me if it was rebuilded, so it's probably stock parts.

Do you think the nut is untightend?
How difficult is it to remove the half-shaft?

gtr1999

· #10 · Jun 8, 2007

Get the car on jack stand or a lift if you have one.

Mark the position of the camber bolt so you can return it to the same spot and keep the alignement the same.

Remove the French Locks. If they are the GM ones you may not be able to reuse them. If they are the SS type I use they can be reused.

Disconnect the yoke bolts or caps depending if you have a 4 speed or automatic.

Rotate the camber bolt and it will swing the arm and give you room to drop out the 1/2 shaft.

With the shaft out you can look at the joints for rust or play. Check my joint post above.

mount an indicator on the cross member and push the yoke in. Zero the indicator and slowly pull ito ut until it stops. Measure your endplay. This may also include side gear endplay and the only real way you're going to know is drop the diff but before thinking of that see what you have.

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gbak

Discussion Starter · #11 · Jun 8, 2007

It's a really bad time to do big repair's now.
Next week is Sweden's biggest Corvette meeting (for 3 days).
400 cars and 800 people will come together and have fun, dance, eat, drink beer, competitions .........
My plan is to be there ,and the car too!

Just can't tear the parts down now!

Can I drive the car as it is, or will I damage something else if doing that?

gtr1999

· #12 · Jun 8, 2007

If indeed you have a bad rear bearings then yes, you risk heatup and breakage. Spindles have broken with bad bearings. I would see just where the play is. I would still remove the shaft. It won't take much time as compared to just moving one end out of the way. I wouldn't drive it far until I knew where the problem is.

MYBAD79

· #13 · Jun 8, 2007

gtr1999 said:
I wouldn't drive it far until I knew where the problem is.

I agree....

Gbak,
you've had enough bad luck during the engine build.... I hope it's something that's easy to fix but it doesn't look good. I've had the rear apart right after I bought my 79 in 2004... it's not a fun job.... once all the parts are clean the reassembly is kinda fun...

I was luck that my spindle/bearing assemblies were ok.... and thank god still are.... it is cheaper to get a rebuilt assembly, unfortunately you have to ship the old stuff back to get the core charge back...

Remove the halfshaft and try to find out what the problem is...

If you need a full rebuild, maybe we can find something used,old,cheap on Ebay, have it rebuilt and shipped to you.... who knows if your old spindle is re-useable.... check it out first before we assume too much.... maybe it's not all that bad.

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big2bird

· #14 · Jun 9, 2007

gbak said:
It's a really bad time to do big repair's now.
Next week is Sweden's biggest Corvette meeting (for 3 days).
400 cars and 800 people will come together and have fun, dance, eat, drink beer, competitions .........
My plan is to be there ,and the car too!

Just can't tear the parts down now!

Can I drive the car as it is, or will I damage something else if doing that?

Go have fun. No use owning it without having some fun. Bring it back and check it out. If it goes, it's already gonna.

mrvette

· #15 · Jun 9, 2007

gbak said:
The big play is in 6-12 direction.
There is a nearly no play in 3-9 direction.

Mybad79:
I had to give the rotor a few punch to loosen it, was rusted.
This happend after the inspection.
I feel like an idiot, should have known better.......

I did like your old avatar better than the new one!
Besides, it really looked like you :laughing: :laughing: :laughing:

That right there makes me agree with B2B, but just to be clear, there should be damn nearly NO play in the 3-9 position, trying to turn the tire as if it was front steering.....maybe a really tiney little clunk, but not loud at all there is allmost NO clearance on those bearings......in the 6-12 up and down there will be a hell of a lot more, the 1/2 shaft can go in and out allmost a 1/16 inch and be ok for use....the lower strut can be tired, but nothing much hapens other than tire wear from leaning in on top....

gbak

Discussion Starter · #16 · Jun 9, 2007

big2bird said:
Go have fun. No use owning it without having some fun. Bring it back and check it out. If it goes, it's already gonna.

Beer or garage????

I choose..................the BEER and party :cheers:

artyon:
Let's hope that the rear end doesn't brake down.

MYBAD79

· #17 · Jun 10, 2007

gbak said:
Beer or garage????

I choose..................the BEER and party :cheers: artyon:
Let's hope that the rear end doesn't brake down.

Drive careful.... maybe you should get some safety loops just in case something breaks.... there's only 35+ years old fiberglass between you and the halfshaft, if something breaks it could hit you in the back.....

I'm wondering if the new 383 could have broken something back there ??? That picture with the arrow pointing to the flange is scary... that piece should not move...

gbak

Discussion Starter · #18 · Jun 10, 2007

I pulled myself together is morning, and tried to disassemble the half-shaft.

The last bolt (why is it always the last one?) on the spindle flange was so rusted so I couldn't loosen it.
It ended up as usual, a slipping socket (I had a really good grip), and a round bolt head! :bang

I checked again, the parts that is moving is this whole rotating assambley including the rotor assy, spindle flange, U-joint flange and the lower end of the half-shaft:

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gtr1999

· #19 · Jun 10, 2007

Try using a brass punch and give the bolt head a shot. Use a 6 pt socket if you still can. With the flange out of the way you can at least check the torque on the spindle nut. If tight then it has to be bearings. Look at the post above on rebuilding arms for more pictures.
Good luck. There's no telling how long or how far you can go on bad bearings, myself I'd go right to my jackstands.

gbak

Discussion Starter · #20 · Jun 10, 2007

The bolt head is to damaged, I don't think there is a chance to use a socket on that bolt head again.
As said before, I really had a very good grip on the bolt.
I was pushing with all my strength when I slipped.
Must be drilled out, I don't think it will help to heat the spindle flange.

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