Removing swing-arm bushings without a press

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Now I'm starting to wonder about trying to slightly "relieve" either the swing arm or the bushings slightly to decrease the amount of "stress" the former is putting on the latter - perhaps some sand paper or maybe a light dremeling?

Is this totally insane?
 
If you have them done at a machine shop odd are good you will be happier with the job. I do recall some that fit without reaming and some that did not.
It's even hard to get an exhaust pipe that fits these days.
 
I've done this job about 5 times now and have found that the bushes fit the shaft perfectly until they are pressed into the swingarm and then they tighten up. I have an old swing-arm shaft that I use with a bit of grinding paste to relieve the bushes enough for the new shaft that I invariably fit to slide through. Often the shaft will slide through both bushes seperately but not both together, due to very slight alignment issues. You must thoroughly clean all of the paste off after this job as the bronze has a tendency to retain the paste in the pores of the material. If you fit an oversize shaft you will also require the central tube of the G/box carrier to be bored out. This is definitely a job for a machine shop.
 
That's an interesting technique Dave - but I thought any sort of "grinding" was a no-no for oilite bushings - clogs up the "pores"? Have you had good long-term success with bushings you've done this to?
 
Brian, I have had good long term success. I did mention thorough cleaning because of the porous nature of the bushes. I soak the end of the swingarm in kerosene agitate, then leave overnight, which seems to get most of the paste out and then pressure clean afterwards. I would prefer to ream them out, but don't have the appropriate tool and to send the parts away to a machine shop would take in excess of a week.
 
Thanks Dave. I used your technique - worked well.

Tomorrow I button everything up. New bushes, and the Heinz Kegler lock rings installed - hoping the hinge in the middle is gone!

Want to thank everyone who proferred advice - VERY much appreciated. To say I couldn't have done it without you is a gross understatement. Thank you! - BrianK
 
Finally got that bugger of a 1/4 x 28 fixing bolt into the swingarm and the Red Sox are still alive. Life is good. Didn't seem that way a couple hours ago (WTF thought up the idea of this bloody fixing bolt...?), but so it goes....
 
Hey Brian, How did the install of Heinz's clamps go? I should be getting mine in the mail any day now, Any tips? My cradle is not in the bike yet. Great job the Red Sox are doing, One more!!!! Chuck.
:D
 
Chuck, the HK mod is pretty easy. Use his included directions and note correction to the torque spec floating around the internet (10 lbs-ft, NOT 20). I did mine on the bike and it was a piece of cake. Unlike that bloody fixing bolt!!

GO SOX!
 
Thanks Brian for the heads up on the torque, Hopefully this time next week the motor will be in the bike and it will start looking like one. Ya gotta a Sox fan out here in Calif. I bet I know where your spending game time, Thanks again, Chuck. :lol: :lol:
 
Well, I've only put on 50-60 miles since the installation, but putting aside any possible placebo effect, the back end feels considerably more "planted." A worthwhile mod.
 
PS, Chuck, let me know how yours goes? And by all means give me a hoot if you run into problems - I think I saw them all, and (again thanks to folks here) was able to get past them, so maybe can help. Happy to offer my two cents worth in any case. Good luck. - Brian

PS - NEXT year for the Sox!
 
Thanks for the offer Brian, I received the clamps early this week and have installed them on the cradle. All went well but the spindle is a bit tight in the bushings and has me wondering how tight is too tight? It will slide through the first side and about half way through the second and then it gets tight. It would seem that a bit of that would be O.K.? Any thoughts or advice would be great! I hope to get a few photos of my project on soon, Chuck.
 
BTDT! I would say get it through there by whatever means - yes, the BFH if necessary! - and then check whether the swing arm moves up and down freely (by hand) or binds. If it binds, the tip above about "grinding" the bushes down using the existing spindle and some valve grinding paste worked a treat for me. If not, you should be good to go.

The amount by which it is binding does seem much more pronounced if you're just twisting it by hand, as opposed to using the leverage of the swing arm. Still, I would get it to where it is "comfortable" so you don't risk snapping that bloody fixing bolt!!

Apropos of that, good luck lining it up! It took me, literally, HOURS. Only tip I can offer is to use allen wrenches to try to make sure the "holes" in the motor/tranny mount and the swingam spindle are aligned - first, really small ones then progressively larger ones - I think I got up to 3/8 SAE before I was able to get the 1/4 x 28 fixing bolt anywhere NEAR able to thread. PITA, x many!!! All I can say is, keep trying, good luck, and walk away and come back as many times as it takes.

PM me or post again if I can help. - B
 
Sorry, may not be obvious but by the allen wrenches, I meant, you need to come in horizontally, under the rear fender edge and over the swingarm tube, down into the hole in the tube into the spindle. I used an allen wrench, long arm in, short arm down that hole, to see if the spindle hole was aligned with that in the tube. Once you're doing this, I think this will be meaningful. Before that, probably not....
 
BTW, maybe this allen wrench has been done before, but if not, I think it should be named the "BrianK technique," so that I become immortalized when people say things like "I put the Heinz Kegler mod on using the BrianK technique and then put on the DynoDave clutch seal and the Norbsa fork mod...."

Mention me in such company and yes, I WILL have it engraved on my tombstone!

But I know someone's gonna tell me I just discovered the obvious... or overlooked a MUCH BETTER TECHNIQUE!!!
 
Brian, I have found that once the swing arm spindle is through the swing arm bushes and the gearbox cradle, the friction in the swingarm bushes is sufficient to rotate the spindle by moving the swing arm up and down a bit so that the centre bolt is easily located and fitted. It is obviously easier if the bike is supported on some kind of stand and the shocks are removed
 
Dave, yes. It's just lining up the spindle threaded hole and the cradle hole that took me, literally, several hours. Is there an easier way? - and if so, can I still call it the BrianK technique (okay, okay, maybe the "DaveM/BrianK techique..."?
 
This is from a long time ago but it seems like I made a brass drift that was a few inches longer than the spindle bolt. I made it a little smaller than stock if I recall and pointed one end. Seems like I just slid that in to line it up and drifted it out with the real bolt.
It was over 30 years ago when I last changed a Commando frame so take that with a grain of salt as than may have been another bike.
 
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