New dog bone fits very tight in rocker arm bushing

Technical and Repair Discussions

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PostPosted: Sun Feb 14, 2016 11:53 pm
I was doing winter maintenance and found the old dog bone looked somewhat beat up. I purchased new bushings and dog bone. The new on fits very snug. I had difficult getting it in the bushings. Is that normal? My old ones fit loose, but do not know if that is just wear.
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Needs a Life!!!
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PostPosted: Mon Feb 15, 2016 12:19 am
Loose is bad. There are a lot of tricks people use to make the crush tube (dog bone) move freely. If you got the bushings lined up well enough to get the thing through, you are doing pretty well. Make sure the grease gets pushed fully through. One trick Steve Fenske showed me is to put a bolt through and turn it with a drill / impact wrench until it frees up some.
Dave Harriman
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PostPosted: Mon Feb 15, 2016 7:55 pm
The first time I replaced my bushings, I had no luck with Steve Fenske's trick (I was probably doing it wrong). I ended-up buying one of these to ream the bushings in-alignment to just the right amount needed for a smooth, but "no slop", fit:

http://www.chadwickreamers.com/angle_bl ... fractional

It's like a work of machinist art! Considering how little it gets used, I should probably have it on display in a shadow box on the garage wall. But, when I do use it, I am very happy that I have it.
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 16, 2016 1:22 pm
The fit issue is a known problem. Reaming the bushings to fit and have proper clearance is required. Also, fitting the length is a requirement to make sure the dogbone is not tool long or worse too short.

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PostPosted: Wed Feb 17, 2016 9:16 am
When I did this I had to hone the bushings as others have said, to allow the dog bone to turn freely. I ended up using valve grinding compound on a deep well socket the right diameter, turned with an impact wrench. It ruined the socket but got the job done. I also used a cylinder hone tool (available for a few dollars at AutoZone), although this didn't work as quickly as the socket and grinding compound.
Scott Ross
#469

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PostPosted: Wed Feb 17, 2016 9:26 am
Be careful not to get the socket stuck. It's easier to push it into the hole than to get it out if it is too tight.
Scott Ross
#469

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