KING PIN THRUST WASHERS

[Dennis Nicholas]

Would phosphor bronze thrusts wear the axle faces or would they just wear out themselves?

Dennis.

Can't give a definitive answer on that. The special in my avatar has had a Big 7 front axle with these thrust washers for the last 20 years or so, there doesn't seem to be any more endfloat of the stub axle than when I put it together -I do regularly grease the kingpins though.

I think that most of the exceptional heavy wear on bits of our cars will have occurred during the long period of them being just unloved "old bangers" which only received maintenance when something fell off; especially so in the years immediately before the MOT test was introduced.

Thanks Stuart.  Looks like phosphor bronze to use.  Just got to find a 1 1/6  (7mm) cutter to clean up the recessed face under the end of the axle beam.  The one I had made to do the grinding is 1 1/4 in dia. - good for the 3 other faces.  Perhaps I will just pluck up courage and try and turn it down smaller
Dennis