Hmmmm... Pebble, eh? I personally would straighten it cold depending on the "arc"! If it was an adjustment sleeve, I would say no...

 Boy, those '49's were rare in 4X4 form, weren't they.... (lol)

-- Edited by 67Poncho on Saturday 4th of September 2010 09:43:39 PM

would a small hydraulic jack  bring it back down?

On the small pebble right ? your sticking to that story lol

Laurentian wrote:

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I understand your predicament, darn pebbles! Actually any steering mechanism should not be straightened and must be replaced.

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I agree with him!! Pebbles eh..;)

 

Christopher Lang wrote:

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http://www.flickr.com/photos/christophercharleslang/

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  Making link live........ That was quite the bend!!!!






 
 


 

 

-- Edited by 67Poncho on Saturday 5th of March 2011 11:59:10 AM

Great job,  that sure was a nasty bend you had there.

Great job Christopher!
I checked out some of your other pics ... jack of all trades!

-- Edited by Pontiacanada on Saturday 5th of March 2011 02:20:29 PM

Ingenuity! Great work.
Never too big a challenge.

Repair job looks great but if a body shop or frame repair center was caught straightening or pulling steering components that would most likely be their last day in business. Like Laurentian
stated previously, it's not only a safety issue it's a liability issue as well. If that car is involved in a accident caused by the part in question you will find yourself living in a cardboard box, if there's a death involved you can make me a custom license plate.

cdnpont wrote:

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crazyj wrote:

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Repair job looks great but if a body shop or frame repair center was caught straightening or pulling steering components that would most likely be their last day in business. Like Laurentian
stated previously, it's not only a safety issue it's a liability issue as well. If that car is involved in a accident caused by the part in question you will find yourself living in a cardboard box, if there's a death involved you can make me a custom license plate.

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You're absolutely right when it comes to a legitimate shop, no questions there, but to say a private hobbiest would end up living in a carboard box if somthing happened, that's just plain stu...just, just typical of the way society thinks now.
Let's not ever straighten any suspension parts, it's a 49', but lets just replace, replace, replace, just like our stealerships do now in this world of litigation. 
It's just freekin scary how we think now. Can we never again trust our own judgement and common sense, as to what is ok, and what is not?
Sorry for the rant.

Cheers, Mark

 

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Your right, I think I read somewhere that" hobbiest's" are in a whole different category. Look at all these rat rods running around,I've seen people heat up axles and make mods all in the name of HOT RODDING and I wish them all the best. As far as what I said being stu... well ,maybe it is. I gave my opinion because it's a safety concern.

 

Crazy J

 

 

 

 

No metalurgist, and I think bending it back actually work hardens it, but common sense says it looks like a gentle bend so it's likely fine. Trying to straighten a sharp bend or kink in a forging might have been a different story. Someone with more knowlege might chime in. 
Still a job well done. And you've simply done what it takes with a good dose of a rodders eye and common sense.
Lets use the best of our knowlege and judgement when making these safety repairs, because they day is coming when they'll be stuff on our cars that we can never touch. I apologize James if I've upset you, I can hardly argue with you wanting to note the safety aspect of it, keep it up, it's a positive. It's just the talk of lawsuits that makes my blood boil. We'd likely loose the right to work on our own cars if big brother and the lawers get involved, and poof!, there goes the hobby.

Laurentian wrote:

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Christopher Lang wrote:

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I don't get it. Where would I buy a new tie-rod? Is there trouble with micro-crystalline fractures in the steel (its solid 3/4") from bending? Aren't these made my squashing them in a press? I don't see how this is different from pulling frames straight, or welding on new spring mounts, etc.

I'm just curious, not argumentative. I spend most of my time in my shop working on my Model T, where it's not just accepted to bend and straighten stuff, but recommended in the factory manual.

Tell me more! I wanna learn!

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I will be glad to explain it to you. Stuff like steering, seat belts, and any other safety component on a vehicle are repair by replace only because there aren't and never will be a repair procedure for them. Even some manufacturers' air bag wiring systems that have certain repair procedures for broken wiring are still fixed by replace for the liability fears!

 Yes, frames and structural components get bent repaired every day but there are strict repair recommendations regarding repairs, replacement, and sectioning to return that vehicle to the same "shape"and metallurgical "state" so it will behave the way it is supposed to in the next collision. A comment was made about rat rods and hobbyists being in a "different catagory". They are certainly not as long as they are on the same roads as everyone else. The difference is they are not inspected and/or they were not caught. There are many concientious builders out there who do exemplery work, but there are the few who are and will ruin it for us all.

If you would like I can explain the repair rules in the most general form. What we fall back on if there aren't factory recommendations.

As I said before the chances of you finding a new tie rod were probably slim to none and "Slim" left town! Nice job.

 

-- Edited by Laurentian on Sunday 6th of March 2011 07:58:18 PM

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Here are the general rules of structural repair if OEM recommendations are not available.

If it is bent, repair it,
If it is kinked ( bent <90degrees or more) replace it.
If it cracks during the repair replace it.
An insert should be twice the width of the section joint with a root gap of 3mm
A butt joint kerf should be the width of the metal thickness
A lap joint can be anywhere from 1/2" 1-1/2" shingled in the direction of travel
Any mid panel splice or hole patch must be welded continuosly with either stitch, staggered stitch, or continuous or staggered continuous weld
All sections joints must be staggered at least 50mm apart

Best place to section is at factory seams. However if sectioning is going to be performed do not section in these areas
1. Power train or suspension mounting points
2.ununiform areas or complex shapes
3.Tailor welded blanks (Very new cars)
4.Dimensional reference holes
5. Stress concentrators
6. Seat belt or Safety device mounting points

When sectioning consider these factors as well
1. Welding accesibility
2. Type of joint
3. Corrosion proofing accessibility
4. Clamping provisions
etc.

Also I-CAR states an interesting repair view that is sometimes used. I'll summarize it but it can be found on their website.
If the owner, the insurance company, the technician, and the shop owner alll agree on a repair. Then it should be OK. (This agreement must still satisfy all the general rules I have stated above as well.)

Getting back to your tie rod. There are no repair recommendations for the repair of such components except for replace. The "space lattices" or atoms when cold worked, slip along a plane and get harder making them more brittle. Under repeated cold working the metal will become more work hardened until the atoms can no longer slip, become jammed, fatigue, and separate. This may be in the form of "silvering" which may not be able to be seen. Very much like when a bolt has twisted off and there was evidence of an "old break". Which may be existent in your "repaired" steering part.

Hopefully that answers your question.