The Ford Barn

Bud · 12-24-2020, 01:15 PM

To be clear, when I stated I heated my axle, I did it with a hand held propane torch, which will only expand the axle a bit, not change its material properties because a hand-held propane torch cannot get it that hot. The objective is to get the metal to move and break the grip of the fretting corrosion. If you are getting out an oxy-acetylene torch and throwing an enormous amount of heat into that axle to hurry the job along, then you may soften the metal and reduce its strength. In that case I think that is the wrong way to approach removing a perch.

rotorwrench · 12-24-2020, 02:03 PM

When your talking brand new virgin steel forgings, they will hold up very well in service with just the right ductility. When your looking into 90+ year old forgings that have unknown fatigue and repair history, all thoughts of good "like new" ductility are kind of out the window. This doesn't mean it's weak though. Heating a forging up to temperatures where the beam can be shaped does affect it but it also depends on how much temperature it is exposed to and how it is cooled down. After all, it was originally forged while a certain shade of red hot. Normalization on an entire piece can be done after shaping is completed which will return it to a decent hardness and ductility level.

Folks that have dropped axles don't take them off the car and check them if there is no obvious reason to do so. You just don't hear anything about problems from Mor-Drop or Dago axles and many have been in service since the 40s. I've purchased a few that were dropped back in the day and they were taken out of service due to wear in the king pin bores more than anything else. This is a common problem with both OEM and dropped Ford axles. Otherwise, the axles were still straight & true after repairs to the bores. I'd much rather have a properly dropped axle that one of those crappy aftermarket cast axles.

12-24-2020, 01:15 PM	#21
Bud Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Ohio Posts: 819	Re: Best spring perches removal? To be clear, when I stated I heated my axle, I did it with a hand held propane torch, which will only expand the axle a bit, not change its material properties because a hand-held propane torch cannot get it that hot. The objective is to get the metal to move and break the grip of the fretting corrosion. If you are getting out an oxy-acetylene torch and throwing an enormous amount of heat into that axle to hurry the job along, then you may soften the metal and reduce its strength. In that case I think that is the wrong way to approach removing a perch.

12-24-2020, 02:03 PM	#22
rotorwrench Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: San Antonio, Texas Posts: 16,426	Re: Best spring perches removal? When your talking brand new virgin steel forgings, they will hold up very well in service with just the right ductility. When your looking into 90+ year old forgings that have unknown fatigue and repair history, all thoughts of good "like new" ductility are kind of out the window. This doesn't mean it's weak though. Heating a forging up to temperatures where the beam can be shaped does affect it but it also depends on how much temperature it is exposed to and how it is cooled down. After all, it was originally forged while a certain shade of red hot. Normalization on an entire piece can be done after shaping is completed which will return it to a decent hardness and ductility level. Folks that have dropped axles don't take them off the car and check them if there is no obvious reason to do so. You just don't hear anything about problems from Mor-Drop or Dago axles and many have been in service since the 40s. I've purchased a few that were dropped back in the day and they were taken out of service due to wear in the king pin bores more than anything else. This is a common problem with both OEM and dropped Ford axles. Otherwise, the axles were still straight & true after repairs to the bores. I'd much rather have a properly dropped axle that one of those crappy aftermarket cast axles.