Installing ski spindle

[ViperTurboPete]

Okay...next question.

After installing oilites in the spindle what is the easiest way to put the ski shaft into the spindles?

I have the a-arms and spindles installed on the sled and am trying to stick the splined ski shaft up into the spindles with no luck. It is an extremely tight fit.

Do I take the spindle housing off and pound that onto the splined shaft?

Any suggestions? Funny how everything literally fell apart when I dismantled, now it is a different story.

 

[TBay Sledhead]

If it doesn't slide in then something is bent. Had the same issue with mine, had to leave the top oilite bushing out and use the original ones. There was very little play in them as I grease mine all the time.

 

[actionjack]

I just replaced a bent knuckle and put mine together. You might want to take them apart and clean up the splines. I did have the knuckle off and tap the steering arm on the splined spindle. I did not just slip right on.

 

[ViperTurboPete]

I took the bottom oilite spline bushing out, put some heat to it and it still wouldn't slide down the shaft....maybe 2 inches past the spline. The other shaft does the same thing...bushing only slides down a couple of inches.

Please don't tell me they are bent!

 

[Irv]

I took the bottom oilite spline bushing out, put some heat to it and it still wouldn't slide down the shaft....maybe 2 inches past the spline. The other shaft does the same thing...bushing only slides down a couple of inches.

Please don't tell me they are bent!

Mine went back in easy but I did everything when I had it all apart.

I also had some bent right side a-arms and was worried about reassembly to but I guess I got lucky as nothing in the spindle area was bent.

 

[ViperTurboPete]

My spindles aren't bent. I had the spindles out in the cold and slid a bushing on but with great difficulty. When the spindle warmed up in the basement the bushing was seized on.

I think I will take some sand paper and give it a good sanding to see if things will slip on easier.

 

[Indy]

OK, I have just one question; your sled is in the basement?

 

[yamaha convert]

I took the bottom oilite spline bushing out, put some heat to it and it still wouldn't slide down the shaft....maybe 2 inches past the spline. The other shaft does the same thing...bushing only slides down a couple of inches.

Please don't tell me they are bent!

What are the chances they are both bent exactly the same.
Pretty slim I would say.
I bought 2 sets of oilites for my sleds. The sizing tolerances on the bushiings was all over the place. I had the opposite problem. My spindle oilites were loose in brand new spindle housings. I sent them to the manufacturer, and he sent them back saying there was nothing wrong.
So I resorted to center punching the bush and the spindle to keep an eye on wether they are going to turn. In the meantime Ive ordered bushings from another supplier and hope their tolerances are a little better.
Your bushes may not be machined correctly as were mine.

 

[ViperTurboPete]

Well, I tried sanding things down and it didn't work. So, I took out my dremel and using a grinding stone, I ground out the insides of all four big spindle bushings. It took a while. At one point, I installed the bushings back in the housings and placed the housing onto the splined shaft. The spindle housings would not spin. I gather the housing should spin freely. So, I popped all the bushings again and ground everything down even further. Now the spindles spin around freely and there is very little "play". The housings slide on an off easily.

I figured loose would be better because a snug fit wouldn't allow for loose steering.

I would suggest that before anyone installs the spindle bushings check to see how they fit on the splined shafts first. Most likely you won't have an issue, but just in case you do, you will know before you pound them in.

 

[Blue Dave]

I bought 2 sets of oilites for my sleds. The sizing tolerances on the bushiings was all over the place. I had the opposite problem. My spindle oilites were loose in brand new spindle housings. I sent them to the manufacturer, and he sent them back saying there was nothing wrong.
So I resorted to center punching the bush and the spindle to keep an eye on wether they are going to turn. In the meantime Ive ordered bushings from another supplier and hope their tolerances are a little better.
Your bushes may not be machined correctly as were mine.

I just bought Ulmer's kit but I have not installed it yet. Who did you purchase the the out of tolerance ones from?

 

[yamaha convert]

Well, I tried sanding things down and it didn't work. So, I took out my dremel and using a grinding stone, I ground out the insides of all four big spindle bushings. It took a while. At one point, I installed the bushings back in the housings and placed the housing onto the splined shaft. The spindle housings would not spin. I gather the housing should spin freely. So, I popped all the bushings again and ground everything down even further. Now the spindles spin around freely and there is very little "play". The housings slide on an off easily.

I figured loose would be better because a snug fit wouldn't allow for loose steering.

I would suggest that before anyone installs the spindle bushings check to see how they fit on the splined shafts first. Most likely you won't have an issue, but just in case you do, you will know before you pound them in.

My suggestion would be buy from the sled manufacturer.

 

[Blue Dave]

The problem with the OEM bushings is that they are made of cheap plastic and therefore require frequent replacement.

 

[yamaha convert]

The problem with the OEM bushings is that they are made of cheap plastic and therefore require frequent replacement.

Dave I agree the plastic bushes dont hold up the best for the most part, but a few have said the plastic spindle bushes wear well when greased regurlarly.

I should have clarified what I meant by buy from the manufacturer.
What I meant was buy Oilites from Yamaha.

 

[Blue Dave]

The problem with the OEM bushings is that they are made of cheap plastic and therefore require frequent replacement.

Dave I agree the plastic bushes dont hold up the best for the most part, but a few have said the plastic spindle bushes wear well when greased regurlarly.

I should have clarified what I meant by buy from the manufacturer.
What I meant was buy Oilites from Yamaha.

I was not aware that Yamaha offered oilite bushings.

 

[Blue Dave]

I put Ulmer's oilite bushings on one side of my sled tonight. I will tackle the other side tomorrow. The ski spindle shaft was a tight fit and was difficult to turn by hand after installing the oilite bushings. However after pumping the housing full of grease and working the shaft back and forth the shaft began to spin more freely.

I was surprised to find that the OEM plastic bushings in the spindle (the two for the shaft and the four for the A arm attachment points) were all in excellent condition and really did not need replacement.

The bulkhead and A arm OEM plastic bushings however were completely shot to the point of being nonexistent in a few locations. The oilites really helped to tighten up this area which was very loose with the worn out OEM bushings.