mk1-forum.net

MMM1965 wrote: ↑Mon Apr 26, 2021 9:35 pm Hi all, does anyone know if there is anyone out there who rebuilds/refurbishes mk1 steering racks please? Many thanks

850man wrote: ↑Wed Apr 28, 2021 3:46 am

MMM1965 wrote: ↑Mon Apr 26, 2021 9:35 pm Hi all, does anyone know if there is anyone out there who rebuilds/refurbishes mk1 steering racks please? Many thanks

Where are you?
I rebuild our Australian made steering racks regularly.
The UK made Mk 1 racks I only do for concourse restorations, as the parts are almost impossible to find, but we have enough second hand racks that I can build one out of many if needed.

timmy201 wrote: ↑Wed Apr 28, 2021 5:02 am What would you recommend for an Aussie 850 with the English MK1 rack? Mine needs looking at, I’m not concerned with originality but just want something decent quality

timmy201 wrote: ↑Wed Apr 28, 2021 5:02 am

850man wrote: ↑Wed Apr 28, 2021 3:46 am

MMM1965 wrote: ↑Mon Apr 26, 2021 9:35 pm Hi all, does anyone know if there is anyone out there who rebuilds/refurbishes mk1 steering racks please? Many thanks

Where are you?
I rebuild our Australian made steering racks regularly.
The UK made Mk 1 racks I only do for concourse restorations, as the parts are almost impossible to find, but we have enough second hand racks that I can build one out of many if needed.

What would you recommend for an Aussie 850 with the English MK1 rack? Mine needs looking at, I’m not concerned with originality but just want something decent quality

Peter Laidler wrote: ↑Wed May 05, 2021 6:25 pm While I haven't done many racks Gary, I haven't found eccentricity to be a problem. The Unipart man told me that if their reconditioning/exchange contractors found that, it'd indicate a distorted rack.

Spider wrote: ↑Sat Jun 20, 2020 7:34 pm If you look at the later plastic type bushes, they don't make a 360 degree contact with the rack, put have 3 fat points. Best I can determine, they are made that way to allow for misalignment and also to reduce friction.

I have been doing the bushes in Bronze going back to the early 80's. I bore them undersize, press them in, then ream them once fitted up. Then I align the bush end of the rack to the other end. It is easy to do, the rack will lock up if you don't. These days, I do this by fitting the inner so it comes up flush-ish to the pinion end then between V Blocks in the press and a block of shaped timber to press against, straighten it up using the inner as a gauge until it lands central in the pinion end, I just do it by eye. They don't need much force at all to bend them. For many years, I was just fitting the OD of the Bushed End in a length of heavy pipe and just push it around by hand to do this.

The rack in my wife's Moke I rebuilt using a Bronze Bush around 1984 or 85 and it's done over 300 000 km since then. I have had to replace the gaiters a couple of times in that period, but otherwise, I've not touched it.

Gary Schulz wrote: ↑Thu May 06, 2021 12:58 am

Peter Laidler wrote: ↑Wed May 05, 2021 6:25 pm While I haven't done many racks Gary, I haven't found eccentricity to be a problem. The Unipart man told me that if their reconditioning/exchange contractors found that, it'd indicate a distorted rack.

Hmmm, I have rebuilt two of them and both absolutely needed to be aligned because the original bushing (felt or 3 point plastic) are tolerant of the relative misalignment of the two ends because they allow for the inner rack to aim in a suitable direction (it doesn't really need to be concentric all the way across). It works but is not optimal. When you use a precision bushing it removes the ability for the inner rack to aim any way it needs to hence the binding problem. I first saw this mentioned by Spider and indeed it is a real issue that needs to be addressed if you use a precision reamed bushing:

Spider wrote: ↑Sat Jun 20, 2020 7:34 pm If you look at the later plastic type bushes, they don't make a 360 degree contact with the rack, put have 3 fat points. Best I can determine, they are made that way to allow for misalignment and also to reduce friction.

I have been doing the bushes in Bronze going back to the early 80's. I bore them undersize, press them in, then ream them once fitted up. Then I align the bush end of the rack to the other end. It is easy to do, the rack will lock up if you don't. These days, I do this by fitting the inner so it comes up flush-ish to the pinion end then between V Blocks in the press and a block of shaped timber to press against, straighten it up using the inner as a gauge until it lands central in the pinion end, I just do it by eye. They don't need much force at all to bend them. For many years, I was just fitting the OD of the Bushed End in a length of heavy pipe and just push it around by hand to do this.

The rack in my wife's Moke I rebuilt using a Bronze Bush around 1984 or 85 and it's done over 300 000 km since then. I have had to replace the gaiters a couple of times in that period, but otherwise, I've not touched it.

timmy201 wrote: ↑Wed Apr 28, 2021 5:02 am

850man wrote: ↑Wed Apr 28, 2021 3:46 am

MMM1965 wrote: ↑Mon Apr 26, 2021 9:35 pm Hi all, does anyone know if there is anyone out there who rebuilds/refurbishes mk1 steering racks please? Many thanks

Where are you?
I rebuild our Australian made steering racks regularly.
The UK made Mk 1 racks I only do for concourse restorations, as the parts are almost impossible to find, but we have enough second hand racks that I can build one out of many if needed.

What would you recommend for an Aussie 850 with the English MK1 rack? Mine needs looking at, I’m not concerned with originality but just want something decent quality