Hi all. No, haven't lost interest, just no time lately.
Today I got the final parts of the winch apart.
I used the grinder to carefully cut the ends off the split-pin through the end of the actuator rod and filed the rough edges down.
The aluminium had really grabbed onto the shaft though, and it took a lot of effort to drive it out. I used the biggest drift punch I had and a 2lb block hammer and just went slowly.
I kept expecting it to let go and drop out, but in the end I had to drive it about 4" before it started moving easily. 4" put it about half-way through the engagement yoke.
When I got it out, I found the shaft was clean where it was in the yoke and open casing, but really rusty and nasty where it went through the aluminium housing on each side.
The section that goes through the casing will clean up ok with a bit of wet and dry, but the main shaft that sticks out and attaches to the air actuator is a bit bent and I will have to
heat it and straighten it before I put it back together.
Once the shaft was out, the actuator yoke and clutch dog just slid out. Both are in perfect condition and just need a bit of a degrease.
Looking inside, I could see the big gear that the worm drive engaged. It has a series of bolts locking the toothed ring to the spline in the centre,
but you can't get a spanner on the nuts on the back until it comes out with the shaft.
The next step was getting the shaft out. That castle nut was a real pain. I tried heating it and using a long breaker bar, but now that the box is all broken down, there's no way to hold it still.
Eventually, I ended up heating it again and split it carefully with a cold chisel. With the nut off, I was able to remove the big washer under it. This is what stops the shaft sliding out through the box.
Under the washer was a shim pack, to get the end float right I guess. These were pretty rusty but should clean up ok and be reusable.
The shaft still wouldn't come out. There was another brass bush/sleeve thing in the aluminium housing, just like in the end frame.
I tried heating it and the housing around it and then flogging the end of the shaft with a soft-faced hammer, but it still didn't move.
Next option was the press. After struggling to get the shaft and housing in the press, I finally got it all positioned and reheated the housing while putting some pressure on the shaft.
At just over 5t, it started to move. Like the end housing, the brass bush/sleeve thing preferred to stay on the shaft instead of in the housing. Oh well, at least it was out.
From there, I was able to pop the shaft with the drive gear on it back in the press, heat the bush/sleeve thing a bit and press it out.
It came off clean, but as you can see in the pics below, the shaft itself had a fair bit of corrosion on it.
The aluminium housing that the bush/sleeve thing presses into looks rough, but is actually fairly smooth to touch. The next step for it will be to use the fine wire cup on the grinder to clean back as much of the
aluminium housing as I can get at and then use the sand-blaster to get in all the crannies. I'll etch prime it all and give it a few top-coats of camo green. I'll put it in the front sun-room for a few weeks
to let the paint cure and harden before reassembling it all. Daytime top temps are around 14°C and will only get colder now, but it gets nice and warm in there. The cat would move in full time if I let him.
I decided to have a go putting the bush/sleeve thing back in the end frame. It seems that it's just an interference fit that stops it turning in the aluminium housing.
I cleaned the inside and outside of the brass thing and the inside of the housing with a bit of fine wet and dry. I figured anything I put on them to make it easier to
press in would also let the brass thing turn in the housing, so instead I put the bush in the freezer and baked the aluminium housing in the oven at 150°C for an hour.
I had the press all set up and used a good thick welding glove to grab the housing out of the oven. I should have used one to grab the bush too, as it stuck to my fingers.
I got both positioned in the press and it pushed in like it was greased. I could feel it getting tighter towards the bottom as it heated the bush,
but I got it in and even found I had lined the grease hole up. Bonus! It looks pretty good.
I'll paint this when I do the main housing. The winch drum will take a bit of effort to clean up as it is pretty rusted, but I think it should be ok.
One thing that I am worried about is the felt seal between the housing and the drum. If you look at the photo to the right of the pic of the press in my last post,
you can just make it out under the grease and crud.
The RPS actually shows it as 2 separate pieces. One is listed as Retainer, Packing, Drum and the other is Felt, Mechanical, Preformed, Drum.
Before I pulled the winch out of the truck, I checked the oil level and drained it. At the time I remember the level was low,
and I suppose it slowly leaked out past the felt band over the years. I'd prefer not to have leaks after I put it all back together
so I'd like to replace the existing seal with something modern. I think the safest thing to do might be to clean up the drum and housing and take both in
to the local bearing and seal place that has helped me out in the past. If they can find a listing for something that fits, I'll replace it.
I don't want to destroy it while getting it out only to find there is nothing available to replace it.
Oh well, that will do for now.
Greg.