JPaul
Member
- Location
- West Valley, UT
Y'all have a messed up view of how U-bolts should fit. In my opinion U-bolts shouldn't ever require man-handling with cheater pipes to spread the tips apart by an inch or more and then large clamps to press them back together so that they'll fit through the plate (which is what would have been required if I tried to use them the way they were). If they do then you're doing it wrong.
A little bit of adjustment by thumping it on the ground because the bend was carried a smidge too far around, sure. But the inside diameter of the U-bolt's bend should pretty much match the axle tube outside diameter where the U-bolt is supposed to sit. If the radius is too small then it's not going to sit on the tube correctly (it should have contact with the tube the entire way around a half circle, if it's too small you'll end up with it mainly contacting the tube at the end of the radius and will leave a gap at the top of the bend), otherwise you could end up with it loosening up as it stretches, more so than normal stretch. The same is true for U-bolts that fit too loose, the pressure will mostly be at the top of the bend and they won't have enough contact at the ends of the radius to properly clamp to the axle tube. And in either case (too loose/too tight a radius) to get it to bend enough to have even clamping force around the axle tube by torquing down the nuts will probably end up causing the threads to gall and/or stretch more than they should. It's far easier and safer to just get the U-bolts bent to the right diameter in the first place. Bending them with cheater bars and pressing them back together with clamps isn't going to come even close to an evenly bent piece of rod like you get with an anvil and hydraulic press. Sure, it _can_ be done, but that doesn't meant that's how it _should_ be done.
I took them back to AAA this morning and he reformed them using the next size up anvil and now they go on the way they should, still a little snug but nothing some light pressure won't get around, and they'll snug up just fine when I torque them down. The way they were bent before would require me spreading them out quite a bit and then hoping I can squeeze them back together to get them to fit through the bottom plates and that they end up compressing around the tube correctly.
Now I just have to get a new sawzall to finish cutting the front spring eye bolts that decided to rust themselves near solid with the bushing's inner sleeve, my cordless sawzall's last good battery decided to die on me 3/4 of the way through cutting it and won't take a charge anymore.
A little bit of adjustment by thumping it on the ground because the bend was carried a smidge too far around, sure. But the inside diameter of the U-bolt's bend should pretty much match the axle tube outside diameter where the U-bolt is supposed to sit. If the radius is too small then it's not going to sit on the tube correctly (it should have contact with the tube the entire way around a half circle, if it's too small you'll end up with it mainly contacting the tube at the end of the radius and will leave a gap at the top of the bend), otherwise you could end up with it loosening up as it stretches, more so than normal stretch. The same is true for U-bolts that fit too loose, the pressure will mostly be at the top of the bend and they won't have enough contact at the ends of the radius to properly clamp to the axle tube. And in either case (too loose/too tight a radius) to get it to bend enough to have even clamping force around the axle tube by torquing down the nuts will probably end up causing the threads to gall and/or stretch more than they should. It's far easier and safer to just get the U-bolts bent to the right diameter in the first place. Bending them with cheater bars and pressing them back together with clamps isn't going to come even close to an evenly bent piece of rod like you get with an anvil and hydraulic press. Sure, it _can_ be done, but that doesn't meant that's how it _should_ be done.
I took them back to AAA this morning and he reformed them using the next size up anvil and now they go on the way they should, still a little snug but nothing some light pressure won't get around, and they'll snug up just fine when I torque them down. The way they were bent before would require me spreading them out quite a bit and then hoping I can squeeze them back together to get them to fit through the bottom plates and that they end up compressing around the tube correctly.
Now I just have to get a new sawzall to finish cutting the front spring eye bolts that decided to rust themselves near solid with the bushing's inner sleeve, my cordless sawzall's last good battery decided to die on me 3/4 of the way through cutting it and won't take a charge anymore.