So I’ve been having some issues with the fitment of the front hubs, specifically the bearings and stub axles. My last post showed how the outer bearing was a terrible fit on the stub axle. So bad I ended up returning the full bearing kits and replacing the new stub axles completely also. My replacement parts are much better fitting than the last ones, but I have still had to have a fair old fettle to get them to fit nicely and allow the bearing to fit correctly as they should. These replacements parts are sure as hell not built to the same tolerances as the original unit which makes things very frustrating to build up again.
With switching the stubs and bearings I have gone from an impossible fitting outer bearing and good inner to a bad fit inner bearing, but the outer was good. In order to remedy the fit I have basically emery cloth the hell out of the stub after firstly using some various grades of wet and dry to reduce the overall diameter, this has been laborious to do but now the inner and outer bearings fit perfectly…. Phew! and more importantly they will now operate as intended with the specific end float and bearing adjustable as wear slowly happens. The bearing races were driven in using the bearing drift set I got many years ago, this ensures the race sits even and square in the hub, with zero damage to the face which can happen if using a punch to sit them in. Any damage to the race face will reduce the lifespan of the bearing significantly so these are a great tool to have in the garage.
I also picked up some water deflectors for the front hubs, these are not available anymore as a replacement part so secondhand is the only option, I only had one when I got the car, but picked up a pair for £10 off eBay. I’ve wire brushed them back and then primed and painted them also. Some feedback on the forums is that they are not really required, however they were designed to be on the car so they are staying on mine…. They serve a purpose after all and my front wheels will be significantly more exposed to the weather then on the original Spitfire, so on they went with copious amounts of waterproof grease in the hubs and bearings.
With both sides done I was able to offer the hubs up and make sure I had no problems, I torqued up the stub axle nut (88Nm) and solved the previous issue where the steering arm wasn’t sitting correctly…. I had a washer between the hub upright and steering arm which was spacing it out unnecessarily. This was down to not remembering how I disassembled it all and trusting the schematics that you find online listing all the component parts with relevant part numbers….Shock eh, the internet having the wrong information everywhere.
On went the old original wheels and were rolling again, great!! Granted the wheels toe out whenever you push it, as no steering rack is on yet (need to start refurbishing this now) and also no front or back brakes either. I have all the brake components in my online basket, and the intention was to have all these fitted now at the same time for this update. However with all the tolerance issues I’ve been having I’m trying to broaden my supplier list and find someone who provides machined parts that actually fit correctly. So I’m holding back for the moment until I’m confident that the parts I order will be ok.
So that’s it really for this update, short and sweet. I have lifted the body onto the now rolling chassis and must admit it’s looking bloody fantastic and very exciting. I will be ordering the final stage parts for the chassis in the next few weeks and so another little update should happen soon. I’m considering upgrading the front brakes discs and callipers to some vented units that are “supposedly” an improvement, however on a car that has no servo assist and will be significantly lighter than the original I really need to weigh up the pros and cons of making changes to the standard setup.
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