[Healeys] Front wheel bearing spacers. New blog post.

[m.g.sharp at sympatico.ca]

I just did my TC front bearings, converting them from ball-bearing races to taper roller bearings, and as I did not want to remove the stub axles to send them out for magnafluxing, I used a penetrant dye test.  The kit can be bought from an industrial supplier and involves three separate aerosols: a cleaner, a penetrant and a developer.  It was quite straightforward and I am told reliable, but I would rather have magnafluxed them as Michael describes.  I did not find any cracks, so of course I am now worried about the efficacy of the test rather than being pleased with the result!  On the up side, I have found nothing but high quality work done by the restorer of my TC 25 years ago and the bearings appeared to have been set up correctly.

 

Cheers, MIrek

 

From: Healeys <healeys-bounces at autox.team.net> On Behalf Of Michael Salter
Sent: January 19, 2023 10:43 AM
To: Bob Spidell <bspidell at comcast.net>
Cc: healeys at autox.team.net
Subject: Re: [Healeys] Front wheel bearing spacers. New blog post.

 

Hi thanks for your comment. If possible I would really appreciate it if you would add it to the comments  on my blog post.

https://precisionsportscar.com/austin-healey-front-wheel-bearing-spacers/

Interestingly my understanding of "Magnaflux" testing is entirely different. The "magnaflux" system we used in the aircraft industry subjected the ferrous part to a magnetic field and immersed it into a bath of spray containing iron particles. The particles would gather at the edges of any cracks. 

I was involved with a comparison test of "Magnaflux" vs penetrant dye testing on Rolls Royce Dart engine parts and the general conclusion was that the results achieved using "Magnaflux"were very much more dependent on operator skill than penetrant dye although the penetrant system took a lot longer.

 

M

 

 

On Wed, Jan 18, 2023 at 3:55 PM Bob Spidell <bspidell at comcast.net <mailto:bspidell at comcast.net> > wrote:

Another good post, Michael. A couple things:

- To the best of my recollection--I haven't gotten in there in a while--my BN2 has the spacers. I think it was one of the later cars so maybe they were added at the end of the run? Nothing else about the car makes me think any of the previous owners were particularly diligent or careful with the car (though it was in relatively good shape when we bought it).

- If you don't have facilities for using a penetrant dye--what us Yankees call 'magnaflux'--the 'ring test' can sometimes suffice. Suspend the stub axle, preferably with wire, and give it a sharp rap with a hammer, wrench, etc. The axle should ring, like a tuning fork, but if you get a dull thud you likely have a crack in the axle. My dad took our stub axles up to BCS to have new bushings installed and reamed, and Dad said Norman Nock was impressed by Dad's knowledge of the ring test (Dad was an Old School mechanic himself).

- I always assumed if a part wasn't absolutely necessary the BMC bean counters would have it removed; maybe they realized keeping the spacer, for the BN4s and later cars was cheaper than replacing broken stub axles?

Bob



On 1/18/2023 8:00 AM, Michael Salter wrote:

https://precisionsportscar.com/austin-healey-front-wheel-bearing-spacers/

 

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