removing shaft from axel - going to try a 100 ton

Well, since heat combined with pressing using a 20 ton did not work to remove that hunk of shaft from the F20 axel (for use on our Regular which has bad threads)... husband stopped at two local shops yesterday and they gave it a whirl with their air-driven presses (one was 20 ton, not sure of tonage on the other). NO WORKEE, they cannot budge it either. But they were really nice and did not charge him anything for giving it a try.

Tonight he's taking it to a machine shop with a 100 ton press. Figure something's going to happen - don't know if it will be good, bad or ugly; but something ought to happen.

I guess worse case scenario is that if the guy with the 100 ton press breaks it to smithereens, my husband will have to remove the entire front pedestal of the Regular and haul it in to have the axel repaired and rethreaded. Tonight will determine what happens next.

Keep us informed, as to what happens. My bet is
that something will break.

Did they heat it and press at the same time? That oughtta do it. One or the other probably won't. Good luck and tell him to be dam far away when they put it to er.

Sweetfeet,I am a fan of these old F series and regulars,and find them perrty simple.Through my learning of working on these tractors Ive always found that its better to fix what you have rather than chase parts and find out there just as bad

jimmy

Had a shaft out of a crane some years back that had a gear stuck on it. The gear had sheared two keys, spun for awhile, and actually galled to the shaft a couple of times tight enough for the machine to keep on moving. It took 600 tons to get it off. Good luck with your project. Like the old saying, when all else fails, get a bigger hammer.......or in this case a bigger press....

NCWayne,
Yep, we'll see what happens with the proverbial "bigger hammer".

JamesWilliams,

You may turn out to be right. But this axel is in really good shape and we got it very reasonable, so hoping to be able to put it in place of the bad one. Only time will tell if it will be do-able. Otherwise, yes - we will have to fix the one that is one there. Thanks.

in-too-deep,
I don't know if they heated it last night at the shops. But he has been heating and then pressing it at home.

And yes... hoping that thing does not explode and shoot schrapnel around the place.

greygoat,

Yes, will post back about what happens. And yes, we figure there's a good chance something could break... just hoping not.

sweetfeet - been watching your progress on this, but still really have no idea exactly what you're talking about.

However - I'll chime in anyways with my 2 cents, just because it's something I see a lot of with people pressing shafts out of anything.

My apologies if it doesn't apply in your case.

But many times pressure and force can deform the part being pushed out. It's easy to forget just how maleable the metal can be because it looks so solid. In fact it's like butter - a suprising small amount of force will mushroom the shaft outwards.

In the case of a shaft through a tight tolerance hole - just the SLIGHTEST deformation can make it impossible to remove it.

And the harder you try, the more impossible it gets.

Whatever the size of the shaft - I find it extremely important to push with the smallest diameter tool possible - sitting against the very center of the face of the shaft you're trying to push out.

In other words if you're pushing around the edges, you're only going to make your job tougher.

If you push on a smaller center area, the sides can be deformed back in as it goes through.

Maybe you already know this - or tried it - but again figured I'd mention it.

Good luck!

JRSutton,

Thanks for your reply. Husband is trying to remove a torched-off shaft from a front axel so we can put that newer/better axel onto our Farmall Regular tractor.

So if this newer axel does not get crushed in getting the shaft removed from it, he will then have to push the bad axel out of our Regular in order to put this one in its place (which is kind of looking like it may also involve a machine shop to get that job done as well). We will just have to see what happens.

RU sure there isn't a step in shaft size (like trying to force the shaft against a shoulder)?

Why not just weld up the threads or what ever is worn, and have it machined. Might not cost as much as the pressing, and should be as good as new.

I've been following, but I haven't posted yet.

If the shaft is junk, what about trying to torch or cut it out? I'm a machinist by trade and while I don't work at a shop that does farm repair anymore, I have seen enough in other industries and my own farm repairs that I bring in. For me I guess it's easy. If it doesn't press out, I move on to more destructive methods to save the part I need.

I recently fixed the threads on a spindle for our Massey 285. They stripped and allowed the hub to pull off. Dad bought a used one from the junk yard, but I fixed this one so we'd have it as a spare.






Donovan from Wisconsin

Don WI,

Really nice job - looks great!

I don't think we have the equipment needed for him to do that... he'd have to hire a machinist.

Might end up doing that. Originally seemed that switching the bad one out and installing the good one seemed like a simpler idea.

gtractorfan,
Pretty sure no shoulder. It is just really stuck in there.