55 hinge pin repair

fastjim11 · 03-06-07, 10:27 PM

I did a search for 55 hinge pin repair and found some old info and was wondering if any one had any new info on repairing upper door hinges or which other models will interchange.

Jim

fj55-100 · 03-07-07, 08:51 PM

I took mine off pressed out the pin and put new bushings from a fj40 that SOR sells came out good ,
fj55-100

scouthead · 03-07-07, 09:21 PM

Yeah, I don't have a press but tried anyway...my BFH couldn't get the pin out (didn't even budge). You can get the bushings from Specter, or trade in your old upper hinges as a core, and buy them already rebuilt. That's what I ended up doing. Not cheap, but at least I don't have to lift my doors to close them anymore.

Pygmalion · 03-08-07, 10:11 AM

I think I remember reading somewhere that if you're going to use a BFH, just heat up the hinge plate before proceeding to whack the pin, and it should then come out without too much resistance.

This definitely interests me, because I have a few worn hinges, but will probably end up rebuilding or replacing all of them.

nuclearlemon · 03-08-07, 12:48 PM

i need to replace the stay pin on one of my front hinges, so i'll try the heat up and beat it out thing. anybody know of a pin that will fit in there? mine's snapped in half

scouthead · 03-08-07, 04:44 PM

I tried heating my pass side hinge...nothing. Then I made a little jig to hold my hinge securely in my vise, heated the damn thing through in the oven to 350 degrees,lots of wd-40, and then heated a little more with the torch. A little sweat, and a whole lotta cursing later it became core #2 for SOR. That thing was REALLY in there! AT least all the heat destroyed all that was left of the origional nylon bushings, making the hinge so loose there was no point in trying to put it back on...that door stayed closed and locked for a week or two.

Pygmalion · 03-09-07, 06:04 PM

The more I look into fixing hinges the more I'm apt just to order a whole reman set from SOR and just be done with it.

The price, though, keeps me hoping that I can figure out a way to repair them myself.

Maybe I'll try taking one of them to work with me and see if I can push the pin out with our 20-ton press... the worst that could happen is it becomes a core.

fastjim11 · 03-09-07, 09:25 PM

I ordered a set of bushings and pins today for a FJ 40 I don't know how close they are to what I need but I'll see. If I can make them work fine if not thats ok to. I will try figure out a way to rebuild my/everybodys if I can. Maybe a reamer and locally purchased brass or nylon bushings

......we'll see as I get into it! I may be pissing in the wind but it won't be the first time.

I would also like to be able to easily remove my doors in the summer.

LC_Hamma · 03-09-07, 10:54 PM

There's 2 options I was thinking about, both using bronze bushings. I haven't gotten to that part of the build yet, but I think I'll use the option on the right. That's a 3/8" X 1/4" X 1 1/4" bronze bushing that presses right in. The one on the left doesn't have too deep of bushings & the pin is a little long. I bet I could find one just the right length but I can't remember where I got these:

fastjim11 · 03-09-07, 11:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LC_Hamma

There's 2 options I was thinking about, both using bronze bushings. I haven't gotten to that part of the build yet, but I think I'll use the option on the right. That's a 3/8" X 1/4" X 1 1/4" bronze bushing that presses right in. The one on the left doesn't have too deep of bushings & the pin is a little long. I bet I could find one just the right length but I can't remember where I got these:

The one pictured on the left is what I had in mind, maybe modified to accept the bushing completely and a pin with a c-clip. I've seen nylon and brass bushings at Lowe's and Northen Tools and such places. It wouldn't be hard to open the bore slightly with a reamer to accept a slightly larger bushing.

Pygmalion · 03-11-07, 04:13 AM

Damn... you guys beat me to it.

I was just going to post that oilite bushings fit in perfect. I'm using the same one on the right in the photo. It's about 1/8" too short to totally fill the center of the hinge, but it's fairly insignificant.

A 1/4" bolt fits inside the bushing perfectly, with just a hair of play, though it's much better than the worn out hinge.

One thing I did find out is that the pins are made of soft steel, so you can hacksaw through them fairly quickly. I just pushed the hinge as far as it could go to one side, sawed through the gap, then pushed it the other direction, sawed through that side, then popped out either end with a drift punch.

I then honed out the center of the hinge with a drill bit (I forgot the exact size... dammit) so that the oilite bushing pressed in with only a bit of resistance, then reassembled the hinge with a grade eight bolt and a nylock nut on the bottom. Oh, and I also used a 1/4" flat washer that I filed down a bit to fill in the gap in the center of the hinge.

One thing to keep in mind is that the way the FJ55 hinges are constructed, with the stays to keep the doors open, there'll never be a way to simply pull the pins and remove the doors, unless you figure out a way to pin the stay as well. I guess you could use a pin that had a c-clip like fastjim mentioned, but the pins would probably have to be custom made since the bore through the stay, and the bore through the hinge body are quite different in size.

Also, I considered using two bushings with flanges like is pictured on the left, but the flanges on the bushing are too thick, and would need to be machined down to fit inside the other part of the hinge.

Pygmalion · 03-12-07, 01:13 AM

Well, I took the passenger door hinges in to work with me tonight, and figured out a slightly different way to rebuild them than I did the driver's side, and it appears to work a lot better, so the driver's side is getting re-rebuilt.

One thing I discovered, when working on a 'stay' hinge where the stay isn't broken (like the driver's side)... they're initially a bitch to get apart. You have to drive out the main stay pin (on the main shaft, not the ear that controls it), and then the spring comes off. After that you can hacksaw through the pin and drive the ends of the pin out.

With my new method, I simply center-punched the pin ends that were left in the outer portion of the hinge, drilled them out with a small bore bit, then ran a 3/8" bit straight through both ends (to keep the holes parallel). 3/8" is the outside diameter of the 1/4" ID oilite bushing.

I then drove the oilite bushing into the end of the hinge, trimmed off the excess with a hacksaw, then did the same on the other end. A bit of finish grinding on the hinge ends cleaned everything up. The center of the hinge got it's own oilite bushing pressed in after honing it out with a 3/8" bit. Then I used a softer grade 3 bolt, figuring that I'd rather replace bolts than bushings (or at least allow them to wear evenly). With the oilite bushings in both halves of the hinge the bolt fits a lot better and play is reduced even further.

My only concern is that there isn't enough body left on the outer hinge half since there is now a 3/8" hole where there used to be a smaller one, but I have at least 1/8" all around, so I think I'll be alright... the hinge will still probably tear free from the door before the hinge breaks. The bushings also add some strength.

I'll post a pic tomorrow.

I'm pretty stoked... for the cost of two 1/4" ID oilite bushings per hinge, plus a common 1/4" bolt and nylock, you can have rebuilt hinges. Well, I guess you'd also need a drill (press preferably), bits, grinder, vise, hammer, drift punch and hacksaw... but at $80 per door plus shipping, you could get a lot of tools with the money you save.

I reinstalled the driver's door hinges today for testing, and I'm very pleased with how the hinges feel now that they're more solid. I'm hoping that the hinges I built tonight will feel even better.

Pygmalion · 03-12-07, 05:48 PM

Okay, a couple of quick photos as an addendum to my last post.

The pair of hinges:

And here's an exploded view of the top hinge showing the oilite bushings and other hinge parts.

You can see the metal thickness surrounding the bushing on the outer hinge half (on the right). I think there's still plenty of strength in that area, but I guess I'll find out if my doors start snapping off.

The 1/4" bolt is also 11mm in size (7/16" imperial), so if you only carry a metric toolkit you'll still have the tools to tighten the bolts, if you need to.

I'm not sure what the total cost per hinge would be (in parts anyway), since I swiped the oilite bushings from work, but the bolt, nut and washer can't be more than $.50, and even if the bushings are a buck apiece that's still only $2.50 in parts.

It may not be 'purist', but it works.

1973Guppie · 03-12-07, 09:50 PM

David, these look great! thanks for sharing. Can you please post up some part #'s for the bushings? or give us some ideas of where we can find these and what specifications the ones you used are? I have never dealt with these type of bushings so any info you can provide for us so we can order them somewhere off the net would be a major plus, or are they available at my local hardware store? Also, please post up how they ended up working after a few months of use. I would like to stay away from having to order the rebuilt SOR hinges and have been looking for a solution for awhile now.

Noah

Pygmalion · 03-12-07, 10:37 PM

Thanks Noah.

The oilite bushings I'm using are 1/4" ID, 3/8" OD, and 1-1/4" in length.

So far the largest I could find online was 1" length, which shouldn't make too much of a difference. You can find them HERE for a pretty decent price ($.40 each). I haven't dealt with this company at all, nor am I affiliated... just the only place I could find them (so far) at a decent price.

If you do a google search for "oilite bearing", you can probably find some at other online stores, or if you happen to have a bearing shop down there in SoCal, drop by and see if they happen to stock them.

I'll talk to my boss tomorrow and find out where he gets the 1-1/4" versions and part #'s. I'm a pinsetter mechanic at a bowling alley, so the bushings might only be available through our parent company, but I could get lucky.

The thing about oilite that's so cool is the fact that it needs no external oiling, since part of it's structure is composed of 30wt oil.

I reinstalled the passenger door hinges earlier and the door feels like a dream now... no binding or looseness, and it doesn't 'jump' as it hits the striker from door sag. Now I just need to see how it holds up long-term, but we use these for frequently moving parts (hundreds or thousands of cycles daily), and rarely have a failure.
I also decided to use a soft bolt with these so that only half the wear takes place on the bushing, and you can replace the bolt and have 'nearly new' hinges again.

1973Guppie · 03-13-07, 11:43 PM

thanks David, yes I would appreciate a part # if you can find one, and if your boss knows the vendor that would be awesome too, thanks!

Noah

scorcher1967 · 03-16-07, 10:38 AM

I had the driver's door hinges rebuilt by a local machine shop. I want to say it only cost about twenty bucks. They drilled out the hinges, and fabricated a new pin to match. Perfect fit, no slop, not expensive. Fixes not only the worn pin, but the worn guide holes as well.

Pygmalion · 03-16-07, 09:50 PM

That's essentially what I did. I re-sleeved the barrel and sleeved the top and bottom to accept a 1/4" bolt as a pin. The top and bottom bushing could actually be made of steel, since the bolt is bound at those points and doesn't rotate, but I had the bushings available and they fit, so I used them.

You could also leave the bolt loose so that it rotates in both the inside and outside halves, but I use the bolt tension to take up a slight bit of slack up and down that is not taken up by the 1/4" washer... that's my 'precision' adjustment.

I have not yet had a chance to ask my boss the details on the bushings. I normally am getting to work as he's leaving, so I need to get in a bit early and catch him while he's still in his office. Either that or I'll hunt around and see what I can find on my own in our parts manuals.

Pygmalion · 03-21-07, 01:24 AM

Well, I finally came through with some information... I had to dig through several parts manuals before I found what I was looking for, but they are available.

Okay, the Brunswick part # for the bushing is: 11-420046 (depending on the website it could also be written as 11420046000).
It is available at the H.J. Malone Company, which is where we order our replacement parts. Just search for that part #. They come in 5-pack bags, and cost $4.90 (+ shipping). Each bag will do 1 door, with one bushing left over. When I just checked, H.J. Malone only had 4 bags left, enough for one complete vehicle, and I'm not sure how often they restock (never ordered them myself). Get'em while they're hot.

You could also do a search for Brunswick part distributors and look up either of the part numbers listed. I also found another number when searching H.J. Malone's site of 9-035BR, which appears to be a cross-reference to the new part #. Just thought I'd throw that out there in case it helps, though it could just be an obsolete internal part #.

One other thing... rather than cutting one of the longer bushings to do the outer hinge barrels (like I did), you could instead use 1/4" x 1/2" oilite bushings, and not have to cut at all. In that regard, one pack of the above bushings would do two doors, provided 1/2" bushings are used on the outer portion of the hinge. Just food for thought.

1973Guppie · 03-22-07, 12:30 AM

THANKS BRO!

Just picked up the last four packs. Will post up when I get them done.

Noah

Pygmalion · 03-22-07, 10:42 AM

No problemo dude.

I just hope my boss doesn't need to order more now that I've depleted our supply at work... LOL!

battle · 09-27-07, 10:08 PM

How are these holding up? Got an extra set of hinges that I'm planning to rebuild and am trying to decide whether to try the oilite bearings or just go to a machine shop. What kind of results have others had using this method(oilite bearings and 1/4" bolt)?

n2666s · 09-28-07, 01:48 PM

looking at the same problem on rebuilding hinges........ hate that had to spend 40$ for one from $OR; still have 7 more sloppy hinges to rebuild.

.......would rather go the oilite route if possible.........

Lou

theSherpa · 09-28-07, 02:41 PM

if you're cheap AND lazy, you can take a good front right (US passenger) side hinge off a parts truck, flip it upside down and use it to replace the driver's side hinge...the passenger side doesn't get used as much so often isn't worn out. Cruiserbrett laid this particular tidbit on me...I've done it and it works. No info on rear hinges, but they also likely don't wear out much.

Steve

n2666s · 09-28-07, 05:43 PM

Hey, that sounds like a good idea

thanks for the pointer

Lou

battle · 09-30-07, 05:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by theSherpa

if you're cheap AND lazy, you can take a good front right (US passenger) side hinge off a parts truck, flip it upside down and use it to replace the driver's side hinge...the passenger side doesn't get used as much so often isn't worn out. Cruiserbrett laid this particular tidbit on me...I've done it and it works. No info on rear hinges, but they also likely don't wear out much.

Steve

Good tip; unfortunately both driver and passenger hinges on my two pigs have more wear than I am willing to tolerate. I was hoping to hear from pygmalion or others who used the oilite bushings to rebuild theirs. Specifically, did the 1/4" bolt hold up, have the bushings stayed in place, and did any slop redevolop in the hinges? I've already ordered the oilite bushings, so it looks like thats the route I'm going unless someone volunteers a good reason not to......

Luke111 · 09-30-07, 06:22 PM

Pygmalion's put his 55 up for sale and never answered my PM. I ordered the rebuilt hinges from Sor's, I just wanted it done>

Lou

k9crazy · 10-01-07, 11:47 AM

I only had a couple of hinges on mine that we wiggly, but I took a different approach. If the nylon washers (I think that's what they are) are gone, that makes the hinge much less stable. So my thought was if that space was filled, it would prevent the side to side movement enough to get that hinge solid.

I dug around and found that a 3/8" steel e-clip from home depot fits perfectly in that space on either side of where the pin goes. I'd take a pic, but I just sent the hinges off to be with the piggy at the shop. But, you just jam that eclip in there with a screwdriver and a hammer and it takes away a lot of the play.

This would work well for those that don't have hinges that are terrible, but want a little more snugness.

k9crazy · 10-01-07, 01:38 PM

A picture is worth a thousand words.

battle · 10-01-07, 08:59 PM

Got my hinges rebuilt today! Door shuts perfectly. Believe it or not, I found a door hinge repair kit on the shelf at NAPA. I used the above mentioned oilite bushings for the center part, and the pin from NAPA kit. I had to drill out the bushing to fit new pin. The pin then pressed into the assembly just right. I'll be glad to get part numbers for bushings and repair kit, if anyone is interested. Cost about $8 per hinge...