Should I polish my balls???

[milemarker60]

So I'm fix'n to start putting my knuckles back together with all the new parts and figured I'd ask you guys a question about your knuckle balls (or whatever they call the swivels welded on the axle). Mine have a very small amount of pitting still present after hitting them with a Scotchbrite. Pitting of any type is No Bueno in the aviation world but I can't imagine removing enough material to get them baby smooth as there spherical form will likely be slightly distorted.

So, are your balls pitted a little or do I need to go full Brazilian on them (attempt to keep from flat-spotting them) or leave alone and let the wipers/felt do their job?

Thanks,
Dave

 

[2fpower]

Depends on how much pitted. On FOO, mine were really bad. I ended up using two part epoxy on them. JB Weld material. let it dry, sanded it flat then shot with two part epoxy primer. Worked great.

If you are talking very small, or pits mostly on top, I would not worry about it. The moly you are putting in is not in a liquid state.