Winch Disassembly (1 Viewer)

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

tlaporte

SILVER Star
Joined
Dec 17, 2003
Threads
54
Messages
1,135
Location
Pasadena, CA
I'm taking apart my 8000 lb. Thomas PTO winch in order to clean and refurbish it, and I've encountered my first "how should I go about this?" question.

IMG_1135.jpg


I'm trying to sort out how to remove the drum bushing in the photos below.

IMG_1133.jpg
IMG_1134.jpg


There is a threaded hole that can be seen easily in the first two pictures (into which a Zerk fitting was screwed), but I don't think that that would provide access to push the bushing out.

I'm just not sure how to remove that bushing without destroying it. I'd appreciate anybody's input.
 
I'm just not sure how to remove that bushing without destroying it. I'd appreciate anybody's input.

Why do you want to remove the bushing, if you're not going to replace it?

If you're going to replace it, then measure the inside diameter, cut a slot in it with a dremel, remove it, and measure the inside diameter of the race to get the outside diameter of the bushing.
 
I’ll be honest, I want to media blast the dog clutch housing and I didn’t/don’t know if removing the bushing without destroying it was possible. I’m also not certain if I could purchase a replacement bushing (although I think I might be able to.
 
I would cut a round piece of metal the size of the bushing's lip, drill it and put a machine screw through it and thread it into the back of the zerk fitting hole. Then the bushing is sealed from the media.
 
I like the look of your winch as it is but then again, I like patina:)
 
Looks to me you need a puller. I believe there is some room at the base of that bushing. But, as I look closer, the bushing looks cracked ?

bushing.PNG
 
I hate to state the obvious Tom, but if anyone can remove that bushing intact, it’s Walt.
 
I would cut a round piece of metal the size of the bushing's lip, drill it and put a machine screw through it and thread it into the back of the zerk fitting hole. Then the bushing is sealed from the media.

That's an interesting thought that I had not considered: just protect the bushing during media blasting.

I did watch some interesting YouTube videos that showed how to use bread stuffed into a housing in order to push a pilot bearing out. I don't know as there is enouch surface area on the bushing to make such a technique work here, though.

I like the look of your winch as it is but then again, I like patina:)

I like the patina, too, but this is somewhat of a practice project. When Mark (@65swb45) first inspected the truck many years ago, he noted that there was something potentially off with the PTO gears and he suggested having it looked at before using it. Fast forward all of these years, and in order to accomplish that I'm putting into plan two other sage bits of advice Mark gave me: (1) when you are working on a running truck, aim to to keep the downtime to a minimum--two weeks, at most--so that it doesn't become an abandoned project and (2) to gain some confidence in working on these beasts, take something apart, clean it, and put it back together.

I've followed #2 over the past year on some very small, mostly electrical or other non-mechanical things, and now the winch teardown is a slightly bigger project which also helps me keep true to #1. The winch is on the bench, and I have the blanking plate I need for when I take the PTO off of the truck, in order to keep the truck driveable while we deal with that.
 
Looks to me you need a puller. I believe there is some room at the base of that bushing. But, as I look closer, the bushing looks cracked ?

I hadn't even noticed, but now that I look at the pictures, and then went out to the bench to look more closely at the bushing, I think you might be right.

I hate to state the obvious Tom, but if anyone can remove that bushing intact, it’s Walt.

Haha. That's very likely the route I will take, Mark!

My current hurdle is getting the drum off of the shaft.

Once I removed the keys (W72 in the below diagram) from the shaft (W70),

IMG_1153.jpg


I was able to move the drum (W64) about one inch:

IMG_1152.jpg


And now about the only thing I've accomplished is wearing down the head of my plastic/rubber hammer. I confirmed that the grub screw on the drum (W93) is there to secure the cable to the drum and does not impede the drum's progress along the shaft.

I have the following parts diagram that I've been using as a pseudo-repair manual, but I don't see anything that suggests there is something physical/mechanical that should be preventing me from moving the drum further down the shaft:

ATS-winch-parts-diagram.png
 
I'd pull W93 all of the way out just in case... Also what are W72 and W71? In your first picture you see the slot, but nothing in it... Maybe that scree acting as a retainer or something?
 
I’ll be honest, I want to media blast the dog clutch housing and I didn’t/don’t know if removing the bushing without destroying it was possible. I’m also not certain if I could purchase a replacement bushing (although I think I might be able to.

As long as you're not using some crazy powerful sandblaster, quality duct tape will protect the bushing from media.

I used to watch my friend cut out letters in duct tape. He'd tape what remained across the face of a nice rock. He'd sandblast the letters out and the duct tape would act as the stencil. He made a lot of garden rocks for people with their names etched on it. Like I said, use a quality duct tape and not a Dollar General brand.
 
Tom, I second @JohnBoy on just taping it off. I have done mask offs many of times.

What makes the REAL difference is who is doing the blasting.

I have been borrowing media blasters since I opened the shop (should finally have my own next year) so I am conscientious about not not overdoing it in sensitive areas.

If you have to give the parts to others, that’s when the worry begins.
 
I actually have a small Speedblaster sand blasting gun and it is regularly used in my restoration project as well as general small blasting needs. I think they're under $50.00 or so. It holds about a quart of sand and it unbeatable for blasting out small rust spots and hard to reach areas in body panels. If I'm working on a panel that has a moderate rust spot, I use my blaster and eradicate the black rust area until I hit the parent metal. I'll treat the blasted area with Ospho rust treatment, wash and epoxy prime. When the epoxy dries, I'll fill any pits with body filler, block and prime. If it's too bad, I cut it out and replace as needed.

This thing is great for small projects and paint removal. If your doing a project and need to restore a small part, I highly recommend it.

https://www.amazon.com/SpeedBlaster...3M/?tag=bingshoppinga-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid={creative}&hvpos={adposition}&hvnetw=o&hvrand={random}&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=e&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl={devicemodel}&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=&hvtargid=pla-4584001418455553&psc=1
 
@tlaporte did you manage to finalise this in the end? I don't know if you have it, but here is the user manual that came with mine. I haven't used the winch yet and not sure when it was last used. What would you advise checking before use?

Thomas winch operating manual p1.jpg


Thomas winch operating manual p4.jpg


Thomas winch operating manual p3.jpg


Thomas winch operating manual p2.jpg
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top Bottom