bearing inner race removal

[ted johnson]

I managed to get my new bearing separator in last night and proceded to mount the KL-100 crankshaft in padding in the vise. I applied a little Liquid Wrench and began tightening the nuts. It felt as though things were coming loose, when, with a loud pop, the outer race broke into several pieces and most of the balls fell out. After prying the cage off, and looking it over, I realized I'm out of my depth. The inner race is firmly against the shaft shoulder, and the shoulder is the same diameter as the race. There's no way to get behind it. Has any one of our machinist-minded gurus got a way to remove it? Can it be ground off with an O.D. grinder? Can someone weld puller-ears onto the race without ruining the shaft straightness? If I can't get it off, the project is at an end, unless I can find a good crankshaft. It would be a shame, as I've solved the adaptation of the IAME reed and HR/Mikuni carb, and I've found all the needed bearings. Thanks in advance! Ted

[Rob Voska]

Ted Call me. 567.201.8080 It will be to long to type. There are 2-3 ways to do it.

[Tom Luttenbacher]

Ted if you are a good hand with a welder use it to make a quick bead around the inside of the race. It doesn't need to be pretty either. The race will be shrunk and will come out with ease. TL

[ted johnson]

Thanks, Tom. Thanks to you and Rob, I have several options to try. This crank is WAY too rare to lose! I've CAD modeled all the gaskets, and will get some waterjet cut, and Dave B. will bore the outside of the case for a proper oil seal. Should make a good engine after all. Will try U.S. Chrome in Fond Du Lac to Nickasil the bore. With a fresh bore and all new bearings, seals, ring and gaskets it should be better than new. TJ

[steveohara]

Ted,

I use a Dremmel Tool with the bit that holds a 1" diameter by .040" thick abrasive wheel to cut a slot across the inner race parallel to the centerline of the crank. I do not try to go all the way through the inner race as I don't want to touch the crank. The inner bearing race has a lot of natural inner tension so it will break easily once you create the slot through most of the material. A little help can be added with a sharp chisle and a light tap with a hammer to spread the part at the point of the slot. Works every time.
Steve O'Hara

[ted johnson]

Thanks, Steve! Rob also suggested that trick, and I'd thought of it too. The outer face of the rod throw web on the crank is machined flat rather than having a tapered cast surface like a Mac, and the boss against which the bearing sits is only .030-.040 thick. This means that I can only get to a small portion of the outboard side of the race without the cutoff wheel hitting the web of the crank. Still, I keep a bunch of the cutoff wheels on hand, and I will try it. I agree that the race must be under a lot of stress from fabrication, so it may just split once I grind partially through it, and help it along with the chisel. I ground a couple of flats with the grinder last night, and was going to heat the race with the propane torch and apply a twist with Vise Grips. Whoops, out of propane! I will get a cylinder and give that a whirl this weekend. Also, my safety goggles are so pitted from years of grinding sparks that I can hardly see thru them! Will buy a new pair today. That sucka is goin' DOWN! I've gotten all the bearings and seals in to renew the beast, and will pirate the single ring from a NOS Wiseco 610 piston I have. Thanks again, guys! Ted

[ted johnson]

Well, I've tried heating the race and grabbing it with Vise Grips, and I've notched it on opposite sides almost to the crank and as close to the throw as I dare with a cutoff wheel in the Dremel. I've put a chisel in the vise and placed the notch on the chisel point while whacking the opposite side of the race with a ball pein. I will try one last time freezing the crank overnight and heating the race with the propane torch. That's my last try. I'll take the da** thing to the machine shop next Friday to see if the machinist has any ideas. Maybe if he O.D. grinds the race to within a couple thousandths of the journal I can get it off. It's been a challenge, but so far the crank's winning! Thanks for all the help! I'll keep looking for another KL-100 crank, but they're scarcer than chicken lips . TJ

[George Sellon]

Hi Ted, sounds like your having a great "vintage" experience with that bearing race. If your not already, try using a Propylene (yellow bottle) fuel rather than Propane. It only burns about 150 degrees hotter than Propane but it heats just a bit quicker and might be just enough to get-r-done. It sounds like a corrosion issue as much as anything, good luck.
BTW, ran into Charlie at Brodhead but didn't have a chance to talk much. I'm not going to make TBO this year so maybe I'll see you next year.



George

[ted johnson]

Hi, George. I'm sorry you won't be at Fremont, but I'm glad you and C.W. met at Brodhead! I got lucky with the bearing race. I took it out of the freezer after overnight in the cold, and headed it pretty hot. Got it to turn on the shaft, but it wouldn't budge endwise. I finally got mad and clamped the race in the vise by the flats I'd ground, put the chisel into one of the notches I'd ground at 180 degrees apart and whopped it 3 or 4 times with the ball pein. It finally split and came off. It wasn't corroded or galled, just tighter'n'heck ! I will take the new bearing and the crank to the machinist Friday and have the inner race fit to the shaft. Thanks to everyone who helped me with the doggone thing! Ted

[George Sellon]

I knew you'd get it. Sometimes you just have to get mad and a BFH