tools, techniques, shortcuts, bargains

[Liquifire 4/6]

Hey there have been no posts in this thread since 2016? Surely, somebody must have had a good idea since then? Post something if you have one!

[Liquifire 4/6]

Well, it's been awhile but I finally came up with another shop idea that works well for me. I always found it frustrating lifting sled engines out of chassis because if you want to handle them with a chain hoist, it's always difficult to find anywhere to attach the chain to. I made up a short chain with a washer welded to the last link on each end. The washer ID is just large enough for the plug to go into. I chose a washer with a small enough OD so that it will fit into the slightly recessed plug holes on many sled cylinder heads. I bent the washer slightly up an one side and welded the chain link to it. Place the washer on the plug hole and then screw the plug into the head. Make sure the plug is all the way down so that you are not stressing the plug hole threads when lifting. It works great and it is easy to balance the engine to get it sitting level. Here are some pics.

[AirborneX4Special]

Great idea Peter.
Thanks for responding to your own post....and one year later to the day....

[Liquifire 4/6]

For a speedometer with a needle that hunts all over the place, try installing a small O-ring inside the upper cable fitting before tightening it onto the speedo. It probably won't solve the irritating problem on every sled but it totally corrected the issue on my 1978 Ski-Doo Elite and also went a long way towards fixing the problem on my 78 JD Cyclone.

[bradski12]

Anyone have a solution for pesky stuck rear skid aluminum shafts? Please send me a link if you find anything. I would think this would be a viable topic for some tricks of the trade

[nick80lf]

Somewhere on here Linder has a post where he used a homemade puller. It was basically a long threaded rod and a tube. He heated the swing arm and cranked on the nut to pull the aluminum shaft into another tube.

Then there's the muriatic acid method. Basically you put about 1 inch of muriatic acid in something like a plastic wall paper pan and submerge the end with the aluminum shaft. In a few minutes the aluminum will disappear. Do this outside because the fumes are nasty.

[nick80lf]

He talks about his puller in the first few posts of this thread.

viewtopic.php?t=20279

[bradski12]

He talks about his puller in the first few posts of this thread.

viewtopic.php?t=20279

Thanks nick80lf!

I had a stubborn one in a Spitfire all corroded to hell and back. Curious of the muriatic acid method, I will look into. 10 plus years ago, before all these great parts have become available it was a problem due to "lack of shafts." No pun intended. Thanks New Breed!

If all else has failed using a hydraulic press, a slide puller or other rudimentary method, my preference over the years has been to grind a channel down the middle of the steel tube with a rotary tool (Angle grinder, Dremel, whatever you have). Taking your time, you sometimes don't necessarily need to cut all the way through into the aluminum shaft, however some are peskier than others.

But what I have found is that the heat from grinding as well as the channel that you are cutting relieves the steel just enough to be able to press or gently tap out the aluminum shaft. I'll throw a couple pictures for reference.

Then on the flip side, when repairing, use a 1/2" piece of copper pipe as your backer (Ive even used an old grounding rod that I had laying around) and seam weld it together. If you clamp the copper pipe tight enough on your cut line from the inside, it lays your weld without much grinding needed. An old body work trick for pinholes or larger holes using a penny. As always, run a sacrificial bolt all the way in before beating on and gumming up the face of the aluminum shaft.

Hope this is helpful!