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I need some words of wisdom. I have a 1949 1/2-ton chevy pickup, and I'm in the middle of a frame-off rebuild. I have basic mechanical skills, but this is my first truck, so I'm in over my head. My goal is to end up with a nice looking, mechanically sound vehicle that I can drive 3,000 miles per year. I currently have the torque tube and third member removed from the vehicle. The truck had been driven shortly before I purchased it but not after I purchased it, so I don't know anything about the condition of the equipment. The drive-train shops in town tell me they don't have experience working on 58-year old equipment. My question is this: I'd like to know what kind of condition my Okie bushing, Pinion bushing and carrier bearings/seals are in, and I'd like to replace them if necessary. Would you advise me to... 1) replace this stuff as a matter or course because it's always worn out, 2) have it checked by an out-of-town professional, 3) not worry about it and re-install the drive shaft back into the truck, or 4) try to check and diagnose the condition of the bearings/bushing myself?? Anybody know of a reputable person or shop that could handle this work in Redding or Chico, California? Sacramento is the nearest big city (3 hours). Thanks for your advice!!

Wish I could answer all of your questions but only know something about the 'Okie" assembly. That assembly is an after market item used to replace the seal and bushing at the front end of the torque tube. In my experience the only way I found out that my seal was leaking was the trans fluid would run down the tube and into the differential. It would leave the trans dry. If you are apart already I see no harm in putting in the 'Okie' assembly as it is a lot easier than doing it when the drive line is in place.
If it were me, I would put it all back and drive it then you can diagnose if anything is wrong back there. However I would still put that 'Okie' in first, can't go wrong.
Bill

Okay... more questions:

1) Is it possible to check the seal by standing the torque tube up vertically, dumping some tranny fluid in the top end, and then watching to see what comes out the bottom? If the seal leaks, I insert a new Okie, if it doesn't leak, I leave it alone??

2) Does the propeller shaft and the old bushing need to be removed before the new Okie goes in, or can the new Okie be inserted from the tranny end while the shaft remains in place? Seems like I've read lots of mixed opinions on this topic.

3) If the old bushing near the tranny is worn out, would I be able to feel "play" between the shaft and bushing? In other words, if I grab the shaft with one hand and the tube with the other, and wiggle them back and forth, will I feel a loose fit between the two?

Thanks,

Todd

1. Yes

2. No. You do have to remove the outer bushing/seal but you may leave the inner bushing in place.

3. Yes, but I do not know what is the acceptable tolerance

I agree with olBlu49 - at a minimum.

You are doing a frame-off restoration. I would recommend a rebuild using a rear-end installation kit that most vendors sell with the 3.55 ring/pinion upgrade (I'd do the ring/pinion upgrade, too, but you could just use all the new bearings, bushings, and gaskets in the installation kit).

Tim

I would go ahead and replacing everything. Why take a chance with a worn bearing or seal. You'll be way ahead of the game if you go ahead and upgrade to the 3:55 gears while your there.

Both Tim and myself followed a fellow truck owner by the name of "Sweet" by putting in all new stuff along the 3:55 gears. Tim and I are enjoying quiet sounding rear ends due to all new bearings and seals. The 3:55 gears are a nice addition and help the highway cruising speed also.

First off you are going to need a taller geer in that rear end anyway to make the Inliner's picnic down in Lodi (Sept9), so you need to junk the torque tube and find an OPEN rear end with better ratio for cruising down I-5. With the open rear end you can use an overdrive type tranny vs being stuck up there in Horsetown.
Regards
Jim

I'm not sure I understand your response to #2. I thought there were only two bushings, one at the tranny end and one at the diff end. What do you mean by inner and outer bushings?

Is this work something a first-timer can do, or should I continue to look for a professional? Any good "how to" instructions out there?

I think a first timer can do this. Just take your time, read the directions and get your self a shop manual.

Check out the tech tip section here, there is a pretty good write up about the procedures regarding the 3:55 gear swap.

And for some nice photos of the step by step check out Sweet's webshots page which also shows some great photos of the bearings and bushings;

http://entertainment.webshots.com/album/554887855oSaqDX

There are two bushings at the tranny end and one at the rear end. The outermost bushing at the tranny end can be left in place and driven down into the tube with the Okie. I took mine out completely and was glad I did because the brass part of the bushing had come apart and was down inside the tube and may have caused some damage if I had left it in. There is a special tool for removing the outer bushing but most of the time the vendors can't get it. I documented some of the bushing removal and reinstallation in my webshots album. You can do it if you take your time and read up on what others have done. Get yourself a good service manual. The tranny section has a diagram that shows all of the components.

http://community.webshots.com/user/geezer

As TrknGMC stated, these 3:55 gear installations are not as hard as they appear. You need to be able to follow the directions with GREAT DETAIL.

If you plan to keep your truck for any period of time, I recommend installing the 3:55 gears. I installed mine and TrknGMC's this past winter and then we drove to Macungie at 70-75 mph. The truck was happy as a clam can could have done that all day long.

If you are hesitant on doing the work yourself, I know Patrick's will do the swap if you send them the third member. Or heck I may be interested in doing it myself.

Excuse my ignorance but what is an Okie? I know I've seen one just didn't know what it was called.
Oh, an Okie is a bolter from Oklahoma

Alvin -

An "okie" bushing is a combination seal and bushing that goes in the front end of a torque tube. It is a much longer seal and bushing than the stock one found in the Chevrolet torque tubes and because of that is much better. It has a combination of seals made into it to assure that the transmission fluid WILL NOT leak past it, out of the transmission and down the torque tube to the rear axle housing. The bushing is also longer. It's one of those things that someone came up with that is actually better than the stock style.

They are not made in Oklahoma and I have no idea why they are called "okie" :confused: bushings.

Joe

"okie" refers to the poor farmers (Oklahoma farmers) that had to leave their farms during the dust bowl. They migrated to CA (as depicted in "The Grapes or Wrath"). Obviously, they were dirt poor - an "okie" bushing described a poor man's fix of a worn out bushing.

Okay, I think I'll give it a try! I found a diagram in the shop manual and I reviewed Geezer's web pics. If I understand this process correctly, the new Oakie will push the front bushing toward the back. Once the new Oakie is in place, there will be 3 bushings near the tranny: the new Oakie will be in front, the original front bushing will be in the middle, and the rear bushing and seal will remain in back.

Alternatively, I could remove the front bushing, as Geezer did, and then install the Oakie. This would leave me with just two bushings in the tube. In either case, the original seal remains in place, and a new seal "moves forward" behind the Oakie. Is this correct??

Todd

On the two trucks I have done the 'okie' repair on , the front bush HAD to be removed first , the okie was too long to allow for all the original and repair parts to fit together.
On the '37 even with the original front bush removed and the okie bottomed out on the original seal , there was still 1/8" of new bush protruding from the torque tube (possibly a machining error) but it was ok like that.
You cannot drive the bushings right down the shaft , there is a lip that they bottom onto.

did you find the dowel pin that locks the front outer bushing in place?
I removed that and drove a pin punch in , at an angle to get the removal of the bushing started , then grabbed the protruding bush with the vice grips to get it out.
You need to stone the sharp edges off the splines to prevent cuts to the new seal lip before getting a tool or block of hardwood and driving in the new okie.
I put a little loktite 620 around the outer dia of the okie to seal it and retain it , I wasn't sure at that stage how successful my reinstallation of the locking dowel would be , as it turned out, I made a new dowel and peened it in, so it was fine.

I would recommend removing the tranny front bushing and seal simply because it CAN be done (with some effort) and allows you to look down the tube to the rear bushing near the tranny (not the one at the rear end). As I mentioned, my original bushing had come apart and I really didn't want crap rotating around in there as it would have probably cut into the new seal. As Dusty said, look for the dowel pin on top of the tube. You'll have to get the tube really clean to find it. In some instances, I have heard from others that they have no pin. I think on the '49's though, the pin is mostly always there.

Ok, thanks guys. Stay tuned. I'll probably be hollering for help before long.

Piece of cake! I drilled out the dowel pin, pushed the original bushing out the front, filed sharp edges off the drive shaft splines to prevent cutting the new seal, cleaned-up the inside front end of the torque tube, and tapped in the new Okie Bushing. No problems. The whole job took 2 or 3 hours.

I still need to replace the dowel pin, but I'm not sure what to use. Can I tap it and thread in a set screw, or hammer in a short piece of all-thread, or.... what???

I would think it's too late for tapping as the okie is now in place and you probably couldn't get down into the hole far enough to make good threads. I would just get a piece of soft steel that is mallable and a bit larger than the hole from the old dowel pin, cut it to length and drive it into the hole. You probably should drill a small, shallow dimple in the okie bushing through the hole before you insert the dowel pin. That way, the dowel will secure the tube and okie together. Put on some Permatex sealer on it and once inserted, peen the edges over of the dowel onto the tube so it won't wiggle out.

There is a bushing assembly that was made in Oklahoma and it could be the reason for the name Oakie bushing. I bought an old part that says it is a K-400 Propeller Shaft Housing Repair Unit for Chevrolet 37-50 Passenger Cars and Pickups and 29-40 1-1/2 ton trucks. It is a one piece assembly. Machine steel tube with front and rear brass bushings inside and a seal at the rear bushing. Rough measurements are 5.8" long, 1.73" OD and 1.34" ID front, 1.70" OD and 1.06" ID rear. Printed on the box is National Machine Works Inc., 1800S Broadway P.O. Box 4306 Oklahoma City 9, Okla.

bouymaker,

You are correct, the repair bushing was invented by a man in OK and he had to protect his patented bushing. He had to go to court to protect his popular, money-saving bushing.

This is a 2007 thread - here is a more recent 2014 discussion on Okie bushings.

There were four different sizes/styles of these bushings.

Thanks for the link. That explains a lot. My Oakie bushing has a leather oil seal with stamping M-101 and National Mach WKS INC. Looks like 1.5" OD and will probably be replaceable with a modern part unlike my GM original oil seal which was a Chicago Rawhide (CR) 10647.
My idea is to cut the Oakie bushing and use the part removed as a seal holder. I'm afraid if I ever install a complete press fit Oakie bushing it will never drive out again and I want to have this capability. I have a 54 Hydramatic torque tube and the new seal will have to keep transmission fluid and oil from the rear axle from combining. The original GM seal has worn the torque tube shaft enough to be a problem for sealing. The new seal will be in a different position and hopefully will seal better.