The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Driveline Insufficient tie rod end torque?

I just finished installing the modern tie rod and tie rod end upgrade on my '56 3200 series half ton. The Tech Tips section made it simple (note that I did not say easy!!!). Removing those old ball ends was serious work, but thankfully I found an old school machinist nearby who pressed them out for me. The rest of the install went easily, but I have one concern that I need to address before I risk going for a drive. There is not a lot of info on the torque settings for the tie rod ends, where they go into the steering arms. I tightened them down, and with a small wrench I was able to easily bring them to the point where any more tightening will leave the hole for the cotter pin outside of the castellations of the castle nut (I hope "castellations" is a real word, I am referring to the bumpy top of the castle nut that the cotter pin uses to prevent the nut from spinning). If I tighten any more (which is easy) the cotter pin will be beyond those bumps and the castle nut could spin, until it reached the cotter pin. This strikes me as too gentle a torque setting for a steering part. If I had a recommended torque setting, I could put a washer or two under the castle nut to allow me to tighten things down a little more. Some words of wisdom would be appreciated, as I won't drive that thing until I know its safe.

Interesting issue.

I have not seen washers used in this location before. I wonder if you have been supplied incorrect castle nuts .

Are you able to source some longer ones ?

The castle nuts came with the tie rod ends in a sealed box, and the shop that sells these specializes in old Chevy parts and servicing antique Chevy trucks. While I may be able to get longer castle nuts, is there any real difference between a longer nut and a shorter nut/washer combination?

I, too, am curious about proper tie rod end torque.

A common torque setting for a tie rod end to forged iron steering arm is around 40-45 ft/lbs, aluminum arms are usually a bit lower. I see no problem with using washers in this application, it's not uncommon to see them on late model vehicles. particularly if they have aluminum arms. It does make we wonder about the manufacture, though. Either the nut is wrong, or the cotter pin hole was drilled in the wrong spot.

Use a "SAE" flat washer between the nut and the steering arm, one that is smaller outside diameter and a closer fit to the threads than the usual hardware store type. DO NOT use a split lock washer. Some tie rod ends have more than one cotter pin hole drilled across the thread at 90 degee angles to each other, giving the castle nut a variety of positions to choose from when installing a cotter pin. A cotter pin is not a suitable substitute for a properly-tightened nut!
Jerry.

I installed the modern tierod ends in my 55.2 and used a washer under the castle nut as Hotrod describes. I believe that it was required to makeup for the amount I removed from the steering arms swage to be able to remove the ball stud. It was a thicker than normal washer with a inner diameter that just fit the ball stud, got them from Ace hdwe. There's a pic in the link below

The light grinding that I had to do in order to expose the shaft of the ball stud makes perfect sense. While I tried to avoid grinding the actual arm, I can imagine that it does not take a whole lot to change where that castle nut should sit. I should have thought of that while installing the tie rod ends. I will be grabbing a couple of proper washers today. As always, problem solved thanks to the help I received here!