The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Driveline Okie Bushing Installation

I have a 1946 Chevy Pickup and I have removed the front seal from the torque tube. It came out relatively easily. I am having trouble installing the "Okie" bushing. It will go in over the seal and stops around 2 inches in. I have tried using a 3 pound hammer and a block of wood but it will not go in any further. I have NOT hit it really hard yet but I gave it some pretty good whacks.

It is hard to see down the tube but I think that the bushing is hanging up on what look like threads on the bushing.

Help! Anyone that has a tip or guess, Please reply.
Gary

". . . It will go in over the seal . . "

What seal?

The old seal either gets removed or gets pushed backwards, before installing the new Okie Bushing.

The new Okie bushing is both a bushing and a seal.

If I am wrong, we will hear about it, soon.

Jim Carter Okie Bushing Installation

I guess that I was not very clear. The seal in the Okie bushing goes over the prop shaft very snugly and seems good but then the bushing gets hung up when it s about 2 inches into the torque tube. It seems like there is a score on the inside of the tube where the original bushing was. Maybe it spun. ???? The threaded looking part of the Okie seems to hang up there.

I was able to get a 1 1/2" pipe in the tube and it went nn a good 8 inches or so. I don't think that the second, original, bushing is in the way.

Two different sizes of Okie Bushings?

I bought this from chevs of the 40s and they say it's the one for my truck. It does have a 1953 235 cubic inch motor in it. But, I thought the drivetrain was original
Does anyone know the sizes of the different Okie bushings?

It looks like the outer diameters of the Okie Bushings are:

1937-1939 = ?

Chevs of the 40s

1940-1950 = 1.728" OD bushing side
1940-1950 = 1.715" OD seal side

1951-1954 = 1.755 OD seal side
1951-1954 = 1.762 OD other side
(are these listed "backwards", incorrectly?)

https://www.chevsofthe40s.com/images_media/instructions/INS_027.pdf

Classic Parts:

1940-1950
1 3/4 outside diameter
1 3/8 inside diameter
5 3/4 in length

1951-1954
1 11/32 inside diameter 5 3/4 in length

Jim Carter states: "No need to remove drive shaft or disassemble differential. Just drive in this new assembly after removing the old front bushing and seal. The secondary rear original bushing and seal will be pushed further back on the drive shaft and no longer used. "

Does that just serve to further confuse?
Jim Carter Okie Bushing Installation

Yes, Confused. Here is a picture of the original bushing that I removed.

So the question is, how does that compare to the outside diameter of the Oakie bushing?

You're in luck.
After a little digging on SB forums I found the below.
The 1946 truck torque tube bushings Outside Dimensions O.D.
1.720 front O.D.
1.685 rear O.D.

It took me awhile to figure out that the reason why the front bushing Outside Dimension is larger than the rear bushing.
Its because when you insert the rear bushing it expands the torque tube wall outward making its I.D. larger.
So in order for the front bushing to fit snugly they had to slightly increase the front bushings Outside Dimension.
This is more important on late 1950 press fit non-doweled torque tube bushings.

Did you see any dowel pins.? Picture
All torque tube bushings were slip fit and doweled from early 1950 back.

Master Parts catalog bushing page just shows bushing I.D. on some years.

There are variations in torque tube I.D dimensions Okie Bushing instructions

Some people have frozen the okie bushing before inserting it into the torque tube.

This POST has some more images and info.

I got it installed!
It looks like I was not the first person in here. Not surprising for a 72 year old truck. I did freeze the bushing but it still would not go in. It looks like there is a sleeve in the tube( ???Not sure what it is???) and the seal that is in there is 6 inches down the tube.

I filed down the thread like area of the Okie until I could get it in. I must have tried 5 or 6 times until it went in snugly. Then I beat the snot out of it with a 3 pound hammer and a piece of hardwood for the bushing end of the Okie went inside the torque tube.
Now I'm going to de-grease the cross member and some other parts and give everything a good coat of paint before putting it all back together.
If the weather holds up, I will make the 100 mile trip to a car show on the boardwalk next weekend in Sea Isle City NJ. It's a long trip in this old farm truck!!

Thanks to all!!
I learned a lot
Gary

That is good to hear.
By the looks of the 2nd photo the front bushing may have been spinning inside the torque tube at one time..
The spinning bushing created a lip on the inside of the torque tube.
That is what I see by looking at the photo, in person there might be a sleeve.
Then again that lip about a inch in from the end of the torque tube may be because in order to make the front bushing fit.
They had to hone/bore out the metal which created the lip.

One note you should squirt some gear lube down the Okie bushing so the rear bushing
that the propeller shaft rides on doesn't run dry on the first test drive..
It takes awhile for the tranny to funnel gear lube past the main output shaft rear bearing into the ball housing area & then to the torque tube bushings.
Run the truck for a couple miles then check tranny fluid again, keep checking until the fluid level doesn't go down any more.
To speed up the funneling of the gear lube, drive up a very steep hill road.
Check attached: Driveline fluid level

More on engine & trans. pitch HERE

xfiles

Thanks for advise on the gear oil and the bushing. I filled the tranny and then added some more in through a plug near the speedometer cable . That was a tip that I got on this great forum.
I made it the to jersey shore yesterday as planned and the truck ran great! Not fast but running well. I did come up 1/2 quart of oil short after 100 mile. I looks like it's coming out of the blowby tube. Maybe some from the rear main seal too.
That's a project for later.
Fishing, boating, drinks with friends, and the car show this weekend!!

!!!! Happy Fathers Day to all !!!!