absolutely pointless rant

[mikehaugen]

sorry to hear it.

[mjncad]

so he welded, we drilled, and we tapped. i paid him $50, and he left. i bolted the a-arm up, applied torque, and shook my head as the threads stripped out. and thus does a vehicle die.

Sorry to hear the effort was in vain. Please tell me that you aren't going to hold a candlelight vigil for your Pathfinder like the tofu-warriors in Boulder did for the elk the two dumba$$ cops poached.

[tcartwri]

It's always a tough decision when a vehicle gets to this age and is virtually worthless. Spending your time, money and mental energy on something that may break a few days / months later is always the million dollar question.

[mjncad]

One last thought before you scrap the old girl. Have you looked into Time-serts? They're similar to Heli-coils; but a couple of my buddies say they work much better.

++ TIME-SERT Threaded inserts for stripped threads, threaded inserts, thread repair stripped sparkplug's, Ford sparkplug blowouts, threaded inserts threaded, repair stripped threads, stripped threads, inserts threaded inserts, Ford spark plug repair,

[bcp]

Never give up!
------------------


You can use it without a front suspension.



More photos at:
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/248398...an-pathfinder/

================================================

Or put in a solid front axle.

http://www.4wdandsportutility.com/te.../photo_14.html

[dhagood]

Have you looked into Time-serts?

yes, i have looked into time-serts to fix this problem. i bought the M14x1.5 kit, drilled out the hole, counterbored said hole, and messed up tapping the oversized hole in order to install the insert such that i broke the tap in the hole during the threading process.

but i just realized i could buy another over-size tap to replace the one i broke and try to time-sert it again. the hole was tig welded, tapped, and the threads stripped, so i'm back to trying to fix a stripped out M14 hole. if it doesn't work, i'm no worse off than i am now.

thanks dude

[dhagood]

so i ordered the new m14-1.5 tap from time-sert (it's not really a m14-1.5 tap, it's an over size tap that cuts threads for the insert. the interior threads on the insert are m14-1.5) and cooled my heels waiting for it to show up. while i waited, i noticed that the welder did not weld all the area inside the stripped out nut, so there were gaps in the new threads towards the inside of the nut. these gaps persisted after i drilled out the hole for the insert. after scratching my head for a bit, i busted out the jb weld and gooped up the gaps. i did this a couple of times, let it harden for 24 hours, and then re-drilled the hole. the new tap arrived, and i carefully (carefully!) tapped the oversize hole and installed the insert. i made sure i had new bolts, installed the a-arm, torqued up the bolts.....

and it held. so, is it fixed? dunno. i'm going to finish the rest of the repairs i started and then go bash that wheel against the curb leading up to my driveway several times. if it is still holding after i abuse it a bit, i'll have the front end aligned and we'll see what happens. it might last 20 minutes, and it might last 20 years.

if it doesn't last, i have another idea. i'll remove the current m14 insert and get an m16-1.5 time-sert kit and install the insert. then i'll get a machinist to take a m16-1.5 bolt and turn a section down to m14-1.5 and install my custom stud using thread locking compound in the frame.

perseverance uber alles!

[dhagood]

still holding after jumping over our driveway curb, so i'll have it aligned tomorrow.

[mjncad]

Cool! I'm glad to hear the Time-sert worked! I'll bet tapping that 14mm hole gave you a decent workout, especially in such an awkward place.

[mojoinco]

Take a look at MSC-direct. They are on the I-70 frontage road, Stapleton area. Presuming you still need a solution. I had something similar on my tractor loader frame. Ended up on a similar path of greater awareness. A mobile welder had me get some grade 5 coupling nuts (sourcing these is how I came to find MSC). MSC delivered to my door (none were in stock): ordered Friday at 5pm, at my house on Monday. Keep in mind for the future. He hogged the (blind) holes out, rounded the nuts, then welded them in place. Obviously a slightly different solution, but you could do something similar with SAE bolts (yeah, you might find metric ones, but keep the hardening in mind). Another source: AAA Metric off of I-25.

Oh, and if you ever have to change the slip in 1/2 shaft on this truck, you must pull it absolutely straight out (no angle) to get it to pop out.

Hope you fixed it for good. This would be a good choice as a snow plow rig for your new place. You wouldn't be out anything.