Apologies to my knuckles

D

douglas smith

New member
Jan 14, 1999
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With apologies to all those who will say, dammit, just read the manual, I have to admit I have 40 to 50K miles on my front knuckles without looking to
them. So, apologies to those of you with better maintenance habits. My bad. I have had no problems of any kind, and when I stop for gas I always put a
hand on the front hubs checking for high temps. No extra heat, no bad episodes but I know I'm running on borrowed time. Unfortunately I've just spent
more than my yearly budget for alloy wheels and new tires so I must wait a year before I go all in with Mr Lenzi. Please beat me up with good advice
on what I should do to encourage a trouble free summer.

Doug "how could you" Smith
--
Douglas & Virginia Smith
dsmithy18 at gmail
Lincoln Nebraska
’73 “Canyonlands” since ‘95: "Wanabizo";
Quadrabag/6 wheel disks/3:70 final/Paterson QuadraJet/Thorley’s/Alloy wheels(finally!)/Sundry other
 
Doug,

Jack up each front wheel and check for bearing looseness by gripping the
top and bottom of the tire and trying to rock it. If there's none, just
keep on keepin' on. If it rocks back & forth noticeably, you'd better find
a way to service them before a long trip.

JWID,

Ken H.

On Tue, Feb 2, 2021 at 12:45 AM Douglas Smith via Gmclist <

> With apologies to all those who will say, dammit, just read the manual, I
> have to admit I have 40 to 50K miles on my front knuckles without looking to
> them. So, apologies to those of you with better maintenance habits. My
> bad. I have had no problems of any kind, and when I stop for gas I always
> put a
> hand on the front hubs checking for high temps. No extra heat, no bad
> episodes but I know I'm running on borrowed time. Unfortunately I've just
> spent
> more than my yearly budget for alloy wheels and new tires so I must wait a
> year before I go all in with Mr Lenzi. Please beat me up with good advice
> on what I should do to encourage a trouble free summer.
>
> Doug "how could you" Smith
> --
> Douglas & Virginia Smith
> dsmithy18 at gmail
> Lincoln Nebraska
> ’73 “Canyonlands” since ‘95: "Wanabizo";
> Quadrabag/6 wheel disks/3:70 final/Paterson QuadraJet/Thorley’s/Alloy
> wheels(finally!)/Sundry other
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
>
 
Thanks for the response Ken.
Since my coach is still on blocks from its fall fuel line work I went right out to the storage yard and performed your test. No movement at all which
makes me happy. I just thought that the front knuckles, especially on a '73 were one of the few exceptions to the "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."
adage.
--
Douglas & Virginia Smith
dsmithy18 at gmail
Lincoln Nebraska
’73 “Canyonlands” since ‘95: "Wanabizo";
Quadrabag/6 wheel disks/3:70 final/Paterson QuadraJet/Thorley’s/Alloy wheels(finally!)/Sundry other
 
> Thanks for the response Ken.
> Since my coach is still on blocks from its fall fuel line work I went right out to the storage yard and performed your test. No movement at all
> which makes me happy. I just thought that the front knuckles, especially on a '73 were one of the few exceptions to the "If it ain't broke, don't
> fix it." adage.

Douglas,

It isn't the knuckles, as far as I know there was never a change to those by GM. Dave Lenzi's update is just to make the bearing fit be like the
published (for decades) best practices and then include a means to re-lubricate the bearings without tearing the knuckle apart.

The lower control arms are a very different story. The was a recommended reinforcement of the original lower arms. If you cannot tell at least that
much was done, get some pictures to send to people that will know. Then, there were more updates to those parts later. You really want to pay
attention to this.

I have no idea where your coach is in the life cycle, but it someone can't assure you that your lower control arms as up to date as practical, order a
set that have been. Doing the R&R because the torsion bars have to be unloaded and reloaded. It is worth doing. Mine failed at about 170k and at
highway speed. It was fortunate that the damage was not as bad it might have been.

Matt

--
Matt & Mary Colie - Chaumière -'73 Glacier 23 - Members GMCMI, GMCGL, GMCES
Electronically Controlled Quiet Engine Cooling Fan with OE Rear Drum Brakes with Applied Control Arms
SE Michigan - Near DTW - Twixt A2 and Detroit
 
Yikes!
I do seem to recall you had an incident that hit the forum.
As for pictures, what angle or view? Straight up from the ground, from the top with the wheel off, front or back. No time like the present.
Doug
--
Douglas & Virginia Smith
dsmithy18 at gmail
Lincoln Nebraska
’73 “Canyonlands” since ‘95: "Wanabizo";
Quadrabag/6 wheel disks/3:70 final/Paterson QuadraJet/Thorley’s/Alloy wheels(finally!)/Sundry other
 
Doug,
If I were you, as much as I would hate doing this, I’d borrow the money and put the Lenzi knuckles in. You could take them apart, regrease and put
them back together, but that very action, does damage to the bore of the knuckle. You may find when you put them back together (as I did) that the
races no longer have a friction fit which is necessary to keep the races from spinning in the knuckle. Then unless you have the proper tools to
disassemble/reassemble, purchasing or borrowing them will be necessary. The Lenzi knuckles, once in place will never have to come apart again, or at
least not in your lifetime. They are not maintenance free, as every 25K miles or so, you will have to pull the wheels, back the axle nut off most of
the way, slide the axle in, and apply grease to the zirk until you see fresh grease ooze out of the seal area. Then tighten axle nut and put wheel
back on. Having not looked at them in 40-50K miles, you “might” be ok for another year, but if not, the damage done, and time on the side of the
road or at a repair facility where you have limited control over the repairs will cost you a lot more than the interest money of the loan. IMO bite
the bullet and do it. If nothing else, get your new knuckles, and come up here to my place and we can do it together in my driveway. Schedule a date
when there is a good show coming on at the Mabel. ( In warmer weather of coarse). Anyway, IMHO you’ve pushed your luck far enough.
--
Larry
78 Royale w/500 Caddy
Menomonie, WI.
 
Lots to think about Larry and Matt.
$1K for refurbished lower control arms.
$1.5K for refurbished knuckles.
or
$2300 for one ton front end.
And this on an original engine with 160K on it.

The economics of my coach are starting to be a problem.
--
Douglas & Virginia Smith
dsmithy18 at gmail
Lincoln Nebraska
’73 “Canyonlands” since ‘95: "Wanabizo";
Quadrabag/6 wheel disks/3:70 final/Paterson QuadraJet/Thorley’s/Alloy wheels(finally!)/Sundry other
 
> Lots to think about Larry and Matt.
> $1K for refurbished lower control arms.
> $1.5K for refurbished knuckles.
> or
> $2300 for one ton front end.
> And this on an original engine with 160K on it.
>
> The economics of my coach are starting to be a problem.

Ya...wow. I hear ya. Sorry if my last response seemed insensitive...not intended. What can I do to help?

--
Larry
78 Royale w/500 Caddy
Menomonie, WI.
 
You've done quite enough for me Larry. I've already applied for several stars on your sainthood application.
The deal is this.
I'm completely comfortable going down the road in a nearly 50 year old vehicle, so long as I am somewhat assured that safety has not been compromised.
Therefore nearly every dollar spent on our coach over the last 25 years has been safety related. Brakes, rear suspension, shocks, fuel lines, brake
lines, timing chain, etc. The ion's are just about the first cosmetic change I've made and they are arguably safety related as well. So when Matt
reminds me of his control arm trouble, it's clear that the factory notice on reinforcing the '73 control arms was the result of real world problems,
not simply a good idea. And yet, the whole "annual budget" for the coach has its limits for all the normal reasons. But I'm looking forward to a badly
needed 2K mile summer of fun in the coach, and I just acquired a safety related conundrum. Heavy Sigh.
--
Douglas & Virginia Smith
dsmithy18 at gmail
Lincoln Nebraska
’73 “Canyonlands” since ‘95: "Wanabizo";
Quadrabag/6 wheel disks/3:70 final/Paterson QuadraJet/Thorley’s/Alloy wheels(finally!)/Sundry other
 
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