Slimline swingarm removal

I would be reluctant to force the frame apart. Is there room to get a hacksaw blade in between the swinging arm and the frame to cut through the spindle? If not, cut the spindle flush with the outside of the frame then drill it out. Getting the remains of s seized spindle out of a swinging arm can require a 20 ton press.

The problem is really that the metalastic bushes were intended to last the design life of the bike - 10 to 12 years. We are continuing to use them long after they were meant to be scrapped and replaced by something more up to date. Hence the fun and games when it comes to replacing the wretched bushes. One elderly gentleman who was a Rudge design engineer on seeing a beautifully restored example was heard to say that if he had any idea they were going to last that long he would have specified cheaper materials.

Previously wrote:

I know that this is an old chestnut, but my case seems to be more severe than usual.

I can't get the spindle to move a millimetre longitudinally, even with a seven pound lump hammer. As I am going to have the frame & swingarm restoved, I don't mind heating the assembly up, but as far as I can see it won't solve the problem even if I get as far as completely vapourising the rubber. Haynes recommend returning it (presumably the frame and swingarm) to Norton Villiers when you get this problem, which isn't too helpful.

I am considering cutting off the exposed thread at each end with a disk cutter, and then using a jack to open up the frame enough to allow the arm to be extracted. Are there any alternatives?

Steve

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Steve. I have just had the same problem with my slimline swinging arm. A previous owner had welded the spindle nut onto the frame, the swinging arm spindle and metalistics were locked solid. Do not force the frame apart. I used a very slim cutting disc and cut the spindle between the swinging arm and the frame. No problem getting such a disc in there and it cut through easily.The swinging arm dropped out . I put a blow torch to the metalistics to try and burn them out - resulting in molten rubber spitting all over the place. They still did not budge. I put a heavy duty press on the spindle which eventually came out leaving the metalistic bushes stuck on the inside of the swinging arm - seized solid after lying in a barn for 30 years. I then got a cutting tool in a pillar drill and carefully cut away the inside of the bushes sufficient to weaken them and prize them out with a chisel. No damage was done to the inside of the swinging arm and new bushes have been fitted.The welded spindle nut was carefully taken off with a grinder - again no damage done.Hope this helps,Cheers Mick

Previously wrote:

I know that this is an old chestnut, but my case seems to be more severe than usual.

I can't get the spindle to move a millimetre longitudinally, even with a seven pound lump hammer. As I am going to have the frame & swingarm restoved, I don't mind heating the assembly up, but as far as I can see it won't solve the problem even if I get as far as completely vapourising the rubber. Haynes recommend returning it (presumably the frame and swingarm) to Norton Villiers when you get this problem, which isn't too helpful.

I am considering cutting off the exposed thread at each end with a disk cutter, and then using a jack to open up the frame enough to allow the arm to be extracted. Are there any alternatives?

Steve

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Steve. I have just had the same problem with my slimline swinging arm. A previous owner had welded the spindle nut onto the frame, the swinging arm spindle and metalistics were locked solid. Do not force the frame apart. I used a very slim cutting disc and cut the spindle between the swinging arm and the frame. No problem getting such a disc in there and it cut through easily.The swinging arm dropped out . I put a blow torch to the metalistics to try and burn them out - resulting in molten rubber spitting all over the place. They still did not budge. I put a heavy duty press on the spindle which eventually came out leaving the metalistic bushes stuck on the inside of the swinging arm - seized solid after lying in a barn for 30 years. I then got a cutting tool in a pillar drill and carefully cut away the inside of the bushes sufficient to weaken them and prize them out with a chisel. No damage was done to the inside of the swinging arm and new bushes have been fitted.The welded spindle nut was carefully taken off with a grinder - again no damage done.Hope this helps,Cheers Mick

I left mine in when I hadthe swinging armrestoved - the heat isn't enough to cause damage. I have often wondered how they were supposed to work though. I am more familiar with "Metalastic" items on cars, having worked on them more than bikes. The way they SHOULD work is that the S/A should freely rotate on the axle/spindle around its central bush. Even when I bought my bike when it was 6 years old, this didn't seem to be the case. The central bush was a tight fit on the spindle and seemed to move with it. These types of bushes are supposed to absorb shocks from the road, not restrict rotation and in any case rubber is prone to shear when bonded to two concentric bushing surfaces and rotating just one bush.

Having no discernible play in the s/a, I decided NOT to go down the tortuous route of trying to remove the old bushes, having read horror stories like these! I DID tap them a bit with a sleeve drift just to get the feel. I would ALWAYS recommend a hydraulic press for removing anything like that. Find a friendly garage/workshop. I have one - his name is Norman White! (Not that I bothered him with the s/a bushes.)

Cheers, Lionel

I found that leaving the bushes in a freezer overnight and warming the swinging arm made the job easy.

This method is widely used for fitting roller and ball bearings to engines and gearboxes, but higher temperatures are used for castings