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Posted By: dfd37chev 1953 Chevy 3100 - 05/16/23 10:49 PM
Hello Everyone,
I thought I would place this here.

I am working on a friends 1953 Chevy 3100 pick up truck. We removed the torque tube to replace gaskets and axle seals along with replacing the impeller bushing at the front of the torque tube. A new "Okie" bushing was purchased and the old, one inch bushing was removed.
The "Okie" bushing will only go one inch into the tube and then it stops .... dead. It will not go in any further. We even tried placing it into a freezer over night thinking maybe it would shrink enough to slip in. I did measure the outside diameter of both the old and new and they are damn near identical.
It appears to stop where the splines start, now that I type this, this is a measurement I have not checked.
has anyone ever run into this problem ?? Does anyone have an original bushing if this doesn't work ?
I am not sure if this is the original torque tube as the gear ratio is 3:54-1, which I have been told is not stock, 4:11-1 would be. Is there any I.D. numbers on the torque tube that might help?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Posted By: Rusty 37 Master Re: 1953 Chevy 3100 - 05/23/23 04:33 PM
If that is a 3.54 (probably actually a 3.55) rear axle it is probably one of the aftermarket gear sets. I do not think the PowerGlide car gear set will fit a truck rear axle.

One question is whether the manual transmission drive shaft seated correctly on the new pinion input shaft.

My quick review of the 1954 Master Parts List indicates that the front bushing for "51_'54 1/2 ton is different than a car. I wonder if you got the correct Oakie.
Posted By: dfd37chev Re: 1953 Chevy 3100 - 05/24/23 10:56 PM
Hello Rusty,

What I discovered is the torque tube was machined for the original bushing, if I remember correctly was 1.6" long, which matched the size of the machined end of the Okie. Beyond that it was rough machined down to an internal seal.
The Okie bushing was purchased for '51-'54 Chevy 1/2 ton Pick Up Truck.
If you look at the picture in Chevs of the 40s, ( my picture is too big and I'm not sure how to down size it ) you will see a raised rib section. This end has the seal installed and is the part of the Okie that goes into the torque tube first.
The problem stems from the rough machining that left similar "ribs", although much higher and broader, in the tube. I took the Okie to work and asked the machinist if he could take a 1/2 thousandth of material off as a start as I wanted to sneak up on the fit. He measured it and recorded 1.756 diameter. Placed the Okie in the lathe and with 80 grit sand paper he said he was able to knock down the sharp peaks, the next measurement was 1.750.
I could feel it was still hitting a wall as I tried to insert it by hand.
The next scuff with the sand paper brought the measurement down to 1.745. This time I was able to push it a little further and when I removed it it showed it had penetrated to a few "serration" lines deeper. With this new depth, I suggested that we freeze the Okie bushing over night, after which with a "little" persuasion it finally went into the tube. Test fitted the slip yoke. Done
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