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Cleaned up the front axel today getting ready to paint the frame. The passenger side wheel had a little play, but not bad. When I get to the drivers side there is more play. pulled the axel off the frame to take to a shop and have new king pins put in. called around and nobody can do it.

one shop will do it if it is on the truck. aarrrggg!!! I guess I will put it together and take it to his shop this summer when I have it on the road. I thought it would be easier if it was off the truck :?

all you need is an air hammer to knock the retaining pins out, then knock the caps off the top and bottom, use a blunt tip on the air hammer and drive the king pin out. somtimes it helps to heat the axle, then splash it with cold water to shock loose the scale. Tap the old bushings out then install the new. intstall the spindle and insert the pin with the flat spot faceing the retaining pin hole, drive in new retaining pin, replace the grease zerks and install the new caps on the open pin ends, dome to the outside, and give them a good smack with a blunt punch to swedge them out. Grease it and reinstall the backing plate. Ive done it on and off the truck, sound like your shop dosnt want to mess with it. I believe the TRW part # for the king pin kit it K518S, im not sure though, you will want to double check me. It comes with the new bushings, king pins, retaining pins and caps.There is no need for any honing or machining. Good luck!

couple of corrections here. the retaining pin is threaded, you unscrew it not knock it out. and there is honing required if you go back with bronze bushings 90% of the time. matt, it is much easier off the truck. when i did mine we couldnt get the old pins out with the axle in the truck. just not enough room to get a good whack on the hammer. if you use nylon bushings you cdan do it yourself in your garage with a vice, big hammer, and a couple punches. i insisted on bronze bushings, so mine went to a shop that had the hones. good luck finding a shop that still has the king pin hones, took me a while to find one. one other tip, if you use an air hammer, or regular one for that matter, be carfull not to mushroom the head of the old pin or youll never get it out.

All the retaining pins ive seen have been the hanmmer in style with a flat tapered side. Did they change to this sometime before 69?

the ones on my 66 were a square head bolt that threaded in. according to my service manual it says to remove the pin locking screw or pin. so i guess it could have had either.
matt, if you go back with nylon bushings, you can do it in your garage with a simple hammer and a bit of elbow grease to get out the old hardware. the nylon bushings can be installed by hand. autozone sells both types, as well as napa. be forewarned, they will try to sell you 2 king pin sets, one for each side, but in each kit, there is both sides. not that i bought 2 kits, but i have heard it has been done!!! also, they are goona ask if it is a bearing or washer pin, the ones on the 66 are the washer type, the bearings were for bigger trucks, despite what thier computer says.

I replaced kingpins and put in bronze bushings which I had honed at Don's Crankshaft here in cincinnati. They fit perfectly. The problem I had was that the hole in the axle that receives the kingpin is worn and so the wheel still has too much play. Does anyone know how to correct this? Is anyone making oversized kingpins?