apex joint

[mudit87]

we are planning to use an apex joint to couple the steering shafts,but the manufacturers of the apex joints we are planning to deal with claim it can only be used in darg races,which does not serve the pupose and the other thing is that the joint does not come with splines so can somebody suggest a method to attach the shafts to the joint.

[mudit87]

we are planning to use an apex joint to couple the steering shafts,but the manufacturers of the apex joints we are planning to deal with claim it can only be used in darg races,which does not serve the pupose and the other thing is that the joint does not come with splines so can somebody suggest a method to attach the shafts to the joint.

[Brian Evans]

Apex joint is a specific brand, not a generic type. No, they aren't "rated" for steering use. Yes, they are used for steering in all sorts of small racing cars. You can pin them, bolt them, or weld them. Probably the 3/4" size is best.

Brian

[Frank]

5/8" will do if there is little angularity, otherwise 3/4" is good.

It is very hard to "index" these things. (you'll understand when you recieve them)

I used my friendly campus vetinary x-ray machine to "look" inside the tamperproof jacket.

By the way, they are nothing more than a hardened universal joint.

pegasus sell them.

http://www.pegasusautoracing.com/Images/M/1490.JPG

[Scotty]

We build linkages of alot of differant types of formula cars.
We weld the Apex joint to the shaft.Submersing the joint in water and leaving just the part to be welded out. This will keep the rest of the joint cool..and not melt the silicon boot

At the shift finger..we bolt it.It must be a very tight fit.Any slop here is felt all the way to the shift lever.

We have the military spec Apex joints .3/8 -1/2 - 5/8 - 3/4 and 7/8

[Marshall Grice]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Frank:
It is very hard to "index" these things. (you'll understand when you recieve them)

I used my friendly campus vetinary x-ray machine to "look" inside the tamperproof jacket.
</div></BLOCKQUOTE>

And did you notice after you xrayed them that the small hole in the output "tubes" are actually indexing marks? If you weld the joints together with the holes lined up they will be indexed properly.

[Frank]

no, this does not neccisarilly mean they are indexed correctly. The holes of two units may be 90 degrees out of CORRECT indexing, but you'd need to check using my method to know that.

[poweredbyvdub]

is the indexing you guys speak of referring to the use of 2 joints on a linkage?

also, the OD of the tube section is not a nominal size, but rather the ID is. so if you do want to bolt with the u-joint rather than weld, you should make male inserts with thru-holes (reamed for a tight fit) instead of simply shoving the u-joints into a tube.

[Marshall Grice]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">no, this does not neccisarilly mean they are indexed correctly. The holes of two units may be 90 degrees out of CORRECT indexing, but you'd need to check using my method to know that </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I have the mil spec standard drawing. The small holes are put there on purpose with very high accuracy. The only error is going to come from your ability to actually line the holes up. Feel free to continue to do it the hard way.

[Frank]

like i said, i've found them 90degrees out quite a few times

[Marshall Grice]

so you've found joints where the holes line up across the joint? I'd question what you're actually buying.