So I have a chance at "giving back" a little to all you guys and gals out their in BlazerLand...

Had the worn out tire rack bounce-rattle-knock problem when hitting bumps. Read about someone having new bushings made at a machine shop for $$$. Saw the OEM exploded diagram of the rack and the needed bushings. Had an idea in my head and went for it...

1. First off, some of the Torx heads were already stripped so had to use an AIR impact wrench to remove them. Battery I W are not strong enough. The bolt threads were somewhat rusted in there but they all came loose. You need a T-50 socket Torx for the job.

2. Used a large and small socket in a vice with at least a 5" travel in the jaw to remove the pressed in hinge pins. A small socket to push the pin. A large socket to receive the pin as it comes out. A second pair of hands helps for this and actually all of the handling of the rack.

3. Cleaned the pins and hinges a little. The original bushings were worn pretty thin and only partly there so they were tossed.

4. Made new sleeves to replace the bushings with copper pipe. 3/4" type "L" copper. Type L for the wall thickness of the tube. It worked out just right. Thinner pipe wall will probably leave it sloppy and thicker stuff may have to be inserted and cut down a little more. So all I did was cut a piece of pipe the length of the thickness of the hinge area. Doesn't have to be exact as it can be cut or filled after insertion. Any burrs should be filled off from the inside of the pipe. Then I cut along the length of the pipe and squeezed it gently in a vice to get the ends to overlap. To get it to overlap just right takes a few tries. Once you are close to the right diameter it can be gently tapped into the hinge. At this point the lug/pin can be tapped in also for fit check and to smooth out any resistance for the final assembly later. See photos;


COPPER SCHEDULE "L" PIPE BUSHING

5. The next step is the up and down play. Measure the thickness of the outside of the rack arms at the hinge and the inside of the mounting arms. The difference is the amount play needed to be addressed. This turned out to be fairly simple; Flat washers mixed and matched to fit. One at the top and one on the bottom. If necessary, drill out the inside hole to fit. The second washer should be a hair on the tight side and easily tapped in with a hammer. It may take some doing to go through a pile of washers to get the right thickness. They usually are not all the same thickness. In this case, one washer was mild steel and the other turned out to be stainless as it was "just right". each arm will be a bit different in these measurements so you also gotta keep the pins and washers separated as to which arm they are for.

6. After a little white lithium grease on the pin and inside the new bushing, assemble the arms with the mounting brackets and either press or hammer into place. In my opinion they are tight enough to not need a "C" clip on the pin. They ain't goin' nowhere..

And voila!




7. This was actually a test fit. I cleaned and painted everything prior to final assembly. They are tight as a gnats *** and I am hoping they will last the life of my rig. I would think, although copper is relatively soft, that they are as good as or better than the originals.

8. When mounting the rack back on the body, I had a friend lift up on it while driving home the bolts to hopefully compensate for the sag that will occur when the weight of the tire comes into play. This took bout 3 tries to get it just right and it latches smooth and easy. I replace 2 of the stripped Torx bolts with standard hex heads and used them in the rear portion of the mounting arms. I also shot a little WD-40 on the threads to help get them to seat. They were even hard going back in because of the rust. There is enough tension at the hinge now that it will actually stay open and not swing closed when on a slight angle.

This all took about 3 hours as it took a while to figure out the medium to use for the bushing through trial and error. I had the pipe on hand as well as the washers. Bolts cost about 3.50$ (Grade 8)

No more bouncing and rattling back there!

Hope this helps some one. Real basic fabrication with a minimal of tools. (I had to borrow the impact wrench.)
Good Luck!

nomoresubies

 

Hey, great write up. I had investigated using bronze bushings, etc. Be sure to report back on how this works for you.

 

So far - so good. A little squeaking but I think it was the sleeve on the tail gate where the rack mounts. Solved with WD.

If anyone else tries this i would be curious as to their results.

Thanks

nms

 

A year later and still tight and working great...

 

Awesome. Updates like this are always welcomed lol

 

2 years later and still tight...

 

If its not tight, it's not right!!!

Thanks again for the update, you can never go wrong, and updates like this gives incentive to do it for peace of mind.

 

I've added Roto-Pax containers, a shovel mount and a jack mount to the bar since then. It sags a little but not from the hinges. More so from where it mounts to the body...

 

Wouldn't mind seeing a pic of this setup

 

Will get to it once the rain here (CA) quits...