Steering quadrant push rod ball joints?

[Tim Good]

Between my Whitlock steering pedestal and my rudder stock quadrant is a push rod and two ball end joints that need replacing.

The thread of the bar appears to be 16mm and the thread inside the ball joint appears to be M12. Both in either end appear to be standard RH thread.

Does anyone know suppliers of this sort of thing or is this something that is well known for steering systems and available off the shelf?

 

[macd]

Lots of them on-line, sometimes described as Rose joints. Oddly enough, many of the suppliers are adjacent to a place called Silverstone.

 

[typhoonNige]

Cliff Mogridge at winchservicing.com is the man to ask. Plenty of choice but he probably knows the best for this application. No connection just a satisfied customer

 

[Tim Good]

Cliff Mogridge at winchservicing.com is the man to ask. Plenty of choice but he probably knows the best for this application. No connection just a satisfied customer

Yeah I've emailed him a couple of times without a response. Will try again thanks.

 

[Freebee]

You need somebody who owns a fairey boat they have whitlock steering...........I believe they are car steering ball joints if so The Fairey's use Track Rod Ends, I have cut and pasted this from the Fairey owners club website , they use Part Number Quinton Hazel QR20. The details are Left hand and right hand threads 21/32" x19 TPI. They used to come from :
John Davis T/A
Vintage & Collectors Car Spares
Beltoft House
Belton Road
Beltoft
North Lincs DN9 1NE
Telephone 01724-784230

 

[Tranona]

You need somebody who owns a fairey boat they have whitlock steering...........I believe they are car steering ball joints if so The Fairey's use Track Rod Ends, I have cut and pasted this from the Fairey owners club website , they use Part Number Quinton Hazel QR20. The details are Left hand and right hand threads 21/32" x19 TPI. They used to come from :
John Davis T/A
Vintage & Collectors Car Spares
Beltoft House
Belton Road
Beltoft
North Lincs DN9 1NE
Telephone 01724-784230

While it is true that early Whitlock steering used car ball joints, often from Jaguars of the day and actually made by Burmans, the joints on the OPs boat are later than that and are definitely rose joints.

 

[Freebee]

OK if they are rose joints I stand corrected then how about RS online search for rod ends?

 

[macd]

They're very freely available, as I suggested earlier. From a hobbiest viewpoint, motoring specialists are one of the common sources. They're widely used on competition cars and motorcycles, and for much more than track rod ends.

Or from bearing suppliers such as this one: http://www.bearingshopuk.co.uk/bearings-bushes/rod-end-bearings/

If only everything on a boat was so easy to source from none-"marine" suppliers.

 

[pvb]

They're very freely available, as I suggested earlier. From a hobbiest viewpoint, motoring specialists are one of the common sources. They're widely used on competition cars and motorcycles, and for much more than track rod ends.

Or from bearing suppliers such as this one: http://www.bearingshopuk.co.uk/bearings-bushes/rod-end-bearings/

If only everything on a boat was so easy to source from none-"marine" suppliers.

Just to clarify, did you actually find one matching the OP's dimensions on the link you suggested?

 

[kacecar]

Here's another supplier: "Online Bearings" operating from Nelson in Lancashire - the web-site is (or was) www.onlinebearings.co.uk.

I had to replace those rod-ends on my own boat a couple of years ago. I don't know if your boat was built in the UK or when, but mine was built in Plymouth in the late Eighties and the threads on the link are not metric - in my case they are 5/8" UNF (right-hand). With shipping and VAT, the appropriate replacements from Online Bearings cost £32.15 each.

 

[lw395]

Search 'M12 rod end' on ebay, when you're sure it is M12.

Your pic suggests it's M16?
And it looks like a fine thread?
Measure the pitch over an inch or 10 threads to convince yourself what it is.

 

[Jungle Jim]

Once you sort out the thread it might be worth a call to Igus to see if they have polymer rod end bearings to suit. They are very strong plastic and do not suffer corosion.

 

[jdc]

It's very likely one of these: https://yachtsteeringservices.com/product/ss05016/

I can't say whether similar things are available from motor factors, but when I needed to replace mine I used the Lewmar parts. A tip: put a penny washer under the nut so that even if the Delrin bush disintegrates entirely the ball stays together so the steeering still works, albeit with some play. Don't ask how I discovered this...