Replacing king pin for first time

I wonder if anyone has tried a thermal lance? I've used them on seized track pins and they work f'kn great for that. Blow a big hole straight through the center of the pin in less than 2 minutes and they come out like nothing.

 

They probably don't know what they are.

 

Simple. Even if a guy pulled the whole steer axle out to do it I bet a guy would save time on a bad set.

 

that is a process i have never seen, looks like it works quite well.

 

It works awesome. It is literally a knife through butter.

 

Yes BUT the guy using that knife better know what he is doing or you will looking for a new axle.

 

They can fuse everything together, it was tried at one of my customers, they had a seized pump for pumping molten aluminum and they tried to use it to get the shaft out of the housing but ruined the pump because it actually got so hot it melted the bronze bushings and fused the shaft to the pump housing.

 

That's not very good. I've found in my experience with the lance is you don't want to or even need to torch out the entire pin but more or less punch a hole through the center, taking out around 30-50% of its mass. That allows it to shrink when it cools.

Edit: Like I said I've never done a kingpin but I have done a ton of track pins and other similar jobs and the lance typically works well for that.

 

What are crib timbers? I like the idea of more security than jack stands. I don't like getting under my truck at all and want the most secure and sure way to keep it in the air. Thanks!