Front axle (32, 33)
Mercedes-Benz Typ 190/219/220S Vorderachse, DBL211, © Daimler AG
This first picture below shows the front axle, just removed from the chassis. As with everything else on this car, all parts were thoroughly cleaned and primed. Thereafter they were painted with the semi-gloss DB7164.
All rubber parts, sealings and bearings were bought new. Screws and stuff were of course cleaned, grinded and yellow chromated (or bought new). Then it's only to follow the workshop manual. In the first picture you can see how I centered the steering knuckle in the wishbone. Thereafter I had to compress it so that the screw, that goes through the threaded knuckle would hit the threads in the wishbone correctly. Otherwise it seems to be easy to damage the threads in the latter. When both the bottom and upper wishbone were connected to the steering knuckle I inserted guides into the threaded holes in the front axle support. Note the two pairs of spacer washers (?) for the front screws for bottom wishbone pin.
"Sandblasted and painted torsion bar with new hardware
The not-so-funny part with front (and rear) axle is compressing the springs. This spring tool is homemade and works very well. A threaded pin with a couple of washers on the top and a metal plate at the bottom with holes drilled for the shock absorber screws. I used this only for the first 5-10cm, thereafter my fathers weight was enough to get the wishbone pin in position for its four screws ;-).
"New Bilstein front and rear shock absorbers
These tools I made during the late the 80s. Driving home from a meeting in Nyköping, quite fast on a narrow, curving road, the car started to act funny. I lowered the speed and went directly home. Looking beneath it I realized that I almost had lost my left front axle half. One of the screws for the lower wishbone was gone and two of the others were on their way too. So check these screws from time to time!
With the halfes in place I assembled the hubs. Since I forgot the puller plate (the yellow thing to the right of the hub in the first picture in the gallery below) on the first one I ought to remind you of that one! You lose a day if you have to buy a new sealing ring as I had to. In the second picture you can see the correct amount of grease, specified in the workshop manual. In my fathers opinion that is too much grease so I took a little less. To much grease can cause problems if the bearing/hub gets hot. My father learnt from the old mechanics at Philipson (the Mercedes-Benz dealership at that time), that you adjust the bearings with the "triangular" washer seen in the first picture. The torque - set with the clamping nut - is correct when the washer just stop to turn together with the hub.
"Fahrschemel" for Mercedes-Benz 220 from 1954, © Daimler AG
The last picture shows the sandblasted brake drums, the front "alfin"-drums has a layer of primer. All four are now turned by Nobtek in Norrköping and painted with DB7164. With "alfin" is meant that they are made of an aluminum alloy for weight and have fins for cooling purposes. Fur durability a steel ring is shrunk into them (sorry for the English, I have no idea about how to translate this but hopefully you understand what I mean). The rear drums are cast iron.
