How to use the King pin tools.

This tool is so easy to use. It is very well made and long lasting. I have added a few ‘’tricks of the trade’’ to make it easier to change the king pin.

Open the folded over bottom cap. Clean the slot and gently tap the tool with a small hammer.



Push the drift up through the middle of the king pin to reach the top grease/dust cap. Use the big hammer to hammer out the cap. Cover the cap with a rag to prevent it hitting the roof.






Now is the time to grind away the folded over edges holding the grease/dust cap. Should be done before removing the bush.




Clean all metal chips away.



Place a firm stand underneath the swing arm. Remove the grease nipple first





Place the drift and hit it with a big hammer and I mean BIG. Shock technique is the best way of removing a stuck king pin. Do NOT use heat at all.




Time to place the hub upside down in the vice. Push the bottom push out away from the thread. Not through the thread, you may ruin it.




Top bush next



This can be a problem. The old king pin was not greased at all. Metal against metal and you get this groove.



File it flat, so the new shim is seated against a flat face



Push in the bottom bush first. Remember to grease it.





Needs to be just below the face to avoid contact with the shim.




Top bush. Use the alignment tool for the top bush. Without this tool the bush can tilt when pushed in.





Very important that the bush is correctly aligned. It must not have any contact with swing arm.

Photo upside down.



Test the postion of both bushes by sliding the new king pin up and down. No biting at all.




Use the old king pin to align the shims etc.



After the correct shims are fitted (max 0.4 mm play between the hub and swing arm, use feeler gauges)



Gently tap the old king pin in to the swing arm. King pin must NOT be distorted.



Place the new king pin correctly and use this drift to push it in. Hold the old king pin so it doesn’t fall out.



Don’t forget the firm stand to support the swing arm

Stop when the top of the king pin is aligned with the top of the bush



Place the new cap, flatten the cap using the old king pin



Fold over the edges to lock the cap



Fit the bottom cap, grease nipple and grease the new king pin.

Check that the top cap is not pushed out. Seal the top cap with grease to prevent water getting in.



Maybe a sticky if the lordship agree..

Just made it sticky!!

Really nice report for changing the kingpin. The only thing I miss is that you show in wich way the kingpin needs to be fitted


Did you freeze in the new kingpin? I did it when I changed mine.. When you freeze it, the kingpin shrinks a bit so it fit's easier in the swingarm...

Thanks for making it a sticky. I hope ''bush mechanics'' can get some good use of it.
Yes I did miss how to place the pin in relation to the grease holes. Will take a photo soon.

No I've never frozen the pin. I like to ''feel'' how tight it goes in (sorry this sounds almost sexual) If the pin is too lose, I fit oversized pin of 17.1 mm.

Click to enlarge

Fantastic set of photos, I am sure there will be many people who will get great use out of them. Well done.

Brilliant Viking, thanks very much for this, worn kingpins at MOT were one of the biggest 2cv killers in the UK at one time, it was easier and cheaper to buy another 2cv for a few pounds than pay a mechanic to do this, it's great to have it explained, thanks!

agreed. It's nice to have clear pictures to go with the text.

Nice one!

Excellent set of photos - I've never tried the shock method. My dad made a replica of the press shown in the Haynes manuals when he rebuilt my first Dyane (24 years ago now).
I've still got it, so if anyone needs to borrow it let me know.

Thanks Viking!
I've never done a kingpin myself, but have heard they can be so stuck you can't hit them out...
Is that something which wouldn't happen, when you use (these) right tools.
Or can it even with the right tool occur you can't get it out?
& what to do then???
Do the specialists have additional tricks for that?

Thanks Bart

Hi Bart
In my young days at the Citroën dealer ship, we removed the arm and pressed the king pins out but sometimes the pin wouldn't move. Applied heat but don’t do it and maybe the pin came out. I later moved on to a 2cv garage and the old rat running the business told me not to bother with the press or using heat. Since that day, I’ve removed all pins including really stuck pins with the shock technique, no worries. I’ve seen arms being ruined by excessive heat even seen people cutting the arm open to release the bitting on the pin. The only problem using force is the risk of expanding the top of the king pin (mushroom effect) when hitting it. The risk is reduced by using a drift which is softer than the king pin. The drift will expand so the trick is not to push the drift through the arm making the hole bigger. I clean the drift up on the bench grinder and continue, no harm done to the swing arm.

Yes, it was with a feeling of trepidation that I replaced the O/S kingpin on Amélie a few months ago but it really was as straightforward as that post described. Silly CVs lent me a bag of assorted drifts and everything came apart pretty well. I think one mistake I made was not cleaning up the old staking on the top of the uprights. The new Welsh plug refused to seal and I damaged it with repeated hammering. After removing it and grinding away the old staking properly, the plug went back in. I shall do the N/S sometime and then keep both sides regularly greased.