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MG MGA - Welsh plug in rear hub

How thick is the welsh plug in the rear splined hub? Read a comment at MGAguru.com that it was only to drill a hole (a little off center) and pull it out with a slide hammer. I have drilled 4 to 5 mm and is still not through. Is there a better method?

When I look at my new hub it seems that the plug should be less than 4mm thick. Haven't got the plug yet!

Happy for comments.

Best regards

Anders
T Dahlberg

The plug is not nearly that thick. You must be drilling into the end of the half shaft. If I had to guess without having one in hand to measure, I'd say about 2 mm thick, similar to an engine core plug.

Barney Gaylord

Anders,

Following on from Barney's comment, what can you see?
Do you see a welch plug as per the attached photo (it is a mga twin cam but the same as other MGA's).
Or can you see the half shaft splines?


Mick


M F Anderson

Hi Mick and Barney,

Well I suppose that I am drilling in the halfshaft! But the plug doesn't look as a engine coreplug to me. I will try to get a photo of the hub showing the plug.

Anders
T Dahlberg

Anders,

With a 50 year old car that may have had several previous owners you have to be prepared for anything.
Instead of using a thin disk that could be center punched to spread it to fit (core plug), a previous owner could have made his own thick disk and fitted it by using an oversize interference fit.
Close examination should tell you if it is a disk or the end of the halfshaft.

Mick
M F Anderson

Thanks a lot for your help. Today we put the axle and hub in the lathe and took the plug away.

It must have been a "special-plug" made at some time long ago. And yes I drilled one mm into one of the halfshafts.

Will put a "coreplug" in the new hub.

Another question, is it of any interest that the old halfshaft will have the same rotation as before. Is it important not to mix up left and right?

Anders
T Dahlberg

Anders,

The halfshafts are identical and interchangeable when new, but I believe that they can develop a twist after many years, and reversing that twist can possibly lead to an earlier than normal breakage.
Put them back in the original side if you can identify it.


Mick
M F Anderson

This thread was discussed between 11/11/2009 and 22/11/2009

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