67 tierod centerlink paint

[Robert D.]

On a 67 big block i know the tie rods center link and pitman arm are painted as an assembly are the boots the castle nuts and cotter pins painted also. Were they painted on the car or off the car. If they were painted on the car is there over spray on the spindles and idler arm. if they were painted off the car were the outer boots and castlenuts painted? Last, my understanding is the idler arm is cad color not painted is that correct
thank you
Bob DeFalco

any pics would be appreciated

[Joe L.]

Re: 67 tierod centerlink paint

On a 67 big block i know the tie rods center link and pitman arm are painted as an assembly are the boots the castle nuts and cotter pins painted also. Were they painted on the car or off the car. If they were painted on the car is there over spray on the spindles and idler arm. if they were painted off the car were the outer boots and castlenuts painted? Last, my understanding is the idler arm is cad color not painted is that correct
thank you
Bob DeFalco

any pics would be appreciated

Bob-------

Yes, the steering linkage was "painted" as an assembly at its manufacturing source, the old Chevrolet-Buffalo plant on DeLavan Avenue in Buffalo, NY. However, it was not really a paint. It was an asphaltic coating. With an asphaltic coating, the solvent evaporates and leaves the solute, a tar-like material, as the coating. But, the solute can be removed simply by washing or wiping with either the original solvent or many other organic solvents. With paint, that can't be done because paint polymerizes when it dries so the original solvent will not dissolve and remove it.

There was some kind of cap or shield placed over the ball joints and tie rod ends prior to coating. The nuts and cotter pins were installed at St. Louis and so received no coating, at all. The nuts and cotter pins were natural steel---no applied finish, at all.

The frame bracket section of the idler arm has always appeared to me to be zinc plated but they could have been natural steel. The rest of the arm is forged steel and was coated with the rest of the assembly.

The above is true for both manual and power steering car steering linkage assemblies. However, for power steering cars the control valve and power cylinder were not supplied with the steering assembly. They were painted black at their manufacturing source and installed at St. Louis.