Billet tie rod sleeves?

[corax]

I searched high and low and even looked on ebay but still couldn't find anything :headscratch:

Has anyone seen, or better yet, know where to buy a pair of billet tie rod sleeves for a late 80's Yota? I'm just tired of dealing with the factory split tie rod sleeves & since I'm replacing every joint on the front soon, now is the time to get it done. With the split sleeve, water gets into the thread through the split and rusts/seizes the sleeve to the tie rod. I could break them loose with a torch, but then I have to wait for everything to cool before I finish the alignment - and the problem will recur later anyway.

Edelbrock make them for some of the older domestic cars, but nothing in metric. Hotchkiss Sport Suspension also makes 'em for older domestics.

I think I measured the tie rod threads at 16mm x 1.5 thread pitch. I could try making a set myself, but I can't find a 16x1.5 reverse thread tap (one tie rod on each side has regular "righty tighty" threads and the other tie rod has reverse threads)

Anyone have any ideas? Do we have any machinists on the board that have a reverse tap that size?

[BruceTS]

http://www.victornet.com/cgi-bin/victor/productlist.html?subdepartments=Left+Hand+Taps:620 ,624,605,607

[4runnerchevy]

http://www.victornet.com/cgi-bin/victor/productlist.html?subdepartments=Left+Hand+Taps:620 ,624,605,607


x2
I don't have the 16x1.5 but they are readily available. Above or Enco or a number of other places. I only keep reverse thread in standard and only up to 3/4 fine.

[corax]

Thanks for the link Bruce. do you think I should go with solid steel roundstock (I have access to a lathe to drill the center) or find some tubing with the correct ID for the tap? I think tubing should be sufficient and durable with a reasonable wall thickness, but would feel better with a second opinion.

[BruceTS]

tubing should be fine