camel centipede resto

[uncleemmett]

Hey everyone. I acquired a camel centipede and decided to do some restoration. Motor (jlo Rock 295) is in good shape, t-20 seems o.k. Body rough.Tub solid. This may be a stupid question but..... How do the sprockets attach to the axle. I need to replace one set of bearings but can't figure how to remove the axle. Are they taper pins? everythings a bit nasty down there and I haven't had a chance to do any sand blasting yet but I'm curious. Thanks for any input.

[LarryW]

I cant help you with your problems because I have never seen one. I basically just wanted to say I would love to watch a build up of one. Pictures and videos. We dont have a whole lot on them because they just aren't as common and harder to find.

[Don]

I'm with Larry. The Centipede is one machine I always wanted to own, but haven't found one close enough or cheap enough for me. We'd like to see the progress as you build.

[foxspoiler]

Hi, I have a camel. Have not done a lot with it yet. I will look and see how sprockets are attached. I would think they are like the rest with a bolt thru it.

[uncleemmett]

I'm back. I removed one of the axles from the camel today. The sprockets attach with a drive pin. They are hard steel and shaped like two 'D's set back to back and slightly offset. They are probably just drill rod stamped with a longitudinal line to form a slight ridge. They are a BI*** to remove. I'll try to heat the next one. Some pics to follow.

[LarryW]

I'm back. I removed one of the axles from the camel today. The sprockets attach with a drive pin. They are hard steel and shaped like two 'D's set back to back and slightly offset. They are probably just drill rod stamped with a longitudinal line to form a slight ridge. They are a BI*** to remove. I'll try to heat the next one. Some pics to follow.

Thats interesting. I wonder if it would be better to replace them with bolts? Or are they smaller diameter?

[uncleemmett]

I'll definitely go back with s.s. bolts and castle nuts even if I have to drill them out.

[Cirrus6]

I'm new to the site and also have a Camel Centipede to rebuild. It was running years ago. I'm having a rough time getting the axles out in order to replace bearings. As I understand these wheelers are not common and I need to know where to find axle bearings and seals. Also may need to replace a couple of bent axles. If I can't locate new or used axles, can anyone tell me what material would work best if I have to make my own? I am a machinist by trade so this would be do-able. The vehicle impressed me as it was well constructed mechanically and I think it is worth the effort to get it up and running again. Any info will be greatly appreciated.

[jpswift1]

Welcome aboard! The Camel Centipede is a great machine. I really like them a lot. The bearings can be purchased from Buffalo Bearing. (716) 874-1720. Tell them you're with 6X6World and give them the specs on your bearings and they'll be happy to help you out and they'll take good care of you. Make sure you get bearings with the "R3" part number at the end of them for the outers, meaning triple lip sealed. Usually, old axles that are badly rusted need to be cut out with an angle grinder with a cut off wheel on it. That would be my last resort after letting penetrating oil sit on them for a day or so and twisting and turning them with a pipe wrench. Heat is also your friend to help loosen them, but be VERY careful not to get the flame near the body because it'll make the plastic very weak and brittle. I'd say put a little water in the tub or some sheet metal under where you're working to prevent this from happening. As far as axle material goes, 4130 Chromoly would work best. It's tough stuff and not really expensive. If you get a chance post some pics, we'd love to see it! Good luck with it and keep us posted......we'll help you as best we can.

[Cirrus6]

Thank you for the swift reply and good advice. This is going to be a big project and will take some time. I'll probably have more questions down the line. The Centipede hasn't been running since 1996. The weather is holding me up but I'm going to get started again shortly. I had done some work on it back then with strengthening the body in front with steel and plywood (not as bad as it sounds) because it was treed hard on two different occasions from loss of steering. I will be installing a secondary braking system. I also did away with the (nylon?) chain tensioners and made new slotted tensioner brackets out of 1/2 inch cold roll and slotted them on a Bridgeport. Used heavy 1/2 inch allen cap screws and small sprockets as tensioners with oilite bushings. These worked out very well and solved my chain slipping problems. They also let the chains run in a straight lateral line with no side to side distortion. One more question for now about the axle bearings. Are the outer bearings sealed or are there separate seals on the axles like my Scrambler has? You mentioned getting outers with triple lip seals. I will post some photos when I'm able to seriously get to work. Won't be right away. Thanks again. This site is awesome.

[Vezdekhod]

Here's Chuck (Cirrus6) in the Camel Centipede back in the late 80s - early 90s...