Rich Z

OK, maybe I am just too picky to be healthy. I have my C5Z06 torn apart in a shop waiting for a new clutch, and because of the pilot bushing going bad (yes, bushing, not bearing), I'm thinking perhaps replacing the torque tube input shaft with front bearing might be a wise idea. The tech at the shop says the old shaft has zero runout and zero play, and he polished up the stub that goes into the pilot bearing nicely. But still, better to be safe than sorry, right?

Well, the "new" shaft came in yesterday, so I grabbed my camera and took some closeup pics of it. And this is what I see:













I asked the place I bought it from and was told that the C5 torque tube input shafts are no longer available new, so the C6 input shafts are being machined down to fit the C5.

Well that is all and good and everything, but darn if it doesn't look like the area in front of the splines was worked over with a hand file. And honestly, I'm not all that crazy about the stub that goes into the pilot bearing just left with the raw machining marks rather than being polished.

So let me ask you this. Would you put this input shaft in YOUR car? Am I just being way too picky about this? Or will this be perfectly OK?

bravo29

Hell No I would not

Rich Z

Well, interestingly enough, a guy from a company that believes they manufactured that input shaft (AMP Distributing) that I got responded to another thread elsewhere, and tells me the stub on that shaft actually has a case hardened sleeve pressed onto it. And it should be just fine with a pilot bearing. I do wish it were polished more finely, but perhaps there is such a thing as just looking TOO closely at things. Holding that input shaft in the hand and looking at it with the naked eye, it does look just fine. Maybe I am just over thinking things too much.

Rich Z

So the machine marks on the stub of that input shaft have been bugging me ever since I received it. I talked with a representative of the company who actually made it and expressed my concerns, but he said it will be perfectly fine "as is". So I asked him if I could polish it up a bit, or would that negatively impact anything by doing so. He said it likely wouldn't have any impact either way, and if it would make me feel better, and I didn't get carried away with it, to go ahead.

So I did....

Chucked it up in my little lathe and then used increasingly finer grit polishing paper (from 1500 grit to 3000 grit) and then applied some Simi-Chrome.








BEFORE:



AFTER:


I wasn't inclined to take off too much metal to try to get all the machine marks out, just enough to make any riding surfaces of the shaft on the pilot bearing smooth and silky. As frictionless as practical. Shaft nub feels smooth as butter now.

Bill Curlee

Looks very cool!

BC

~Josh

To confirm, I have a c6 input shaft as part of my c5 torque tube and it works perfectly.

You don’t need anything special, just right off the shelf it’s a direct fit.

Rich Z

I know this may sound pretty dumb, but any chance I made that input shaft stub TOO smooth? Wouldn't be the first time I over thought something and got myself in hot water because of it.

This will be going into a pilot BEARING, btw.