Volume 37, No. 9 / May 2018 www.transmissiondigest.com

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®The Automotive Powertrain Industry Journal

D I G E S T

•Transmission Kits•Positive Seal•The Entire Package

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14 Transmission Digest

„I think that for a lot of years, the transmission af-termarket has had the feeling that a bushing is a

bushing is a bushing,” explains Dura-Bond GeneralSales Manager Andre Moser. And he says nothingcould be further from the truth in applications that

have evolved to re-quire tighter andtighter tolerances andless play in rotatingparts.

Moser, Dura-BondPresident, OwnerCharles Barnett, andMarketing / SystemsAdministrator BillDolak have gatheredwith TransmissionDigest at the compa-ny’s headquartersand production facili-ty. Dura-Bond em-ploys a team of 75office, manufactur-ing, sales and engi-neering people to

produce all its product lines at the 85,000-square-footCarson City, Nev., facility that has earned ISO 9001certifications.

“Our primary business throughout the years hasbeen camshaft bearings for the engine-rebuilder after-market. We have a dominant position in this industryfor the past 70 years,” explained Barnett. “Dura-Bondhas been in business since 1947. The company startedin Palo Alto, Calif. And relocated to Carson City in1987.

“In 1996, we decided to diversify a bit by purchas-ing a Seattle-based company that manufactured pow-

dered metal valve seats. Wemoved that production into ourplant as well and it now ac-counts for about 25% of ourbusiness.

“It was only about five yearsago that we found the opportu-nity to apply our technology tomanufacturing transmissionbushings.

“We actually entered into thetransmission segment throughwork we were doing with one of

Dura-Bond President Charles(Chuck) Barnett enjoys automo-bile memorabilia like therestored Signal gas pump thatdecorates his office.

Dura-Bond GeneralSales ManagerAndre Moser

Rounding Out a Niche

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May 2018 15

the major re-manufactur-ers of bothengines andtransmis-sions. Theyhad longbeen cus-tomers of ourcamshaftbearings andasked if wecould do thesame withtransmissionbushings.Their peoplehad devel-oped astrong pref-erence forDura-Bond’sfull-roundbearing tech-nology and

the ability to attain the tighter tolerances in the indus-try. Why not apply this same technology into thetransmission aftermarket?”

Aftermarket technology is different“The OE manufacturer can put a clinch-style

camshaft bearing in a block and then line-bore it to fitperfectly,” Barnett says. “So, if you line-bore and usethe clinch-style bearing, it’s all good,” Barnett contin-ues. “Traditionally the aftermarket has followed thattechnology as well. Those clinch-style bushings willwork OK for the OE and for the rather generous toler-ances found in older transmissions. However, thetechnology that worked for a 350 transmission doesn’t

always work when those toler-ances are much more demand-ing as in today’s transmissions.

“Since the aftermarket re-builder doesn’t have that equip-ment for line-boring, you endup with the compromise OEclinch-style bushings. If youhave the part but you don’thave the process, you’re onlyhalf way there. The good newswith these is that, manufacturedoffshore, they’re cheap; howev-er, they aren’t of the quality thatmany builders need to have.

“In addition to the problemof not being able to line-bore the

clinch-style bushings, the quality of what was comingin suffered from inability to maintain the tolerancesneeded and, often, the metallurgy content that wasn’tcorrect. This gave Dura-Bond an entry point into thetransmission market segment. As our product line gotoff the ground we picked a limited number of trans-mission specialty distributors (Transtar, WIT, StellarGroup) for expanded sales beyond the production re-builder operations.”

Bushing developmentMoser says that the machinery, processes manufac-

turing philosophy and people are the same whetherthe production run is the camshaft bearings or thetransmission bushings. And he explains that every-thing starts with the R&D department taking a look atthe application for which a particular bushing is need-ed.

“Typically, we purchase cores for our developmentprocess. While we could reverse-engineer the bush-ings that are available in the aftermarket, we find thatwe are able to develop a better fitting product bymeasuring all the hard parts and shaft diameter. Thismeans we can make sure our tolerances are exactlywhere we need them to be. The difference in the qual-ity of our product is a direct result of that in-houseR&D process that we follow.

“There’s a stark difference that can be seen and feltin the weight of our bushings. While attending bothATSG and ATRA seminars we provide a show-and-tell comparison between the clinch-style bushing andour bushings. Amazed and intrigued, many want toknow what took so long to bring this quality bushingto market.

“Because we don’t manufacture with a one-size-

Marketing / SystemsAdministrator BillDolak is responsiblefor the company’swebsite, advertisingand other marketingmaterials.

As bushing manufacturing processesare completed, a visual inspection ismade of each component before it isreleased to be packages.

From individually bagged bushings, a boxed kit is creat-ed and packaged for a specific application. In addition tolaser etching part numbers on the bushings and markingthe same on the bags, the Dura-Bond box kit contains asheet showing each bushing included, its measurementsand placement, and a list of any optional bushings thatmay be required to address specific wear or breakage inthe unit.

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16 Transmission Digest

fits-all philosophy,” observes Barnett, “the materialswe use vary with the requirement for an individualbushing. For instance, we make some from solidbronze, some from steel – with or without coating –and some with dimples or the grooves, all dependingon what we determine – working with our customers– is the best application solution for each bushing.”

Taking it to the streetsMoser continues, saying, “We’ve been able to

achieve market penetration as people begin to realizethe quality difference in the kits. The challenge re-mains that guys have become used to paying thelower price for the offshore brands and clinch-styletechnology. Our bushings cost a bit more, but the pur-pose of the component is to work without issue offailure in a rebuilt unit.

“The other challenge is, as with most aftermarketcomponent manufacturers, that we work hard to iden-tify where the transmissions are beginning to come infor repair. We want to have a kit and/or componentsavailable when those units are needing repaired. Ourproduct line has expanded to include some legacykits, some that are in the throes of being repaired rightnow, and we’re adding some that are a little newerbut that we expect to start showing up in the repairbays soon.

“Our objective is to cover all the bases and stay inthe bell curve of where the warranties run out and thetransmissions need to be repaired. We solicit informa-tion from both our distributors and our production-rebuilder customers as to the units they expect to soonbe seeing – the units we should be looking at for ourdevelopment process. We stay relevant by adding thebushing kits as they are needed while maintaining

legacy products as well.“Most of our distribution to shops takes place as a

separate bushing kit that is ordered alongside themaster rebuild kit. We have approximately 45 kitsavailable today in our catalog. Additionally, eachcomponent that makes up our kits is available sepa-rately through our distributors. We anticipate releas-ing two new kits per month in 2018. We recognizerebuilders do not always replace all the bushings sohaving individual components available is advanta-geous.

Dolak says that in addition to a vibrant website, acatalog of transmission bushings and bushing kits hasbeen assembled – a publication he is responsible forupdating as Dura-Bond adds additional components.

“For example,” Moser says pointing to one of thecataloged kits, “the 5R110W bushing kit is a large onethat contains the 16 bushings needed to completely re-build a unit in nearly every case. Each of the individ-

Individual components and kits are boxed for shipmentto the Dura-Bond distributors.

Dura-Bond locates its sales, administration and manufacturing facilities in a built-to-specification 85,000 square-footstructure located in Carson City, Nev.

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May 2018 17

ual bushings inthe kit are sepa-rately packed intheir own bagand identifiedwith the partnumber on thebag as well asbeing laseretched on thebushing itselfalong with theMade in theUSA logo andthe George logothat is Dura-Bond’s identify-ing icon. The kitis boxed andcontains a slipof paper thatshows the partnumbers, di-mensions andquantity of eachincluded bush-ing.Furthermore,we’ll list anyother bushingsthat are optionalreplacements for

a particular unit.“For performance applications we have a line of en-

hanced steel backed Babbitt pump bushings that con-tain a layer of dry film lubricant coating. This coating

provides solid lubrication of parts subject to torque orcontact stress like the pump bushing. Like all of ourbushings, these enhanced pump bushings have walltolerance of 0.0005 inches and OD tolerances of 0.001inches.

Solving problems defines the futureConcluding, Moser tells us, “The rebuilders we see

at seminars want to know about the attributes of thebushing and the ease of getting it into place, does itwalk, does it split, does it leak? The answer to all ofthose is: No because it’s ‘full round,’ all one solidpiece. Our chamfered ends allow for ease of installa-tion, elimination of breakage to any seam that causesbushing surface interruptions.

“The shop that’s looking for long-life quality wantsto use a bushing that will live up to the warranty. Thisis a shop that will want Dura-Bond bushings whereasa guy who’s very price-conscious will more likelyorder the clinch-style offshore product.

“Our ability to serve the customer and to earn ourlivelihood derives from our ability to match what wecan do with what the industry requires. Given thecomplex transmissions deployed in today’s vehiclesin 2018, the old ‘a bushing is a bushing’ philosophysimply no longer applies!”

Barnett adds, “Many bushings are installed blind.In that you do not see if any metal particles are com-ing off the I.D. of clinch-style bushing during installa-tion. These particles could end up in the solenoids orother critical areas. The Dura-Bond bushing due toone-piece design does not have this possible problem.Why take a chance on a failure? It is like plaque inyour veins that is unknown going to your heart. Noheart attack for the transmission is needed” TD

A well-equipped quality control department is in the mid-dle of the production floor with responsibility for testingthat each component meets engineering and manufactur-ing specifications. QC Manager Tanya Pierrott goes overa bushing with Production Manager Michael Hinley.

Dura-Bond tells its story by attending a large number ofindustry seminars and trade shows. The stand-up dis-play of company icon “George” serves as a uniquereminder that the company’s products are made in theUSA.

After a visual inspection, full-roundbushings are each tested at the pro-duction line by being tapped againsta metal plate. They should produce aringing sound, and any that clank ormake other than the ringing arerejected.

Reproduced with permission © 2018 Transmission Digest