Oil pump/intermediate drive shaft Bushing install

It's helpful to understand what's going in when you install and burnish the bushing. Once you understand, you can then make your choice on how much you want to half-*** the job. Half-assing the job is a long standing and very popular tradition within the automotive world.

The bushing is made of Oilite, which is a bronze based material Chrysler developed and soon became a standard across many industries for bushed applications. It carries its own oil embedded in its pores. Compared to normal bronze bushings, it lubricates much better and is far less likely to 'skid' on the shaft or run dry.

When you install a new bushing, it is already a little tight and the 'squeeze' it gets when driven it only makes it tighter. Hence, the need to burnish...which is a fancy way of saying you are going to size the ID of the bushing by smushing it out to size. Oilite is fairly soft. Burnishing is important as Oilite does not cut as well as we'd like...if you're going to cut it, you need a nice sharp edge which most people won't have. What's more, Oilite really dislikes any sort of abrasive grinding/cutting....the abrasives will stick in the Oilite then go to work on the shaft once you start spinning it.

If you're installing a new bushing that doesn't require burnishing, you might have gotten lucky. Or, you might have installed a bushing that is too loose, or one that is 'good and tight' but does not have the contact area it should have...in other words, it's only making contact in a few places that will wear down soon enough and you end up with a loose fit. The burnishing ensures a good, proper contact fit.

When I was about 13, I installed a new bushing and the shaft wouldn't fit. I read about burnishers but I sure didn't have one or the money to buy one...so I spun the shaft in sandpaper for a long time in a drill until it fit. I would be embarrassed to admit that, but I was 13 and at least least little dumber than I am now. For me, doing the job right is a sign of personal growth....if I half-assed it today, I'd feel like I was just as dumb as a 13 year old.