Mounting of wear members

1. An excavator tooth assembly comprising:

a mounting nose projectable from a digging edge of an excavator, said mounting nose including a mounting aperture extending laterally of said nose between opposite side walls thereof, said mounting aperture having a non-circular cross-section;

a wear member having a longitudinal axis, a forward end and a rearwardly opening socket for receiving said mounting nose, said wear member including opposed wall apertures communicating with a hollow interior of said socket, said opposed wall apertures being at least partially alignable with said mounting aperture; and,

a retaining pin assembly non-rotatably located in said mounting aperture, said retaining pin assembly including a body member being configured to be non-rotatably located within the mounting aperture of said mounting nose prior to said wear member being mounted upon said mounting nose, locating members insertable via respective opposed wall apertures for slidable location in said mounting aperture relative to said body member, said locating members being retainable in said assembly by a tensionable retaining member extending between said locating members whereby an enlarged free end of each locating member is engagable with a wall of a respective opposed wall aperture.

2. The excavator tooth assembly of claim 1 , wherein said mounting aperture has a generally oval shaped cross section.

3. The excavator tooth assembly of claim 1 , wherein said mounting aperture has a generally tear drop shaped cross section.

4. The excavator tooth assembly of claim 1 , wherein said opposed wall apertures have a generally oval shaped cross section.

5. The excavator tooth assembly of claim 1 , wherein a longitudinal dimension of said opposed wall apertures is greater than a longitudinal dimension of said mounting aperture.

6. The excavator tooth assembly of claim 1 , wherein at least a portion of a wall of at least one of said opposed wall apertures has an inwardly convergent tapered portion.

7. The excavator tooth assembly of claim 1 , wherein said body member has a body aperture extending longitudinally thereof and is adapted to receive said tensionable retaining member.

8. The excavator tooth assembly of claim 1 , wherein said enlarged free end of each said locating member is formed from an inwardly convergent wedge portion each adapted to abut and engage said wall of said respective opposed wall aperture.

9. The excavator tooth assembly of claim 1 , wherein said tensionable retaining member comprises a screw threaded fastener, one of said locating members having a slotted aperture adapted to captively retain said screw threaded fastener therein.

10. A retaining pin assembly for an excavator tooth assembly, said retaining pin assembly comprising:

a body member being configured to be non-rotatably located within a transversely extending mounting aperture of a mounting nose of an excavator prior to a wear member being mounted upon said mounting nose;

opposable locating members each comprising a shank portion slidably insertable via a respective retaining pin aperture on opposite sides of the wear member into the transversely extending mounting aperture of the mounting nose, said locating members each having an enlarged inwardly convergent tapered wedge portion adjacent a normally outer end of a respective locating member; and

a tensionable retaining member extending between said opposable locating members from one side of said retaining pin assembly whereby said body member is located intermediate of said locating members and tension applied to said retaining member causes relative contraction of said locating members to urge said wear member into engagement with said mounting nose by wedging engagement between each said wedge portion and a rear wall of respective retaining pin apertures.

11. The retaining pin assembly of claim 10 , wherein each said shank portion and said transversely extending mounting aperture are of a non-circular cross sectional shape.

12. The retaining pin assembly of claim 10 , wherein said body member comprises an aperture extending longitudinally thereof adapted to receive said tensionable retaining member.

13. The retaining pin assembly of claim 10 , wherein said body member and said mounting aperture are of complimentary non-circular cross sectional shape.

14. The retaining pin assembly of claim 10 , wherein said body member comprises a longitudinally extending body aperture adapted to slidably receive in opposite ends thereof a respective shank portion of said locating members.

15. The retaining pin assembly of claim 10 , wherein said body aperture comprises a centrally located abutment.

16. The retaining pin assembly of claim 10 , wherein said tensionable retaining member comprises a screw threaded fastener.

17. The retaining pin assembly of claim 15 , wherein one of said locating members has a slotted aperture adapted to captively retain said screw threaded fastener therein.

18. The retaining pin assembly of claim 15 , wherein a driver engagable head of said screw threaded fastener is accessible via a longitudinally extending bore extending at least partially between opposed longitudinal ends of one of said locating members.

19. A method of removably securing a wear member to a projecting mounting nose of a digging edge of an excavator, said method including the steps of:

inserting a body member within a mounting aperture of said mounting nose prior to said wear member being located upon said mounting nose;

locating on said mounting nose, the wear member having opposed wall apertures at least partially alignable with the mounting aperture of said mounting nose;

inserting through one said opposed wall aperture, a locating member having a screw-threaded aperture at an inner end and an enlarged outer end thereof;

inserting through an opposite opposed wall aperture, a further locating member such that said body member is located intermediate of said locating members, said further locating member having a screw-threaded fastener located therein, a said further locating member, a drivable head of said screw-threaded fastener being accessible via a bore extending through an enlarged outer end of said further locating member; and,

coupling said screw-threaded fastener with said screw-threaded aperture of said one locating member whereby tensioning of said screw-threaded member causes relative contraction between said one locating member and said further locating member to prevent disengagement of said wear member.

20. The method of claim 19 , wherein said enlarged outer end of each said locating member includes an inwardly convergent tapered portion which engages against a respective wall of said opposed wall apertures in said wear member to urge said wear member into engagement with said nose when said screw threaded fastener is tensioned.

21. The method of claim 20 , wherein said opposed wall apertures include a complementary tapered portion to abut and engage with a respective tapered portion of a said locating member to urge said wear member into engagement with said nose when said screw threaded fastener is tensioned.