I couldn't turn the shafts at all by hand I couldnt even turn them with a pair of Channel Lock Pliers. I then decided to remove the spindles and assess further the condition of the axle shaft U-Joints. Getting the spindles off was no small task. Each side took almost 30 minutes of heat, penetrating oil, a huge wheel puller and a moderate amount of BFH. The Right side gave me the most grief. After removing the spindles the rest came out very easy. snip off the Oetiker Clip on the Right side shaft and all pulls out of the hole in the Steering knuckle. Before I disassemble the shafts I always mark them so that they go back together the same way. I used a center punch and made two hits for the right side shaft and one hit for the left side shaft. The left side comes free by pulling the shaft out of the Dana 50. As soon as I removed the shafts I could see why the shafts were not turning freely. The shafts came out frozen in the position they were last in. The Universal Joints had been frozen solid in one phase and had an 1/8" of play in the other phase. In layman's terms these babies were toast. Removing those U-Joints was next.
I removed the U-Joints with very little problem. The hardest part of this operation was getting the old external clips out of the yoke. Once again heat and penetrating oil did the trick. (You may want to mark your shafts before removing the U-Joints.) There are three U-Joints on this application and two them are on the shafts. The last one remains in the truck and is difficult to remove even with the proper U-Joint tool. There is not much room to work the tool in and I believe that raising the right side beam may give you some additional room to get the joint out and affixed in place without excessive interference. This original third joint was actually in good condition, but I chose to replace it with a zerk type U-Joint to avoid a repeat of this job in the future. I always like to clean up the parts that I have removed as best I can and make them look like new. I have a small sandblaster and did a quick cleanup on all the axles shafts and yokes to remove much of the rust and scale. Remember to use duct tape or similar to block any openings where you do not want the sand to go. I do not recommend sandblasting the riding surfaces of the spindle or the threaded end. I taped mine from threaded end to the middle of the seal seat, as sand and bearings do compliment each other. This is also the reason why I did not sandblast the steering knuckles, half shaft yoke left in the Dana 50 and the Brake drum and hub. I then wash the sandblasted parts in Hot soapy water and rinsed them with hot water. I allow the parts to dry in a warm spot and then paint them. This protects them from rust and allows for a very clean assembly.
Assembling the Shafts: When I assemble the Yokes and U- Joints I always will use Anti-Seize to help lubricate the assembly and to prevent the seizure of rusted parts, in case this job ever needs to be done again. I liberally paint the Anti-Seize onto the mating surface on the yoke making sure that the clip groove is liberally covered. I then proceed to install the U-Joints. You can use a vise and some impact sockets to do the job. I wouldn't use regular sockets as they are hardened and may send a chip flying when you apply the pressure. I used a U-Joint tool. It Looks like a big C-Clamp and is available for Under 50 bucks in either Northern Hydraulics or Harbor Freight. Do Not use Anti-Seize to lubricate anything other than bolt threads and certain press fit applications. Its use is basically to keep metal parts from and corroding together. It is not designed to be a lubricant like grease. The slip joint in the Right side axle shaft requires lubrication, and I used Mobil 1 synthetic grease for this. Be careful with the female side of this slip joint as it has a small seal on the end that can be damaged. Once you slide the slip joint together you will need to replace the clamps on the slip joint boot. I went with the original Oetiker clamps. I had a dog of a time finding them but I believe they are the best way of keeping the boot watertight. I do not recommend the use of the universal type clamps as they do not tighten as well as the Oetikers do.
Spindles: My Spindles had some surface corrosion on the riding surfaces that I removed with a fine steel wool. I cleaned out the roller bearings inside the spindle, inspected them for damage and re-packed them. It takes about 7 pumps of grease from the typical grease gun to provide enough grease to pack these bearings. So don't be stingy. Pack the bearing by pressing your finger into the grooves between the bearings to get the grease all the way down into the bearing. Rotate the bearing as you are performing this packing operation. Prior to installing the shafts I wire brushed the steering knuckle mounting bolts and mating surfaces, I sandblasted the mating surface of the drum brake shield, and then installed the spindle back onto the steering knuckle using Anti-Seize on all of the mating areas and on all of the studs and nuts. . Do not forget to replace the yoke seals (Called Rotating Diaphragm Seal, in the Service Manual) and spread a film of grease on the inner lip of the seal. These seals are little difficult to find and you may have to wait a day or so to get them. I had to cross reference mine as there was no re- using them. Both of them were pretty chopped due to the frozen U-Joints.
I proceeded to examine the bearings and races after a very thorough cleaning of the hub. I was able to see immediately that one bearing was wasted and exposed to high heat. It had very little grease in it and it was discolored to a slightly blue color. The other three I replaced because of scoring on the races and some pitting on the bearings. One of those bearings was completely brown with rust upon removal. After replacing all four races. I brought the Discs to the machine shop for resurfacing. It is very important to lock down at least one of the lug nuts onto the hub to keep the rotor from moving off the hub from the vibrations or pressure of the cutting machine. After getting the rotors and hubs turned I clean out the hub again with Brakeleen and blow out any chips that may have found their way into the hub. I then packed the bearings with Mobil-1 synthetic replaced the Grease seals and then mounted and installed the hubs and discs as the service manual instructed. I also purchased new disc pads. I prefer OEM pads due to my experience with aftermarket pads but unfortunately had to go with Raybestos due to availability problems at my local Ford Dealer and a FUBAR ordering problem.
The best part of this job is the satisfaction of knowing that I have a dependable 4 wheel drive axle now. I love my Warn Premium Manuals and I cannot say enough about what an easy job it is to swap out the autos. It can be done by anyone with very few tools needed. I did not require a retrofit kit for mine and the hubs go in like a dream. It basically comes down to placing the hub in affixing the small snap ring and the outer hub ring, then bolt on the outer cover. It is that easy. I like the classic look of the Warn Premiums and the Gold middle with black lettering gives it a nice look. I think it is worth the extra 20 bucks. Plus no plastic. I also like the 350 degree twist as opposed to the 90 degree twist.
本文转自：China Industry News