aaahh the wonders of being obsessive compulsive.... hey guys and gals just wanted to get some ideas from you, first im just going to tell you that i look after my truck like everyone here does and theres not much we don't know about our trucks from driving them, how they feel on the road sounds vibrations etc. well after work today i got this feeling in my feet that something is not the same as when i drove the truck this morning so i crawled under the truck to see what i might find.... nothing that i can tell is amiss. my truck was in for her check up not to long ago and everything checked out the mechanic said there was very very slight play in the right tie rod but that it was so slight. now i am not sure if that is what is causing this difference in the truck but im hoping you all can give me some info that can help me eliminate some things. first there is no mods to the truck other then i put 33s on and chipped it. i have had to fix the passenger side hub because the needle bearings blew apart inside the housing. that got fixed now i am a little curious about the front diff how should the shafts on both sides feel when spinning them?? when i spin the driver side shaft it spins fairly smooth, and it also spins the transfer case shaft. the passenger side is tougher to spin but is free and it doesn't spin the transfer case shaft, i am assuming that is normal but just want to clarify to make sure. both shafts have a bit of a flat spot when spinning not sure how else to describe it. there are rubber rings on both shafts and are just hanging there is this also normal? that covers the hubs now what should i be looking for on the tie rods, steering stabilizer? im not strong in this part of the truck so nows a great time for me to ask and learn.


all this from a feeling in my feet, i just dont like surprises so im just making sure i dont have any and yet any vehicle you own will give you surprises just a matter of taking care of it or neglecting it.

thank you for the help and hope to get some feed back

 

those rubber ring are your axel dust seals, well whats left of them one of mine did the same thing

 

well the dust caps have been gone, i have seen alot of trucks with them hanging like mine so i thought nothing of it.

 

do i want to know what this has done to my axle?

 

shoud be fine keep out the big stuff from getting to the seals. if you look close part of that dust shield is still in there.