U-joints
Logistics Pro
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 4,129
Likes: 4
From: Brandon, MB
Post Fiend
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 15,505
Likes: 18
From: Livoina,La
From the link above Thanks to RubberDuck
Go, if you are still working on it relax. It's not too bad. But if you are still fighting it under the truck, your going about it wrong. Pull the shaft out of the truck. Take the 2 carrier bearing bolts out, I think they are 15mm. Then the shaft will slip out of the tailhousing of the tranny or transfercase if it's 4x4. Take it to the bench, or concrete, whatever you have to work on.
For removal, at the rear yoke, the one that's tore up. Take the free caps off. Discard them. That joint is gone. I can't believe it actually didn't fly out of the truck. Next, take the snap rings out from the top of the caps. Find something solid to rest the sholder of the yoke on. Not the driveshaft tube, the shoulder. Rest it as close to the edge of the machined surface the caps slip through, but not on it. Take a large bolt about 4 inches long, or maybe a brass drift punch. Something almost as big as the cap. Take a 2lbs hammer and start whacking. Drive the opposite cap out. Most times the cap you are hitting won't come out the center of the yoke with the cross. So you have to drive it back out the original side with the bolt, but with no cap on the side you are now hitting.
Once you have the joint out clean the insides of the yoke surface that holds the caps with scotch brite and carb cleaner. The shineyer you have this surface the easier it is to get the new cap in. No, it won't just slide in...EVER.
Place the first cap in the yoke, don't hit it yet. Now, place the cross in the middle of the yoke with one of it's ears in the cap you are trying to install. You won't be able to get the cross all the way in the cap. But it will go in there enough so that when you start tappping it in, the bearings wont fall out. You have to hold the cross in the cap while you are hitting it. But hold it loosely so when you hit it and it moves, it doesn't knock the cross out of your hand, and scatter the bearings. For this tap in process, I like to use a small ball peen hammer. Tap it in far enough for the snap ring to go in. And install the snap ring.
Now, repeat the process on the opposite side, holding the cross in the cap, but be mindfull that some is still sticking in the cap you just installed. Cuz once you start tapping the other cap, the bearings from the first cap will want to come out. So just do the best you can. If there is ample grease in the caps, they will take a pretty good whack without losing the bearings. But if you start driving the second cap in and you can't see the snap ring grove and it stops moving..... a bearing has fallen. You need to have a bench vice to get it out at this point. But we won't do that, so I won't go into how to get it out.
Now, you have both caps in and discover that the second snap ring won't go in cuz the cap isn't in far enough. But you CAN see the grove. Well, the yoke itself is stressed. How you relieve it is this. Take your 2lbs hammer and hit the shoulder of the yoke a few times. (The shoulder, not the cap surface, and not the driveshaft tube, the shoulder.) This will unstress the yoke enough to get the ring in.
That should get you going. And you can just repeat it on the other joints. But above all, make sure what you are resting on while beating it is not a critical surface i.e. the ds tube, or cap surface. And finally, make dam sure those snap rings are in place. Some will be tighter than others. I like to take a small flat blade screwdriver and use it as a punch to force the snap rings in their groves as far as possible.
Good luck man, I hope that helps some. And I'm sure I overlooked something. And this isn't the best method, but I've used it time and time again on more joints than I care to count.
Go, if you are still working on it relax. It's not too bad. But if you are still fighting it under the truck, your going about it wrong. Pull the shaft out of the truck. Take the 2 carrier bearing bolts out, I think they are 15mm. Then the shaft will slip out of the tailhousing of the tranny or transfercase if it's 4x4. Take it to the bench, or concrete, whatever you have to work on.
For removal, at the rear yoke, the one that's tore up. Take the free caps off. Discard them. That joint is gone. I can't believe it actually didn't fly out of the truck. Next, take the snap rings out from the top of the caps. Find something solid to rest the sholder of the yoke on. Not the driveshaft tube, the shoulder. Rest it as close to the edge of the machined surface the caps slip through, but not on it. Take a large bolt about 4 inches long, or maybe a brass drift punch. Something almost as big as the cap. Take a 2lbs hammer and start whacking. Drive the opposite cap out. Most times the cap you are hitting won't come out the center of the yoke with the cross. So you have to drive it back out the original side with the bolt, but with no cap on the side you are now hitting.
Once you have the joint out clean the insides of the yoke surface that holds the caps with scotch brite and carb cleaner. The shineyer you have this surface the easier it is to get the new cap in. No, it won't just slide in...EVER.
Place the first cap in the yoke, don't hit it yet. Now, place the cross in the middle of the yoke with one of it's ears in the cap you are trying to install. You won't be able to get the cross all the way in the cap. But it will go in there enough so that when you start tappping it in, the bearings wont fall out. You have to hold the cross in the cap while you are hitting it. But hold it loosely so when you hit it and it moves, it doesn't knock the cross out of your hand, and scatter the bearings. For this tap in process, I like to use a small ball peen hammer. Tap it in far enough for the snap ring to go in. And install the snap ring.
Now, repeat the process on the opposite side, holding the cross in the cap, but be mindfull that some is still sticking in the cap you just installed. Cuz once you start tapping the other cap, the bearings from the first cap will want to come out. So just do the best you can. If there is ample grease in the caps, they will take a pretty good whack without losing the bearings. But if you start driving the second cap in and you can't see the snap ring grove and it stops moving..... a bearing has fallen. You need to have a bench vice to get it out at this point. But we won't do that, so I won't go into how to get it out.
Now, you have both caps in and discover that the second snap ring won't go in cuz the cap isn't in far enough. But you CAN see the grove. Well, the yoke itself is stressed. How you relieve it is this. Take your 2lbs hammer and hit the shoulder of the yoke a few times. (The shoulder, not the cap surface, and not the driveshaft tube, the shoulder.) This will unstress the yoke enough to get the ring in.
That should get you going. And you can just repeat it on the other joints. But above all, make sure what you are resting on while beating it is not a critical surface i.e. the ds tube, or cap surface. And finally, make dam sure those snap rings are in place. Some will be tighter than others. I like to take a small flat blade screwdriver and use it as a punch to force the snap rings in their groves as far as possible.
Good luck man, I hope that helps some. And I'm sure I overlooked something. And this isn't the best method, but I've used it time and time again on more joints than I care to count.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
PAUL_2
1980 - 1986 Bullnose F100, F150 & Larger F-Series Trucks
3
Apr 27, 2001 09:02 PM
