Who needs aerodynamics, when you have gunkodynamics??

 

Oddly enough, the majority of the gunk was on the passenger's side. Don't know why, but it was at least an inch thick over there. The brake backing plate was smooth, and the recesses were filled to well over an inch. At first I thought it was due to the plugged vent, but that wouldn't account for it on the axle tube, just on the backing plate, and mainly the lower part of that.

But, now I'm remembering what the PO said, that the truck was used to haul hay. So, I'm wondering if it is more mud and grass and ...... "other" stuff instead of grease or oil. I actually used a cold chisel and a mallet on some of it as the putty knife didn't want to penetrate it. Hardest stuff I've seen under a vehicle.

 

And, this may be the best-preserved '81 rear axle in existence. The gunk kept the elements off it quite well.

 

The same thing happened to my F150. The rear axle is clean, and the front cross-member/steering linkage/power steering pump/steering gearbox/etc are all near perfect.

 

Muck just holds the salt on up here.

Gary, It really is amazing how good it all looks under there!
I know it's a lot of work.

 

It is a lot of work, and I keep asking myself why I'm spending so much time on a truck I'm going to sell. But, I work cheaply, so it isn't costing much. I enjoy really making a difference, and it is easy to make a difference on this truck.

I took a peek today at the pressure plate and clutch, even though they are still mounted on the flywheel. Both are Sachs brand and are in good shape from what I can tell.

And, I looked at the shocks as well, discovering that they are relatively new and are Monro-matic Plus.

 

I do believe you've independently discovered Cosmoline.

 

Gary I was going to ask you if you wanted James to cull through the parts that cant be used anymore just to get them out of the tub? There is a set of side gears in there that is totally shot. The last R&P is just about worhtless and the only spiders left are very very questionable. The only good parts left in the bucket would be the carrier and case. We have done a number on the bucket O parts. I think you have gotten all of the good out of it. It was a good thing you kept the other donor parts whenever you had Dad's diff done b/c they worked well in Rusty's rear end. James claims this rear end for Rusty shouldnt have a problem going 20 yrs under normal circumstances. He also said the diff set up just as easy as the last one. This doesnt mean the chances of having gear noise are obsolete , but , he didnt see or feel anything that made him think it will be noisey. We did everything we could to match all of the old bearings with their original races. We had a 50/50 shot at getting them right. However, we did a little comparison to see which ones felt tighter against each other. Even if they were mismatched it shouldnt take but a little wear to seat them together. The used bearings looked good. There wasnt a lot of pitting or any gaulding. The bearing surface on the tip of the pinion shaft didnt look perfect, but , it looked a lot better than Dad's old pinion shaft.

Once again the build inspired confidence with James and thats good enough for me.

 

I think you are right! Wikipedia says old Cosmoline has to be scraped off. It also says it has a petroleum-like odor and taste, but I'm not about to try that test. Truthfully, it reminded me of what you find under your mower deck at the start of the next season if you forget to clean it out.

As said in the text, please toss what isn't usable. And, it sounds like it will be everything Rusty needs. I truly appreciate the help you and James have given. Thanks!

 

The funny thing is, the junk on my rear axle carrier did smell like petroleum.

 

But, how did it taste???

Does anyone here remember the fish oil smelling stuff that used to come on machine tools out of Asia???
I'll take Soviet era cosmoline on a 40 year old SKS any day over that.

 

I didn't "bite" on that test. Not a chance after remembering it was used in a pasture.

Yes, I remember that stuff. Used to use gasoline to cut it. Tried WD40 but it wouldn't do it. Acetone cut it and the paint as well.

I didn't use anything to soften this stuff as it came off fairly completely by scraping and chiseling. Then when I got it pretty well off I did try brake cleaner and it didn't touch it. Doesn't act at all like caked-on grease and dirt, although what was on the tranny & t-case did soften with brake cleaner.

 

Got the diff from Bruno's friend today. Same guy that did Dad's diff, which has absolutely no noise. This one looks good as well.

As said, we are headed to KS to see Dad tomorrow, and with all that is going on at/with church on Sunday I may not get back to Rusty until Monday. But, just a bit of last-minute cleanup and everything is ready to go back into the axle housing, so maybe less than a day.

Then the measurements, including drawing the bell housing and all the bits up since I usually discover I've missed some measurements when I do the drawing. Once that is done I can put things back together. But, I realize that I need the clutch alignment tool - is there a kit of those or do you have to buy them for each transmission's input shaft?

 

I think you can just by them individually at the parts store. I dont know of a kit, not saying there isnt though. A lot of times they come with a clutch kit when you buy it. I know Rusty's clutch is fine and there isnt a need for the kit. James has two gigantic key rings (looks like the old jail house key rings) of line up tools that he has collected over the yrs from the clutch kits. If you would have been thinking about it I know he would let you borrow both rings to do the install.

I am curious about the ZF you are going to swap in. The bigger ZF for the diesel doesnt really require the line up tool. I have done 2 or 3 and havent needed a line up. So I understand you need one for Rusty's clutch to go back in , but , you may not require one for the ZF swap.

 

They usually come with a clutch kit.

I have a collection.
The 460 ZF is 1 1/4" x 10 splines IIRC.