DRIVING VIDEO
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Elder User
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 881
Likes: 1
From: Sudbury, ONT.
DRIVING VIDEO
How much diff rotation is too much? My truck has been eating u-joints for two years since I installed the DJM lowering kit. I've had a new drive shaft made and re-welded my spring perches to correct my pinion angle. Still, my truck gets 3-500 miles out of a u-joint. This one lasted three weeks. One thing I also did when installing the DJM kit was I removed the thick helper spring from the bottom of the leaf pack. Now I'm wondering if removing that spring is allowing my diff to twist too much under acceleration, thus creating a bad u-joint angle. I strapped my go-pro to the bottom of the truck and went for a drive. You can see the pinion twisting up under acceleration and the driveshaft disappears up behind my exhaust system. You can also hear the u-joint squeaking and crunching. Is that too much twist or is it acceptable???
Posting Guru
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 1,650
Likes: 16
From: DFW Texas
That does seem to be the case. Put a set of cal-tracs on to see if it will stop the twist??? Or put the helper back on? I would assume you did the lowering shackle? You may need to put the stock shackles back on and do the axle flip to use the cal-tracs; I;m not sure though.
Also, can you post pics of the truck? Mercury!
Also, can you post pics of the truck? Mercury!
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Elder User
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 881
Likes: 1
From: Sudbury, ONT.
That does seem to be the case. Put a set of cal-tracs on to see if it will stop the twist??? Or put the helper back on? I would assume you did the lowering shackle? You may need to put the stock shackles back on and do the axle flip to use the cal-tracs; I;m not sure though.
Also, can you post pics of the truck? Mercury!
Also, can you post pics of the truck? Mercury!
Logistics Pro
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 4,651
Likes: 60
From: Hemet ca.
Your truck is a long bed, correct? If so shouldn't it have a two piece drive shaft?
Did you do away with the carrier bearing two piece drive shaft?
I can't tell by your video if it's one or two piece.
Looking at your gallery I'm guessing long bed.
Did you do away with the carrier bearing two piece drive shaft?
I can't tell by your video if it's one or two piece.
Looking at your gallery I'm guessing long bed.
Logistics Pro
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 4,762
Likes: 54
From: Antelope Valley ,CA
Most likely problem pinion angle is wrong since lowering , pinion angle puts pressure on u joint so the needle bearings spin , wrong angle and no or too little spin and your u joints fail prematurely . I had this issue on a lowered 65 mustang fastback .
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Elder User
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 881
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From: Sudbury, ONT.
). 20 years ago, I did replace the original two piece drive shaft with a one piece shaft. I never had any problems with u-joints until I lowered the truck. After I put the DJM kit in, I used shims to correct the pinion angle, but it kept eating u-joints. I assumed it was because I still hadn't got the proper pinion angle. So, last month I cut the spring perches off the diff and welded in a new set, correcting the pinion angle. I measured many times to make sure I had the correct angle (-4 at the trans, +4 at the pinion). Sometimes I wish I would just leave stuff original, instead of having to modify everything!!!
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Logistics Pro
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Elder User
Joined: Dec 2006
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From: Sudbury, ONT.
I was able to shorten the original video. Now it's only a minute long and you get a better idea of what I'm talking about. I'm thinking a set of Cal-Tracs would solve this problem. What do you guys think?
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Elder User
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 881
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From: Sudbury, ONT.
I installed another u-joint this afternoon. Does anybody here use Cal-Tracs on their truck that could give some tips to properly ordering a set? I went to the web site and it looks like you simply fill out an order form with all your vehicles specs. It seems simple enough, but I want to make sure there's no tricks to ordering these.
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