i'm about to head to my buddies garage. got new rotors for the front warped buggers.. ive never done rotors on a 4wd.. i have a print out from alldata that gives me directions, but i noticed on here that some people say that there is a special tool? is this the case? it seams that all i should have to do is pull the torx bolts that hold on the cover, remove the snap ring, the lock ring, and remove thewhole locking hub body.. and that will give me acess to the rotor... i dont see what special tool i would actually need. i dont want to get halfway through and find out i need to go buy something i dont have..

is it as easy as i think it will be, or am i missing something?

thanks!!!

 

It's never as easy as you think it will be. You're forgetting that the hub doesn't hold the rotor onto the spindle. You have to remove the spindle locknuts, which does require the special tool. You have a Dana 50, so make sure to get the larger Dana 50/Dana 60 one. I got mine at Kragen a few years ago, but any good auto parts store should have one.

 

silly me! of course it wont be easy!

im not forgetting anything, i know nothing about front rotors on a 4wd to forget! what is the tool called? and can i rent/borrow them from autozone?

thanks!

 

It's called a spindle nut socket. Mine wasn't very expensive, I doubt they rent them.

This will come in handy, too: http://www.off-road.com/trucks4x4/ar....jsp?id=198389

 

Got mine for the front of my F-150(Dana 44 axle) for 16 bucks at Advance. Just buy it, then you can bum a lunch off any buddies with the same front end later on down the road for letting them borrow it.

 

on my way to buy it now... one other thing im worried about is the rotors are just the rotors.. apparently they can be purchaced as a preassembled kit with the bearings or something? that worries me. this could be a lot harder than i think. or thought anyways.

gotta get this done by wednesday!! arggh!

 

also,, thanks a ton for these quick replies! its really gonna be saving my rear tonight!

 

You will have to pound the lugs out in order to separate the old rotors from the hub body (the metal thing that sticks out from the wheel opening). There are two ways to put the lugs back in - I would recommend new studs, especially if you live in PA - either by pounding them back in or by pulling them in from the front with a 1/2" impact. Either method will warp the new rotors, there isn't any way around that. So you should have them turned before you install them again.

Buying pre-assembled rotors is WAY easier.

 

I reused my studs, and pounded them through after thoroughly cleaning the face of the hub where it touches the hub. If there's any warping, it's relatively insignificant on my install, but I took a good long time working them on in evenly. If you get everything this far apart, it's a good time to repack your bearings anyway.

 

got em on. first side took forever, second side, quick as heck.

still have a wicked brake pulse though. i wonder if it could be the rear drums? it seems like replacing the rotors did absolutely nothing...

when i press the brakes in, the brakes pulse, and the whole truck shakes. when i push in the clutch while braking the transmission clanks around a whole lot. i was thinking that it would be the drums because it was sending the pulses up the drivetrain and into the tranny.. causing the clanking.. figure if it was the front there wouldnt be any change between clutch in or out? make sense? accurate diagnostic?

my friend/mechanic told me he thought it was the front rotors. didnt ask him why cause he doesnt usually steer me wrong, but it seems that it wasnt the front rotors...

 

When it pulsates, do you feel it in the steering wheel or in the seat of your pants? What brand of pads & rotors did you go with? Sometimes cheap rotors will transfer material from the pads due to heat and it can feel a lot like a pulsation.

 

(Takin a shot in the dark here, so watch your heads...)
I'm thinking a bent axle shaft, Rt side or Left side, ??? Wouldn't that make the rotor 'wobble', even slightly to feel in the pedal? (The trans/motor mounts def have to be looked at, man.) I would lift the front of the rig, and spin the wheels paying attention to the rim, for any play.,with the fronts locked. (Or does it happen regardless?) Just trying to help here...

 

when it pulsates its not in the steering wheel. its through the entire truck. including the seat of my pants. if im just slightly on the brakes i can feel it in the pedal itself.. it moves in and out ever so slightly.. but if im actually slowing down, its almost violent...

it happens no matter what. if im turning, going straight, you name it.

dont know what the brand is. my buddy got them and was planning on doing them in his shop, but then didnt get to it so he passed it on to me. probably napa bought, but who knows the brand.

 

Sounds like drums. Have em cut.

 

no time to get em cut.. can anyone else verify this? if it sounds to you guys like its likely to be the drums, ill go pick up a pair.

heading to the mountains tomorrow and really need this truck on the road.