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So as I did my ball joints this week I ran into an interesting dilema.
I have a F250 4x4 Dana 44 front end.
The lock that you need the special tool for on the driver side came out as a whole piece the lock and the gear assembly that it seats against; however, on the driver side it came out the "nut" and that I had to fish out the remeinder of the assembly, the part that seats against the bearing, are they suppose to come out into two different pieces or is that something that I should replace sometime soon? the spring was inside, the gears are not worn out, just one came out together and the other did not???
Any problems like that anyone?
I'm at a loss here. I am sorry but I can not follow you here. So the nut on the spindle that locks your bearings in place and sets your preload is bad or are you talking about the hub part that locks the axle shaft to the wheel hub to drive your front tires? If you can post pictures that will help out.
What it sounds like to me is that someone swapped locknuts on one side with a different style. Ford used two different spindle locknut setups and you're describing both of them.
One design is a locknut set in a ring and it ratchets as you get it tighter.
And the other consists of two locknuts with a perforated washer in between them.
I prefer the first style (which is actually the newer one, sometime between 1986 and 1989 Ford went to this setup) because getting the pin on the outside of the inner locknut to line up with the hole in the washer in the other setup can be an immense pain in the ***.
I am talking about the one that does have a ratchets as you tighten. the one on the driver side when I pulled it out the ratched gear was attached to the front part attaches to the tool, the part with the thread and the part that seat agains the bearing was one piece, but on the passenger side I had the nut and the ratched gear as two different pieces as if had come appart.... man if I only had a camera!
Oh I see.... You should replace the one that fell apart then. Get one from a pick-n-pull yard if you can. I would rather get a used from from a junkyard than a new one from anywhere.
I'm not sure what might happen. But the way I look at it is this: If something comes off my truck in two pieces that was originally installed as one piece, I consider it broken and I will replace it.
I'm not sure what might happen. But the way I look at it is this: If something comes off my truck in two pieces that was originally installed as one piece, I consider it broken and I will replace it.
Call me paranoid.
To be honest, there's nothing keeping them together other than friction and force. Two pieces is fine...it's how they are made.
Well I did not try to pull the other apart to see if it would come apart, the gear system inside does nothing more nothing less than to keep the bearing assembled together so if it does have the right pressure holding together I believe it should be fine taking her out to the Everglades on Thursday so I can do a photo shoot will let you all know how it works out...