Need opinions on axle rebuild priority (1 Viewer)

[Phares]

I'm going to do a lift this year and then new wheels 33/35 after that. Should I do the axle rebuild when I do the lift? It seems like you're working with a lot of the same components and in the same area but I haven't read about this situation specifically. So what is everyone's thoughts? Or can I do the axle rebuild down the road without redoing work?

 

[Howard705]

Repack the bearings/birfields-replace all the seals/wipers-inspect it all. Do it at recommended mileage. How long since you last did this?

 

[bass 1]

The only trouble you would save yourself would be removing the wheels....

I'd tackle one task at a time, in case you run into an issue.

Also if there is suddenly a new noise or vibration, you'll know which project is causing the problem.

 

[jfz80]

That right there^^^
Just the wheels and jack stand steps are shared. You'll want all day for the axle rebuild by itself. Order is up to you and condition of the axle is say but you know once you get new tires and a lift your going to wanna go play instead of wrench.

 

[Howard705]

Unless pinion/carrier bearings-gears are bad you dont need a rebuilt. Clean- INSPECT-repack-reseal outers.

 

[stevezero]

If your birfs are clicking, make sure you swap them over from one side to the other during the rebuild. It will buy you some time. I built a nice plywood jig, with holes labeled for which birf went where.....of course, in my haste, I put them right back in the same holes they came out of. That was about 80k ago. This time around, I'll make sure I swap them over.

 

[Phares]

I've never done this but I've only had the truck for 18 months and about 6 of that its been out of commission for jobs. I'll order the parts when I order the lift but heed the advice given and do the jobs seperately to ensure proper diagnosis of any problems. I am sure it is due. The back side of my wheels are nasty greasy. I'll take a picture tomorrow for clarity. Thanks for everyone's thoughts.

 

[bass 1]

Within the past month I've installed a lift and rebuilt the front axle on my 80. Here are a few notes from my experience:
Lift:
-I had to cut the top shock nuts on the front. I used a dremel and split the nut, then it spun off freely. I had tried vice grips on the shock shaft... they spun before I could get enough torque to break the nut free.
-When removing the rear sway bar mounts from the frame, 2 of the 4 bolts snapped in half. Had to drill and re-tap the holes.
-Took me roughly 5 hours to do all 4 springs and shocks. If I were to do it again, I could probably knock that down to 3 hours or less.
-If you have an OME kit... dont mix up driver and passenger side. "A" springs go on the right side of the car (passenger side for US), "B" springs go on left side (driver side for US). In Aussie-land the truck is right hand drive, hence being "A" side.

Axle rebuild:
-One side was decent... a little dry, but in good shape. The other was soupy and grease was leaking out. It was real runny inside the birf housing (menaing the axle seal was bad and leaking diff oil into the birf).
-First side took maybe 5 hours, second side took 2 or 3.
-HAVE A HEAVY (3lb or more) HAMMER! I had just gotten one for Christmas and that thing saved my butt a dozen times during the axle rebuild.
-You will make a mess... lay cardboard all over your garage floor to protect it. As soon as you feel good about getting everything nice and clean, you have to pack bearings and pack the birfs with grease... clean grease, but still messy as hell.
-Just follow the youtube videos, forum guides that people have posted, and FSM.... no tough to reach bolts or rocket science... just attention to detail.

Good luck
If you get stuck don't hesitate to post here or PM me.

 

[stevezero]

Get the full rebuild kit with rotors and pads, trunion bearings, wheel bearings from one of our esteemed vendors. Plenty of us have the big socket for the hub nuts. Get new cone washers as well.

Romer had a 47 page thread on step by step axle rebuild. My daughter and I used that to do mine. I printed it out, put it in a 3 ring binder in plastic document sleeves.

Get soem abs or pvc pipe to use to separate the shafts from the birfs. place a towel in the bottom of the pipe, then remove the c clip, slide the axle into the pipe with the birf outside, and slam it down. Axle shaft will pop out and hit the towel and not mar it.

important tools: Brass Drift or brass hammer to smack the cone washers out. Seal puller, a bazilllion rolls of paper towels. single edge razor blades, plastic putty knives to scrape remaining gasket material away.

 

[spartan]

Ditto - important tools: Brass Drift or brass hammer to smack the cone washers out. Seal puller, a bazilllion rolls of paper towels. single edge razor blades, plastic putty knives to scrape remaining gasket material away. Don't forget all the grease you will need in tubs - not tubes - and the SST for the job.

If you have never done this, give yourself about three or four days to do it your self - each axle. Three to five days with help from someone else who has no clue and two days working with someone who has done it before. You have parts that need to soak overnight for cleaning before reassembly anyway.

My best tips - when reinserting the axle shafts, have someone else rotate the front drive shaft back and forth to get easy alignment on the long side axle insertion, get the c-ring removal pliers I mention later, you don't have to disconnect the front tie rod to do this job and you don't HAVE to disassemble the birfs unless there is a problem with them - simply soak in solvent overnight in a 5 gallon bucket, clean, regrease and put 'em back in.

Marlin Crawler sells a snap ring plier that will help and different axle seals to consider. I think they also have the SST. Longfield sells a poly grease retaining ring that replaces the felt. I have used the product with excellent results. Something to consider. Marlin also has complete rebuild kits to consider if you want to go that direction.

Beno or CDan will easily put together a complete package of parts ready to go and are established contributors to the 80 forum from forever. Both are forum sponsors. Don't even worry about a list, just tell them what you need to do.

Good luck.

 

[spartan]

Oh yeah - you need to do the job sooner than later and right the first time. Then about every 50K miles going forward. Have fun.