How do I know when it's time to re-build my knuckles?
Time to re-build knuckles?? (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Paul
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rkymtnflyfisher
Trout Bum
If they leak all over the axle, they make wierd noises, or you can't remember the last time you did it.
Tapage
Club 4X4 Panamá
if yours looks like this one ..
Well to be honest there is a time to rebuild but that is after you inspect them and do the needed maintenance. The inspection will tell you what you need to do. Inspect them and look for leaks and with truck supported with the weight off the wheel have someone grab the top and bottom of the wheel and alternate push pull while you watch the trunion bearings for play. Seals and bearings are all thats in there besides your birfield. I try and do it once a year if that helps.
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I go with what Ryan @rkymtnflyfisher posted. Birfield seals may leak more often, but once rebuilt, a knuckle job should last several years.
Easy check is when you're replacing tie rod ends. If you feel the knuckle 'catch' at the center point when you swivel it, unattached to the steering rod, from left to right.
Best
Mark
Easy check is when you're replacing tie rod ends. If you feel the knuckle 'catch' at the center point when you swivel it, unattached to the steering rod, from left to right.
Best
Mark
Once a year??!! That's dedication. I guess if you put 50k miles a year it'd be worth it. I do mine when it's been long enough that I've forgotten what a filthy mess the job is....and my fingernails are white again (both take about 5 years)
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Agreed. I just redid the knuckles on my blue 45 a few months ago. IIRC, the last time was in 2005, about 70,000 miles ago.
Bear Lake Cruiser
SILVER Star
I think he means perform the inspection once a year
Ahhh..that makes more sense.
I Was referring to inspecting them real close. Once a year is actually a pretty long time. I don't take anything apart unless it is broken
...Have always had bad reading comprehension...
Captn Conch
Life Begins Above Timberline.
Sggoat Gary and I are currently doing the knuckle job on my '71. Quite a learning experience. Quite a greasy dirty experience. We found a few things such as the 40 had incorrect shims in place on at least the passenger side, causing the reassembly preload to be quite high with a pull of 11 # plus, corrected by adding a .20 shim to the bottom so that shims and size the same as the top. Yahtzee! now preload about 4 lbs! So instructions say to keep track of how many and what size and location those shims are, and replace as is. Tain't necessarily so! My knuckles apparently been redone before I bought it and we found several inconsistencies that we have corrected. Well, time to start the drivers side. Should go a hell of a lot faster now with the experience thus gained! I'm so glad I decided to do the knuckle job, it was certainly overdue and a correction direly needed.
BTW Georg at Valley Hybrid has a great price on the knuckle kit and very fast shipping.
BTW Georg at Valley Hybrid has a great price on the knuckle kit and very fast shipping.
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Are you talking about your trunion bearings? If so they are not necessarily the same top to bottom. They are used to center your knuckles in relation to your axles. I might be missing something but it sounds like you have established your total shim thickness for preload and now you will need to center your knuckle.
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Thanks to everyone. any rec's on manufacturer for knuckle rebuild kit? Low range looks good. imput please.
Bear Lake Cruiser
SILVER Star
Georg st valley hybrids or Curt st cruiser outfitters
rkymtnflyfisher
Trout Bum
Cruiser Outfitters without a doubt, don't forget the inner axle clip.
I will be using Georg for parts myself. My inner seal crapped out Labor Day weekend leaving a puddle of 90 weight on the barn floor, the wipers and hub seals have been an issue for a while now, that's how I know it's time. It hasn't moved since. I will be doing a disk conversion and TREs at the same time as my 40 is an early '75. Like Conch I will be doing one side at a time and will wait for parts before I tear it apart. I have most conversion parts and Georg will be providing the rest, he is super helpful!
Thats who Ive been using for pretty much all my parts. Love just emailing them what i need with my info and having it shipped out same day (or early the next if i order late in the day).
But any vendor on here is a good choice!
I am using Marlin's HD Front Inner Axle EcoSeals on this rebuild. Interested to see how long this seal will last.
When you say trunnion, Are you referring to the birfield joint?
The bearings we had issues with were the knuckle bearings{they are both identical}-top and bottom(bottom esp)--since it was missing a .2 mm shim(guessing a long ago knuckle rebuild lost one of the shims on the bottom bearing, resulting in premature bearing wear)
The addition or deletion of shims does not impact the "center" of the axle(that is controlled by the mating in the diff- plus the knuckle spindle--these are fixed and not 'adjustable.)--it only affects the amount of torque(preload) applied to the bearing itself
