1983 Knuckle Rebuilt Kit recommendations

[John Staton]

Well, I knew this day would come eventually. Started leaking gear oil on the passenger side so obviously my inner axle seal is failing so its time for a knuckle rebuild. Luckily, my daughter is dating a very talented mechanic who only works on classics and he is chomping at the bits to tackle this for me. I see a lot of different kits out there, and wanted to ask the group what they recommend. Any to avoid??

 

[Spike Strip]

Any of the MUD vendors will have Japanese made kits, some from Terrain Tamer. They are all good. You will probably need to buy the Marlin seals separately, unless you find a kit that includes it. Do you need bearings, too? Koyo vs Timken?

Cruiser Outfitter (cruiserteq.com)

Cruiser Brothers (I think their website is TerrainTamer usa now?)

I know Mark's Off Road includes the Marlin seals, if you ask 818-953-9230 @65swb45

You can still buy the front Axle Overhaul kit from Toyota 04434-60012/15 but it's $200 vs $75 ish or less aftermarket.

 

[John Staton]

Any of the MUD vendors will have Japanese made kits, some from Terrain Tamer. They are all good. You will probably need to buy the Marlin seals separately, unless you find a kit that includes it. Do you need bearings, too? Koyo vs Timken?

Cruiser Outfitter (cruiserteq.com)

Cruiser Brothers (I think their website is TerrainTamer usa now?)

I know Mark's Off Road includes the Marlin seals, if you ask 818-953-9230 @65swb45

You can still buy the front Axle Overhaul kit from Toyota 04434-60012/15 but it's $200 vs $75 ish or less aftermarket.

I dont know if I need bearings, but I would assume it is best just to replace everything you can once you open her up so looking to get the most complete kit possible. I didn't think to get some of these trusted shops on the phone....I have purchased from many of them over the years. I should call Valley Hybrids...they did a great job on my H55 upgrade and really walked me through it.

 

[kevin in okinawa]

you definitely should replace the bearings while it's taken apart. Gonna need a 54mm socket. A medium-sized brass drift will help with getting the cone washers out. Moly-B grease, lots of paper towels for the clean out of the hubs. The rest is done with standard tools.

 

[Spike Strip]

If you've got over 100K miles on original wheel bearings, it's cheap insurance to replace. Mine looked fine at 200K miles, they're very large bearings, but it's a messy job anyway. Cleaned and greased the old bearings and stuck in a HD freezer bag and carry as emergency spares.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

We would love to help @ Cruiser Outfitters. We have an all-Japanese kit with parts from OE manufactures such as NOK, Koyo (JTEKT) and more. We include more parts and step by step instructions in our kits too! We've been selling and installing these kits for over 30 years

4x/5x/6x/7x Series Knuckle Rebuild Kit - Fits 9/1975-12/89 4x/5x/6x/7x Series & 1979-85 PU/4RNR Disc Axle (FA7590)

4x/5x/6x/7x Series Knuckle Rebuild Kit - Fits 9/1975-12/89 4x/5x/6x/7x Series & 1979-85 PU/4RNR Disc Axle (FA7590)

cruiserteq.com

Additionally, we have any and every 'while you're in there' part and tool you may want or need. The 54mm hub socket, spring scale gauge for setting pre-load, knuckle alignment tool, birfs, shafts, drive flanges, etc... everything.

Let us know if we can help!

 

[John Staton]

We would love to help @ Cruiser Outfitters. We have an all-Japanese kit with parts from OE manufactures such as NOK, Koyo (JTEKT) and more. We include more parts and step by step instructions in our kits too! We've been selling and installing these kits for over 30 years

4x/5x/6x/7x Series Knuckle Rebuild Kit - Fits 9/1975-12/89 4x/5x/6x/7x Series & 1979-85 PU/4RNR Disc Axle (FA7590)

4x/5x/6x/7x Series Knuckle Rebuild Kit - Fits 9/1975-12/89 4x/5x/6x/7x Series & 1979-85 PU/4RNR Disc Axle (FA7590)

cruiserteq.com

Additionally, we have any and every 'while you're in there' part and tool you may want or need. The 54mm hub socket, spring scale gauge for setting pre-load, knuckle alignment tool, birfs, shafts, drive flanges, etc... everything.

Let us know if we can help!

Thanks....will reach out very soon....

 

[bhsdriller]

Cruiser Outfitters is my go to i've gotten 5 or so from them now

 

[Lead Head]

Do yourself a favor and pick up an air hammer with a flat-head hammer bit if you don't already have one. I found the cone washers to be absolute nightmare to get out using "conventional" means. But a half-second blast of the air hammer on the outside of the hub around each cone washer instantly popped them out.

 

[Dumpolina]

Don’t beat on the outside of the hub at the cone washer taper. Please

 

[klip]

Cruiser Outfitters is my go to i've gotten 5 or so from them

Same here. Cruiser Outfitters is awesome! Great parts and customer service. They make it easy, and I always get the right parts.

 

[John Staton]

I did source all of what I needed from Cruiser Outfitters. The job took way longer than expected and my daughter BF, who works at a customer car shop, did the work. It was his first time to do these and he recorded the work with his google glasses and I will post the video when done. Since he is used to doing A+ work at a custom hot rod shop he didnt just do the upgrade......he cleaned it up meticulously and painted it. Looks Great. He wants to rebuild my steering box next, which has leaked since I bought the truck. Already ordered the rebuild kit and let my daughter know that she cannot break up with him until it is done

 

[klip]

Looks great! Definitely keep him around until the steering box is resealed

 

[John Staton]

Question- there is a service bolt on top of the knuckle that can be removed so you can add grease....is this something that is done at some service interval? wonder why they wouldn't have put a zerk on the top so you could add some with a grease gun. Might be a dumb question, but would make sense to me.

 

[bhsdriller]

I've never added any to my cruisers but that's the idea. You can put some grease in a bag with a hole and like pipe it in if needed.
Using a zip tie to stick in and gauge for grease

 

[Pighead]

Question- there is a service bolt on top of the knuckle that can be removed so you can add grease....is this something that is done at some service interval?

It's been a few years since my last knuckle job, I have a run coming up, thought I'd check. Made a dipstick out of a zip-tie. Good looking grease with no sign of oil contamination. I sleep better at night.

 

[Godwin]

I did source all of what I needed from Cruiser Outfitters. The job took way longer than expected and my daughter BF, who works at a customer car shop, did the work. It was his first time to do these and he recorded the work with his google glasses and I will post the video when done. Since he is used to doing A+ work at a custom hot rod shop he didnt just do the upgrade......he cleaned it up meticulously and painted it. Looks Great. He wants to rebuild my steering box next, which has leaked since I bought the truck. Already ordered the rebuild kit and let my daughter know that she cannot break up with him until it is done

View attachment 4144202

You should trim those u-bolts because they can catch a rock or other obstacle, but if you never leave the pavement you're good.

 

[Godwin]

It's been a few years since my last knuckle job, I have a run coming up, thought I'd check. Made a dipstick out of a zip-tie. Good looking grease with no sign of oil contamination. I sleep better at night.

View attachment 4144443

I'm not sure that zip tie method is a good way to check grease level. Grease is going to just be sticking to knuckle innards unlike oil which would drain down. If I want to add grease I will stick the end of a grease gun in a pump it until grease begins to push out.

 

[Pighead]

I'm not sure that zip tie method is a good way to check grease level.

I suppose I could have used a twig to check the grease in the ball, I was more interested in the presence and consistency of the grease rather than the depth. While holding a candle up to the hole and peeking in I could see a nice even thick coating of grease on the birf. No sign of the birf soup so I assume the inner seal is still good. Naturally, I gave each side a little tube of grease, while I was in there, but I'm not sure that filling it up to overflowing is a good idea. I've always heard to leave some open space for grease expansion or somesuch theoretical science reason.

 

[brownbear]

Question- there is a service bolt on top of the knuckle that can be removed so you can add grease....is this something that is done at some service interval? wonder why they wouldn't have put a zerk on the top so you could add some with a grease gun. Might be a dumb question, but would make sense to me.

If I recall, earlier models used gear oil in the hubs, not grease, so it was for topping them up. There is no need to add grease in there, it might not even get to the internal parts of the bird.
I've always kind of believed a small axle seal leak is not a big deal, keep it clean, it adds to the lubrication in the birf too. But when it leaks on your tire its time. I did this about 50K miles ago on my BJ60, and my seals started leaking again. So this time I am going in to clean and reuse everything except the seal and lock washer.