Front axle play/movement in park on jack stands (1 Viewer)

[TomOsborne]

Hey guys it's been awhile. Read everyday but have learned enough to not ask stupid questions and figure things out for myself, for the most part. BUT I'd like to run something by yall if you would be so gracious.

Taking a fairly regular trip tomorrow- couple hundred miles each way. About 2k ago I tackled the knuckles including spindles, bearings, axle flip, just about everything. Tonight I put the truck (91) up on stands to ensure all of the bolts were still tight related to the knuckle build, checked the caliper bolts, just about anything up there that could have loosened up, or is regularly suspect to loosening. Everything's tight. However, my front axle seems to have a lot of movement as it relates to the front drive shaft. Basically, I can move the front wheel/hub, in this case the ps wheel, while on a stand, with all other wheels down, a good bit before the front driveshaft even moves itself. Probably an inch of rotation if measure on top of a 33" tire. So were talking left to right rotational movement. I don't know what sort of play might be acceptable there. Anybody have an idea if that's normal play? It just seems like a lot.

Thank you everyone.

 

[bajaphile]

If I'm understanding you correctly, if you jack up a tire, you can rotate it fwd/back (in relation to the car) with some play? If so, that is normal.

 

[TomOsborne]

Yeah, that's the just of it. But what I thought was weird was to get a about an inch of rotation on the front wheel before the front driveshaft responds in turn. So you can move the wheel back and forth a little before you can see the driveshaft respond to the axle rotating from moving the wheel. It just seems sloppy. Thank you for checking out the thread. What seems like a straight up question in my head always ends up being convoluted when I post after people chime in, thus I try not to post questions. So thanks again.

 

[nukegoat]

Yeah, that's the just of it. But what I thought was weird was to get a about an inch of rotation on the front wheel before the front driveshaft responds in turn. So you can move the wheel back and forth a little before you can see the driveshaft respond to the axle rotating from moving the wheel. It just seems sloppy. Thank you for checking out the thread. What seems like a straight up question in my head always ends up being convoluted when I post after people chime in, thus I try not to post questions. So thanks again.

Thats normal. You have drive flange to splines, birfield play, splines to side gear, side gear to spider gears to side gear, then ring to pinion. All those interfaces have backlash or slop in them.

 

[lumbee1]

I just had my Cruiser regeared and I rebuilt the front and rear axles with all new bits. Totally normal to have that rotation before the driveshaft moves.

 

[TomOsborne]

Thats normal. You have drive flange to splines, birfield play, splines to side gear, side gear to spider gears to side gear, then ring to pinion. All those interfaces have backlash or slop in them.

Coming you from you brings an extra sense of thank you for chiming in. Im a fan. With that explanation, of course, there would be slop. Awesome.

 

[TomOsborne]

Man thats great. Just knowing that I was able to express the concern well enough to get the answers makes me feel much better. Started wondering if I was crazy for looking at that and bringing it to the mud table. Thank you so much.

 

[nukegoat]

Coming you from you brings an extra sense of thank you for chiming in. Im a fan. With that explanation, of course, there would be slop. Awesome.

Run it!

 

[Jeff Elliott]

I just had my Cruiser regeared and I rebuilt the front and rear axles with all new bits. Totally normal to have that rotation before the driveshaft moves.

Hey @lumbee1 , who did your regear? I've got to do mine soon and looking for a source. Thanks!

 

[Tools R Us]

The early short spline birf/drive flange is prone to wear, failure. I would pop the cap and check the amount of play, should be little, close to none.

 

[nukegoat]

The early short spline birf/drive flange is prone to wear, failure. I would pop the cap and check the amount of play, should be little, close to none.

Solution: run a fillet weld between the flange and the c-clip on the shaft. PROBLEM SOLVED

 

[Tools R Us]

Solution: run a fillet weld between the flange and the c-clip on the shaft. PROBLEM SOLVED

Welding the shaft to the drive plate would solve the play problem. Or swap a Dana axle? The simplest way to do that would be buy a Jeep, they have all of the good stuff, Dana axles, Saginaw steering, etc, so no need to upgrade?

 

[nukegoat]

Welding the shaft to the drive plate would solve the play problem. Or swap a Dana axle? The simplest way to do that would be buy a Jeep, they have all of the good stuff, Dana axles, Saginaw steering, etc, so no need to upgrade?

I can't afford a Jeep! Their resale value is so good because other consumers agree with you. Yet another reason I have to stick to the 2nd tier of automotive excellence.

 

[lumbee1]

Hey @lumbee1 , who did your regear? I've got to do mine soon and looking for a source. Thanks!

East Coast Gear Supply. One of the leading gearing specialist on the East Coast. They just happen to be about 30 miles from home. I pulled everything apart myself and put the 3rds in buckets. It took a few days longer than expected but it was worth it.
Jonathan Jones on Instagram: “Finally regearing the Cruiser to 4.88's. Axle tear down is step number 1. #diymechanic #oldenorthstatecruisers #toyota4x4 #toyota…”

 

[TomOsborne]

Welding the shaft to the drive plate would solve the play problem. Or swap a Dana axle? The simplest way to do that would be buy a Jeep, they have all of the good stuff, Dana axles, Saginaw steering, etc, so no need to upgrade?

I was out of the loop sick and busy with Christmas so I am happy to see the thread kept moving on a bit. I didnt measure/benchmark the play at the flange but I am sure its way out of spec. But still thought the amount of play was extraordinary even considering. I am running the short splines and had a complete failure on the ds shaft. The lock it up and drive home kind. Bought new flanges, the short kind, and flipped the axles. No way there isnt play there. I couldnt tell if they had been swapped before; the splines on the axle shaft were pretty gnarly. If I would have had the money I would have bought new axles. So far there is no clicking. So I think they will hold on for awhile......