Da fuc?!? ... Never seen that before. Looks like someone did that on purpose.
Front Axle Rebuild - For FAQ
- Thread starter Romer
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Da fuc?!? ... Never seen that before. Looks like someone did that on purpose.
Are there any tips to knocking the races out if they are stuck? Tried to get some liquid wrench in there but that doesn't seem to be helping...
Liquid wrench is useless in this application. The races are pressed in. As mentioned previously, take (ideally) a brass drift and hammer the races out. There is a small recess on the inside of the knuckle where you can set the drift against the edge of the race. Three pound mini sledge makes quick work of the removal.
I used a center punch going through the top down inside of the cavity and from the bottom going upwards. There should be a little indention where you can get the punch into to get some meat on the race. One or two good smacks with a 5 pound sledge did the trick. They pop out... Like really pop out.
They are in so tight, i'm chipping chunks of brass off the drift. Would heat help?
No need to use brass getting a race out that will end up in the trash. Using a steel blunt end punch will work better than brass for removal.
Pro tip - Leave your new races in the freezer overnite prior to installation.
Pro tip - Leave your new races in the freezer overnite prior to installation.
Looks like someone did that with a grinder. Are you the original owner?
You're not hitting the race hard enough. Don't be timid. Treat it like the dirty, worn out, good for nothing, POS it is. Show it who's boss!
No, not original owner. I bought it with 230K miles a few months ago. I have no idea if the axle was ever rebuilt. Shortly after I bought it, it started spewing diff fluid out through the grease cap and all over the wheels, so I decided to do the rebuild.
Now that I have it apart, I also noticed the inside of the birfs are messed up too. The slots where the ball bearings sit in the star on the inside of the birf have chunks missing from them.
Furthermore, the short side half shaft won't separate from the birf. I started with the PVC pipe method - shattered the pipe in the slamming process. I switched to a metal pipe and the damn thing still won't separate. Had no issues breaking the clip on the long side. I was going to swap sides.
Not that separating it matters because I need new axle shafts and birfs due to the chunks missing from the birf star.
So far a giant pain in the ass!
*I did get take some aggression out on the bearing races with a 3 lb hammer and steel punch (thanks for the tips guys)!
First time doing this...How far in should the new oil seal be driven? Flush with the top of the hub (as pictured) or in so it is flush with the surface of the rear bearing?
UPDATE - had to cut the star apart to get at the c clip. The c clip was very deformed and the reason it was so difficult to separate. The splines on the axle shaft were either already damaged from the previous s***ty install or from my attempts to separate it. I tried to file the splines to correct their shape, but can't get it to connect to the new CV. Getting used shaft and will try with that.
^ WOW 
....I haven't seen THAT issue before, they usually pop right out.
....I haven't seen THAT issue before, they usually pop right out.
How much further back to the bearing? My uneducated guess is to the lip of the hub, but most everything is designed to seat against the bearings in most instances. I don't recall what I did, so basically this is just a bump to your question
this thread is great! my last question is, Can I use my original axle shafts, or should I replace the joint and axle shaft?
I used my originals after much inspection and could see that all was fine.
Thanks to everyone involved in creating this faq, was incredibly useful during my front end rebuild over the last weekend. Also the Wits End front axle poster was really nice to have nearby for torque specs and not missing steps 
Where is that poster?Thanks to everyone involved in creating this faq, was incredibly useful during my front end rebuild over the last weekend. Also the Wits End front axle poster was really nice to have nearby for torque specs and not missing steps
I think this value is supposed to be 26 INCH-lbs. They are rather delicate flowers, so 26 foot-lbs is gonna bust em up.
Here's my contribution to this classic thread, an issue I didn't see here or after some further searching. Went to pull the birf+axle on the DS and all I got was birf! AFAIK, it has never been apart, and the truck has been showing signs of birf trouble although nothing loud or dramatic.
I was able to pull the half axle out without further trouble, the birf clip was surprisingly still in place on its end. I have new birfs to replace the old and haven't inspected the old birf yet, but suspect it has a broken cage, just enough to let the clip slide right past when I pulled on the birf. Is that a good guess as a cause for this or should I look further for other issues?
I made a rookie mistake and used an overly aggressive angle with my drift while removing the wheel bearings and managed to knick the bearing seat a few times. I can feel dings and a slight mushroom around them. I was more careful on the rotor side and didn’t have any damage.
My question is, can I still seat the bearing or will it deform around these dimples and cause me issues? I had considered using either 400 grit sandpaper on a wooden dowel or a fine grit honing stone to try to smooth out the high spots but want to check with people more experienced before I cause more damage.
Thanks
My question is, can I still seat the bearing or will it deform around these dimples and cause me issues? I had considered using either 400 grit sandpaper on a wooden dowel or a fine grit honing stone to try to smooth out the high spots but want to check with people more experienced before I cause more damage.
Thanks