Front Axle Rebuild - For FAQ (1 Viewer)

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This is one of the best threads I have seen so far on IH8. @cruiserdan if you were still selling the kit, it would make our lives so much easier but I understand that it is time to rest.

Question, I'm curoius to know if the Redline CV joint grease would work on the birfield + bearings packing task instead of the lithium base grease, even though the lithium stuff is the oem recommended. Is that a bad idea? Also, what is Mr. T reccomended lubricants aka grease types reccomended for the parts that receive grease on this job?
Dan out the Game, but Cruiser Outfitters Filled his Shoes - Kurt will not Dissapoint. I speak from Experience.
He's sold 1000s of Rebuild Kits.
Ask them the ?s you have; they have the answers, as does this Forum.
 
Dan out the Game, but Cruiser Outfitters Filled his Shoes - Kurt will not Dissapoint. I speak from Experience.
He's sold 1000s of Rebuild Kits.
Ask them the ?s you have; they have the answers, as does this Forum.

100%! got the knuckle rebuild kit, birfs, cone washers and bearings with Cruiser Outfitters. Excellent service indeed.
 
I confess I haven't read the whole thread but things I learnt from this job are:

1) Reinstall Birfs BEFORE reinstalling the knuckles. Particularly on the long side, and particularly if you're using Chinese Birfs. The knuckle fits over it just fine

2) Invest in a nice brass hammer and a brass drift. I also got an inexpensive aluminium seal installer and hub nut socket. The snap rings that hold the flanges on require a specific tool, I only had circlip pliers and they're not really suited. I like having the right tools...
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3) If the ABS sensors don't want to come out it's safer to gently drift them out from inside the knuckle than to just keep pulling on them

4) Unnecessary hint for the majority of sensible folk on here, but don't install the trunion bearing races upside-down 😬
 
Just ordered 100% front and rear axle/knuckle rebuild kit including drive flanges and spindles, full koyo blue box from @cruiseroutfit .

Talked to Chris, super awesome, and helpful.

I'll be dropping my 3rd members with Dan Taylor (Taylor axle works) placerville for ARB lockers and 4:88 regear including factory seals, koyo bearings in 3rd members.

Looking forward to reliability, triple locked regeared goodness!

I'll report back on the project and cruiser outfitters box of parts.
 
Hey guys, a friend of mine who is a bit handier and more mechanically experienced than me helped me out with a passenger’s side rebuild which went really well. We used this kit from Repco here in Oz https://www.repco.com.au/en/parts-s...s/maxi-trac-swivel-housing-kit-sh6/p/A7862938

The one remaining issue I have, which I think was present before and might be unrelated, is that I have some sideways axle movement, & I haven’t been able to find much online about that. I believe I can’t post videos here but I’ve tried to show it here in these 2 pics. Despite siliconing the dust cap on, the axle movement of about 2cm or so has been forcing the cap off occasionally.

The axle can then be nudged back in pretty easily. We’re still in covid lockdown in Victoria here with a 5km limit so I’m not driving much, I’ll take it to a mechanic eventually to check it out once we’re out of lockdown. Any thoughts on what could be causing this in the meantime?

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Your using an older and weaker style flange found on 93 and earlier cruisers. You need a new flange or get the cock ring from wits end to fix the gap @LooseCruiser

43421-60020 is to the left, found on pre 4/1993 fzj80s (achilles heal) and then they replaced it with 43421-60022. If you want to keep the older flange because of money issues, you will need to get the ring but its best to just get the flange since you clearly have a new birfield.

80 Series Birf to Flange Spacer-8mm - https://absolute-wits-end.com/80-series-birf-to-flange-spacer-8mm/
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I have my rebuild kit from CruiserTeq, and was going to have my mechanic do the work because (1) bigger job than I've ever done before...makes me a little nervous, not gonna lie, (2) since this is my DD, can't be without her for too long, and (3) by the time I bought the tools and consumables myself (grease, cleaner, etc) I'd only be a couple hundo off what he's going to charge me for labor.

Now there's a good chance that I'll be home alone for Labor Day weekend, so I'm considering biting the bullet myself after all. Here's my question: I have commitments on Sunday that require the truck. If I did one side on Saturday and the other side on Monday, are there any issues with me driving the truck about 50 miles in between?

Forgive the n00b question, and thanks in advance for your input.
 
As a noob performing this maintenance procedure I would plan on more than one day to do the first side. You never know what you may encounter once the knuckle is opened up, what additional parts or tools you may need. It's a learning experience and taking time to do this correctly will pay off in the future. The second side will go faster. As long as you complete the first side, everything buttoned up properly with proper lubrication there is no reason that both sides need to be done at the same time. I don't know what you Sunday commitment is but I always caution on any type of repairs that you should not expect a trouble free trip without testing/proving reliability by putting on some local miles around town before going on a long trip. That goes for things as simple as an oil change.
 
As a noob performing this maintenance procedure I would plan on more than one day to do the first side. You never know what you may encounter once the knuckle is opened up, what additional parts or tools you may need. It's a learning experience and taking time to do this correctly will pay off in the future. The second side will go faster. As long as you complete the first side, everything buttoned up properly with proper lubrication there is no reason that both sides need to be done at the same time. I don't know what you Sunday commitment is but I always caution on any type of repairs that you should not expect a trouble free trip without testing/proving reliability by putting on some local miles around town before going on a long trip. That goes for things as simple as an oil change.
Thx, @ppc ! Good feedback and advice. Yeah, I'd likely have about about 12-14 hours between Friday afternoon and all day Saturday for the first (left -- passenger, in my case) side. Then the Sunday commitment would be local driving to/from Church (my daughter and I lead worship) and then a gig my daughter has that night (Dad is her roadie). Then tackle the right/driver's side on Monday.
 
What's in your "rebuild kit"? BTW, Toyota considers this job "front axle service", not "rebuild", which should make you feel a little better about considering it.

If you have inner/outer & upper/lower bearings, seals, felts and the inner bushing, all you need is grease, a length of PVC pipe and a short 2x4, and time. Plus the right tools. You'll need
1) the FSM
2) a cold chisel and 8 oz ball peen hammer (to loosen the cone washers)
3) 10, 12 & 14 mm sockets and a ratchet & breaker bar (unless you don't like your ratchet)
4) snap ring pliers
5) a 10mm x about 1 1/2 inch long bolt to pull the shaft with
6) an aluminum turkey pan (to catch parts and the mess from the axle)
7) a pan/bowl/tub to clean parts in
8) 2 rolls of shop towels or paper towels
9) assorted hand tools you should have or you shouldn't be thinking about this

I consider this a :banana: job for most anyone (IMHO, the difficulty is overrated; it's not a head job). Anyone who can read, that is. I wouldn't try it without the FSM, even if you're one of those "professional" mechanics (unless you work on Land Cruisers, in which case, you wouldn't be asking this question).

To answer your question directly, no, there is no reason why you can't do one side on one day and then the other on another day. The bearings don't care.
 
I have my rebuild kit from CruiserTeq, and was going to have my mechanic do the work because (1) bigger job than I've ever done before...makes me a little nervous, not gonna lie, (2) since this is my DD, can't be without her for too long, and (3) by the time I bought the tools and consumables myself (grease, cleaner, etc) I'd only be a couple hundo off what he's going to charge me for labor.

Now there's a good chance that I'll be home alone for Labor Day weekend, so I'm considering biting the bullet myself after all. Here's my question: I have commitments on Sunday that require the truck. If I did one side on Saturday and the other side on Monday, are there any issues with me driving the truck about 50 miles in between?

Forgive the n00b question, and thanks in advance for your input.
Concur with the previous posters on all, however the most important takeaway for you from them is the potential for something to NOT go your way. The actual work, if everything is easy and goes well, its like 2-3 hours. If you break a bolt or stud, have a stripped fastener, tear a felt (admittedly unlikely), or do something like damage a seal, you’re potentirely at fuull stop til you can fix or replace it. I’ve done these a number of times, but when i do it now (and I just did a few weeks ago) I always make sure I’ve got alternate trans, so if for instance I needed to go find another gasket, more grease, a seal, a tool etc, I can do it rather than sitting on the driveway in regret.

It’s totally doable, totally, and as said above, the bearings dont care. If you feel confident you can manage the taking off and putting on, nothing to worry about. I agree with @Malleus its really over rated from a technically difficult point of view.

Good Luck either way!
 
Also, if you're in there, the front brake rotors are "inboard" mounted. This means you must remove the complete hub to replace the rotor. This takes you back to wheel bearing seals and adjustment.

So, if you're in there, plan on doing complete front brakes as well. it will save you time in the long run.
 
What's in your "rebuild kit"? BTW, Toyota considers this job "front axle service", not "rebuild", which should make you feel a little better about considering it.

If you have inner/outer & upper/lower bearings, seals, felts and the inner bushing, all you need is grease, a length of PVC pipe and a short 2x4, and time. Plus the right tools. You'll need
1) the FSM
2) a cold chisel and 8 oz ball peen hammer (to loosen the cone washers)
3) 10, 12 & 14 mm sockets and a ratchet & breaker bar (unless you don't like your ratchet)
4) snap ring pliers
5) a 10mm x about 1 1/2 inch long bolt to pull the shaft with
6) an aluminum turkey pan (to catch parts and the mess from the axle)
7) a pan/bowl/tub to clean parts in
8) 2 rolls of shop towels or paper towels
9) assorted hand tools you should have or you shouldn't be thinking about this

I consider this a :banana: job for most anyone (IMHO, the difficulty is overrated; it's not a head job). Anyone who can read, that is. I wouldn't try it without the FSM, even if you're one of those "professional" mechanics (unless you work on Land Cruisers, in which case, you wouldn't be asking this question).

To answer your question directly, no, there is no reason why you can't do one side on one day and then the other on another day. The bearings don't care.
Thanks! Good guidance/encouragement. BTW, this is the kit I got, plus the optional Koyo bearings: 8x Series Knuckle Rebuild Kit - Fits 8x 1/1990-1/1998 80/81 Series & LX450 - https://cruiserteq.com/toyota-knuckle-rebuild-kit-80-series-fa9097/
 
Before you commit to the list of tools mentioned above also factor in a 54mm socket and torque wrench. But like the rest say, there is no magic required to do this job just follow the recipe and the results are practically guaranteed.
 
Before you commit to the list of tools mentioned above also factor in a 54mm socket and torque wrench. But like the rest say, there is no magic required to do this job just follow the recipe and the results are practically guaranteed.
Yep, already added the 54mm socket to my shopping list. Got a good torque wrench already. Thanks! Think I will be taking it on...will post progress here. :)
 
I don't agree with the 2-3 hour per side estimate unless you've done this several times. Just cleaning out the old grease and cleaning up everything can take that long.

FYI the kit you purchased contains a couple of extra gaskets that are not used unless you have locking hubs.

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I would also recommend doing the trunion bearings while your there in addition to the wheel bearings. Also consider brakes and rotors as others mentioned. When I did mine it took 13 hours, I am slow and carefully cleaned and torqued each bolt. As others said it is easily but messy. Broken bolts or bad birfs can complicate things.
 

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