Front axle rebuild question (1 Viewer)

[calcagno21]

So i noticed i was leaking grease and gear oil out of my hubs, so i guess my inner axle seal has given way. I have been reading the faq on here and it has persuaded me to try and fix the problem for myself. I orderd a front gasket kit from toyota, and inner axle seals. I got home to look at the parts that they gave me and the axle seals didnt look right, they seem to have made a mistake. They gave me what i think are wheel bearing seals part number 90311-62001. So know I have to order the inner axle seals again. kind of frustrating so my question is will i need these seals, if so why wouldn't they come in the front axle gasket kit in the first place?
Also where is a good place to kind the molly grease for the birfs, and how much generaly does it take to complete the job. I live in Soutwest Washington and the guy at napa didnt know what i was talking about. This is my first time attempting this, and want to get in there to learn for myself

thanks

Nick

 

[B Legit]

yep those are bearing seals. When I did mine I bought the kit from Georg at Valley hybrids (he is orangefj45 on here) and the kit came with everything I needed. You will need inner axle seals witch are half the size of that seal they gave you, although if you decide to pull your wheel bearings to inspect and clean as I did, you will need those seals as well. I would run a search on here for the different types of moly grease people have used and bring that list back to NAPA, they should be able to get you something that will work in the meantime, you're not going to finish in a day anyway. The job is a drag and real dirty but not overly technical.

 

[Kernal]

IMHO if you've never done it before do a lot of reading before you tear into the front axle. CDan at American Toyota has all the parts you need for the job, some other vendors also carry all the parts, but what you get extra from CDan is his experience. Like you already have learned, ordering parts for these from your local dealer is a krap shoot. There is also an aftermarket inner axle seal that some mudders have used, some prefer the OEM seal. My axle shafts were worn so I used the aftermarket Marlin Crawler Heavy Duty seal. So far so good. NAPA carries Valvoline Palladium grease; if your local store doesn't have it in stock they can get it. It is not the only grease you can use but many mudders use it for packing the birfield CV joint and the steering knuckle. I've only got one front axle service under my belt so I'm not the expert; there was a lot to learn.

Good luck.

 

[calcagno21]

thanks for the help looks like i'll head bak to napa for the valvoline palladium.

 

[1FZj80]

everything you need to know
https://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-tech/78276-front-axle-rebuild-faq.html

 

[TeeDiggs]

Perhaps report back when finished, would like to hear it all went well for you.

I myself have never attempted this, but might be checking into it near the springtime.

Good luck!

 

[Tools R Us]

Do you have birf soup, how does the knuckle side look? That looks like someone just put excessive grease in the wheel bearings/splines.

 

[LINUS]

Best of luck on doing the rebuild yourself - if you go slowly & methodically then it's not bad at all.

One point of attention is make sure when you are bending the tabs on the lock collar ring, make sure you bend an ear in each direction, not just both in the same direction - the FSM doesn't make as big of a deal out of it as it is, and if done wrong can leave you watching an entire front wheel & hub assembly running ahead of you in your Landcruiser.

It's one of those little things you never would thing could have such a huge effect, but I remember at least 2 people who have had that happen.

 

[calcagno21]

Tool R Us, i havent tore into yet, so i dont know if i have birf soup yet, still waiting on some things, and am in no hurry as i am out on break from school so I have a couple weeks play with as far as finishing this project. heres a pic of the knuckle side, pretty messy, what do you think?

 

[Tools R Us]

Hard to tell from the pic, but for sure has had little/no maintenance or cleaning and looks empty. Before I did anything, would clean them up. This is what I call birf soup, gear oil thinning the grease and ejecting large quantities of soup. It could be that yours are empty (no grease) and just leaking gear oil, or they maybe just empty.

 

[Offroads4x4]

You need more than just inner axle seals to do the job. Here is a link to what you need to order.

Cruiser Outfitters is a Vendor on here: Knuckle rebuild kit
Cruiser Outfitters

 

[calcagno21]

offroads4x4 i bought the front axle gasket kit from toyota, with all seals and gaskets, i will look at my wheel and trunion bearings while im in there, and if i need to replace them i will, if not i will just repack them

 

[calcagno21]

well i now smell of gear oil and have my driver side axle out of the truck.
Can i get away with keeping the tie rod connected when i pull the steering arm off the knuckle?

 

[arndog123]

Yes.