Front Axle Service prep

[NaterGator]

Going to be overhaulin' my front axle before I head to NC again for the summer. Planning to start Tues evening or early Wednesday morning and working pretty much sunup to the point where I can't stay awake anymore I'd like to have this done by Friday morning. On that note I'd like to do what I can to avoid major hangups.

I'll be rebuilding the front and rear calipers, putting new rotors on the front, new slee lines from frame to axle, the typical front axle overhaul, replacing the ujoints in the rear shaft (front got them a few K ago) and swapping the PHH.

I've got a massive stack of rags, an empty drain pan and tomorrow I'm going to grab a couple of 5 gal buckets and lids. I've already started hitting the diff fill/drain plugs with PB as well as the caliper bleed screws (I remember concrete jungle's saga of trying to get the rear bleeders out all too well) since I'm swapping to speed bleeders. Also thought about hitting the lower knuckle studs/nuts with blaster but the way people talk about them backing out after reinstalling makes me wonder if they'll give me any trouble. (Though I know someone, ID maybe, has theorized it's from the arms binding as the nuts tighten and hammertaps could be the cure-all for that problem, will apply that theory)

Anywhere else I should be prepping with blaster or otherwise? This is my first axle-overhaul and I'd love to complete it on my timeline so I can arrive @ work when I promised. Much appreciated in advance.

 

[cc93cruiser]

If you have a factory service manual you should be good to go... Just follow the manual step by step... And freq. visits in the FAQ's section...Good Luck!

 

[Beowulf]

I'll be rebuilding the front and rear calipers,

If your pistons are sticking you will have a hard time removing them. The easiest way is with compressed air. Be sure to place wood or a rag to stop the piston as it will be forced out with gusto. Keep your fingers out of the way too. I was not able to remove mine without air.

That list of projects is probably 20 hours or more.

There are several threads on removing unis. I haven't done that on an 80 uni so I can't give any advice but I can remember reading a good thread with pictures and tips on how to do the job. (Sorry, I don't have that one bookmarked.)

The front axle service has been covered in so much detail that there really isn't much to say or add. There are 1 or 2 recent threads with mistakes made and how to avoid (e.g. mixing up bolt sizes.)

Bleeding brakes is much easier with something like a Motive bleeder. See if a friend has one you can borrow. That will save you an hour or two. Use a good set of line wrenches on the bleeders. A standard 10mm spanner with round them off.
-B-

 

[NaterGator]

If your pistons are sticking you will have a hard time removing them. The easiest way is with compressed air. Be sure to place wood or a rag to stop the piston as it will be forced out with gusto. Keep your fingers out of the way too. I was not able to remove mine without air.

Could be problematic b/c I don't have my OBA system hooked up right now and I don't have a compressor. Maybe it's finally time to invest in one. An air ratchet would probably save me quite a bit of time too (and I do have an IR impact wrench, don't ask )

There are several threads on removing unis. I haven't done that on an 80 uni so I can't give any advice but I can remember reading a good thread with pictures and tips on how to do the job. (Sorry, I don't have that one bookmarked.)

U joints are a breeze. The hardest part is unsticking the bolts, beyond that it's pretty much just removing the clips and pounding them out. I did the front a few months ago, this part doesn't worry me.

Bleeding brakes is much easier with something like a Motive bleeder. See if a friend has one you can borrow. That will save you an hour or two. Use a good set of line wrenches on the bleeders. A standard 10mm spanner with round them off.
-B-

I've invested probably $250 in tools to prep for this job anywho so I'll snag a set of line wrenches. I think I may have one lying around but I'm not sure... either way that's a good tip I didn't think of.

I searched pretty thoroughly for "blaster front axle" etc and didn't see many cases of stuck front axle fasteners. I know the diff plugs may be a hassle and to loosen the fill plugs first but other than that I'm not particularly worried. Just having never torn into the front myself before and knowing that my truck loves to have sticky fasteners (or more likely I have crappy technique) I wanted to get a head-start on soaking any typical problem spots. Since this is a fairly frequently serviced area though it sounds like they aren't too problematic.



Thanks for the tips, and don't be surprised to see a thread soon in the coming days to the tune of "oh my god, what have I done and how much will this cost to fix?"

 

[OGBeno]

Get a good power wash underneath your rig and make sure everything is clean down there. It makes life easier.

Have fun. Sounds like a cool list of things to engage in.

-o-

 

[NaterGator]

Get a good power wash underneath your rig and make sure everything is clean down there. It makes life easier.

Sage advice that is applicable in so many ways aside from landcruisers I'll do that.

I forgot to mention I also have the garage fridge chuck full of tasty frosty beverages, but I'm not entirely certain how hydrated I should be while doing my first front axle overhaul. Oh well, I'll have the front axle DVD handy if things get too blurry

 

[OGBeno]

Sage advice that is applicable in so many ways aside from landcruisers I'll do that.

I forgot to mention I also have the garage fridge chuck full of tasty frosty beverages, but I'm not entirely certain how hydrated I should be while doing my first front axle overhaul. Oh well, I'll have the front axle DVD handy if things get too blurry

It's kinda funny. I killed a rear hub last week and my axle shaft went flying out near Hurrah Pass at Moab.

Telling Robbie about this story later in the week he said to me "see, you were drinking and wrenching...that's your result!"

We got a good laugh out of that one considering we were both wrenching at the same time in the same garage space when I was putting some beers back working on my rear axles.

If this is your first time, sobriety might be a good idea.

 

[NaterGator]

It's kinda funny. I killed a rear hub last week and my axle shaft went flying out near Hurrah Pass at Moab.

Telling Robbie about this story later in the week he said to me "see, you were drinking and wrenching...that's your result!"

We got a good laugh out of that one considering we were both wrenching at the same time in the same garage space when I was putting some beers back working on my rear axles.

If this is your first time, sobriety might be a good idea.

Maybe not a bad idea because a few days after this gets done it's going to be tested with a 650 mile trip to North Carolina and a catastrophic failure is pretty much not an option

 

[Beowulf]

I searched pretty thoroughly for "blaster front axle" etc and didn't see many cases of stuck front axle fasteners. I know the diff plugs may be a hassle and to loosen the fill plugs first but other than that I'm not particularly worried.

If you wheel in the rocks you should consider replacing the drain and fill plugs with the allen head versions. Cruiserdan has them in stock for cheap. If your truck has mostly been on road then you don't have anything to worry about. Use a 6pt socket (24mm IIRC.) Don't use the air tools to remove the drain plug. I did that one time when I decided to do some work on my truck while I was recovering from surgery. They told me not to drive for a day but I wasn't driving... it is amazing how dumb that anesthesia will make you. What a friggin' mess. Careful on over indulging in the frosty beverages too.

-B-

 

[UCBerzerkeley]

Why look into allen plugs for wheeling in the rocks B? Easier to drain / fill while on the road, without carrying an entire set of tools? Or is there something else?

 

[Beowulf]

If you will look at the drain plugs, they are protected with a metal ring around the drain plug. This metal ring is thick and HD but it is a fairly soft metal and bends when you have 6,000# of Land Cruiser doing a pirouette on the drain plug while playing in the rocks. Then you can't get a socket on the drain plug without doing surgery with a hammer and chisel.

The allen head plugs use a 10mm in the center so you don't need to get anything on the outside of the plug. The issue is with the 2 drain plugs but it is easier to convert both drain and fill plugs at the same time..

-B-

 

[UCBerzerkeley]

good points, for sure. I think everyone would be well advised to convert, regardless of your uses. I noticed the metal was particularly soft when I was changin diff fluids, but didnt think too much about it

 

[nicholas]

High quality snap-on or similar line wrenches are recommended for changing out your brake lines to the slee's. I tried using a cheaper wrench and ended up having to wait 4-5 weeks for a $60 worth of hard lines to be shipped from Japan.

I bought a set of 3 (6 different metric sizes) for about $50 on ebay. They have been handy on a lot of other cruiser wrenching projects as well.

 

[Dan2722]

If you haven't already done it I would seriously consider the Marlin inner seals. I recently helped a fellow mudder with this job and was very impressed with the Marlins and will use them on my next axle job in 40K.

My only piece of advice is that slower is faster and bad things happen when you rush the job. It's better to be a day late to NC than broken down on the side of the road.

 

['74 UA FJ]

Why are you rebuilding your calipers? It usually takes about 30 years on an fj40 before they need to be rebuilt. 80 calipers look to be the same quality. Your pistons shouldn't be hard to remove if your brakes are functioning. I rebuilt a set that had been sitting for 10 years and were rusted in place. Liberal PB blaster soaking and some good vice grips were all it took. Back and forth, back and forth. Nanometer by nanometer until they finally came out.

I hope it doesn't take you Tuesday thru Friday to complete the service. Two full days should be enough. Good luck.

 

[jlbuk]

The allen head plugs use a 10mm in the center so you don't need to get anything on the outside of the plug. The issue is with the 2 drain plugs but it is easier to convert both drain and fill plugs at the same time..

-B-

Beowulf, any chance of a part no for them please ? CDan isn't a cost effective option for me over the pond for something this small...

 

[NaterGator]

Annnnnd I spoke too soon.

Today I've been doing my rear DS u-joints and I can't get the second race (final race) to line back up and hammer through the yoke (transfer case side). I've tried heating the yoke up without heating the race but I'm beginning to worry I'm going to hammer the race through at the wrong angle a bit too much and distort the yoke's opening.

do I take it to a DS shop and hand em $20 to get the other race out for me so I don't destroy my yoke? The other joint is in and fine but this last race is driving me nuts and I don't want to ruin the yoke. Anyone run into this before? What's the likelihood of bashing the race in askew and needing a new yoke? Note to self: Beno's advice on frosty beverages is probably best heeded.

 

[Beowulf]

Beowulf, any chance of a part no for them please ? CDan isn't a cost effective option for me over the pond for something this small...

Differential Drain Plugs, Magnetic, 10mm allen: 90341-18021 ($1.89), don't forget the washer.

They work on the diffs; drain and fill, and on the 93-97 transfer case; drain and fill. That price was from several years ago so you'll probably pay more today. The washers are p/n 90430-18023.

The above information was found by doing Advanced Search, 80-Section, posts only, Keywords=magnetic allen diff*

-B-

 

[NaterGator]

Nevermind, crises of the race averted. A judicious amount of sobering up and blowtorch solved the problem. New u-joints are in and buttery smooth.

 

['74 UA FJ]

Why are you going to rebuild your calipers?