Getting ready for front axle rebuild... finally (1 Viewer)

[Driley]

Thanks Onur! After searching I found your pictures and it made me relax. It was a bit unnerving to find 2 completely different parts and I spent about 30 minutes trying to figure out why Toyota would put a bearing on the driver's side and a bushing on the passenger side (maybe it has something to do with the steering, maybe something to do with the longer axle on that side... I was overanalizing).

All of the parts arrived today. I hope to get it back together by end of day Thursday. Thanks again!

Riley

 

[Driley]

I had trouble getting the driver's side birfield apart. Now that it is apart and clean, I am really having trouble getting the birfield back together. I know that a lot of people have problems and I am actively searching for an explaination that applies.

I can not get the ball bearings into any of the cage openings. I could probably use a little brass drift to "persuade" them back in, but I am not sure if any part should be forced. I have tried every ball in every opening, but none just drop in.

The FSM is not exactly detailed. It says that there are 2 large openings on the cage, but I can not get any of the ball bearings to drop in. They are all very close and would go with a slight tap of a brass bar.

Picture #1 is how I have oriented the cage and star (it looks right to me - I took pictures of how it came out, but now know that someone has taken the axle apart, I am trusting nothing).

Picture #2 is the ball bearing sitting on the cage, not wanting to drop into the star.

I will keep searching...

Riley

 

[Beowulf]

The FSM drawing is wrong; it has an image of the earlier mini-truck & FJ40 birfield. That drawing does not apply to the 80-Series birfield. Look at your unassembled birf and reassemble the same way. There are pics of a new 80-Series birfield in the main FAQ thread.

It is important to note that an 80 birf can be assembled wrong and you do NOT want to do that. BTDT.

You don't pound the balls through those slots as you are showing in the pics. If you will recall during disassembly, the balls came out with the cage moved to the inside of the tulip. It is difficult to describe in words.

-B-

 

[Sanchez]

You have to assemble the cage back into the birf. It's easier if you have the shaft installed with out the retaining ring. Assemble the birf back, slide the shaft back in where it goes so you can move the cage around and drop the balls in. This is how I did mine, I did use a little force to rotate the cage once 4 balls where in. Once you have them assembled then all you have to do is put on your new retaining ring on the shaft and use the zip tie trick to compress it and slide them in with a little force. Repack with grease and you are done.

-Juan

 

[Beowulf]

I didn't use the inner axle as it was too unwieldy. I was able to move the star+cage assembly with a brass drift inside the star.

-B-

 

[Driley]

Here are some more photos of where I am currently.

Photos #1 & #2 are mine, photo #3 is what I found in the FAQs.

Tell me if I have it right (I still have 2 balls to get in there and will clean the brass out once done).

Thanks,

Riley

 

[Sanchez]

Yup thats it!

 

[Driley]

Yup thats it!

Thanks Juan! Using the short axle to gently articulate the cage and star helped quite a bit - thanks for that tip!

With the axle just dry fitted into the birfield everything feels pretty smooth unless you go for an extreme angle. Once grease is in there, I am sure it will be as slick as goose excrement.

Using a brass drift to persuade the cage opening up high enough to drop the ball in was necessary for all 6 balls. I just used the axle to push an opening up and then tapped gently until the ball dropped in.

I am giving blood this morning so I could not get my hands too dirty. I will start the reassembly later today and still hope to have it done by end of tomorrow.

Thanks again for all of the advice and support. Thank you Beowulf for the FSM reminder (I remember reading that people were getting stumped due to the pictures in the manual).

Riley

 

[Driley]

After getting both birfields back together (the one on the passenger side went together very easy) I have concluded that at some point in the past, the driver's side was rebuilt and a new spindle and I am now pretty sure a new birfield was installed.

The birfield that came out of the driver's side is much stiffer than the one on the passenger side. I am assuming that after 212,000 miles, these birfields get a little worn and the cage/star/balls move more freely.

The birfield on the left is from the driver's side and the one on the right is from the passenger side.

Riley

Edit: Is there any concern swapping sides? I assume not, but just did not know with the different spindle in the driver's side if there would be any issues.

 

[96r50]

You should have no trouble swapping sides. Neither the birfs or the spindles have a left/right designation. They will work equally well on either side. I would probably pull the cages/balls back out and put a coat of moly grease in there first. I had no trouble with getting the balls back in that way.

That note about the FSM having the wrong pics would have been helpful this weekend I spent at least half an hour trying to figure out which part of the cage was the "wide side" and "narrow side". I ended up figuring it out by looking at the wear patterns on the star and cage. I was worried for a bit though!

This thread is turning into quite the source of front axle info not already included in the FAQ. Keep it up!

 

[Sanchez]

Nope not at all.

-Juan

 

[Beowulf]

This thread is turning into quite the source of front axle info not already included in the FAQ. Keep it up!

If either of you can come up with a verbal description on how to orient the cage/star/balls/tulip and explain how to reassemble then that would be great. I'm not sure how you could "talk" someone through it.... they just have to see it happen to get it.

-B-

 

[woody]

I've got a used birf on the 'shelf' awaiting a rebuild...may pull off some pics tomorrow...

 

[Driley]

I made a 10 second video of the birfield showing how you push the star and cage down on one side to put the ball in the other but it is 3gp format and I can not figure how to convert it to a Windows friendly format.

Really, it makes perfect sense once you are holding it in your hand (like Beowulf said earlier). My biggest problem was that one of my birfields is worn and the other appears to be fairly new so they did not go together the same. The older one was a snap to take apart and put together but the newer one took some gentle tapping with a brass bar to get the cage and star down far enough to let the ball drop in.

If someone knows how to covert the video, send me your e-mail. The file is only 450 kb.

Riley

 

[96r50]

If either of you can come up with a verbal description on how to orient the cage/star/balls/tulip and explain how to reassemble then that would be great. I'm not sure how you could "talk" someone through it.... they just have to see it happen to get it.

-B-

I'll try, but only if you promise to include it when you design the 80 series wiki

My basic description without pics would be something like this. This is how I did it this weekend (I'll skip the head scratching and blank stares that occurred while I was trying to figure out the orientations). If Woody posts a bunch of pictures I'll try and incorporate them into this explanation.

Clamp the empty birf (tulip) in a soft jawed vise. Take a look at the cage and notice that it has a flat edge and a tapered edge. The flat edge goes to the outside of the truck (facing down into the birf in the vise). Next look at the star piece. One edge of the splined hole (where the axle engages) has a groove where the C-clip will sit when the axle is installed. This faces the outside of the truck (down into the birf in the vise). The edge on the other side of the star has splines that taper down slightly as they near the edge. This is to help guide the axle splines during reassembly.

Assemble the cage and star, keeping a close eye on the orientation of both parts, and install into them into the birf. The 6 balls can be installed one at a time by aligning the grooves in the star with the slots in the cage and the grooves in the birf, and then tipping the star and cage assembly up. The ball should drop in with no force. If you have to push it in with more than one finger, something might be amiss. Check everything again. Drop the remaining 5 balls in, and presto, you have one assembled birf! Now, take it all apart, coat everything with moly grease (leave a bunch of grease inside the birf) and put it all back together again. Practice makes perfect, right?

Next, install the axle shaft using the ziptie/hose clamp trick. Install the C-clip on the axle shaft. It will be loose. Use a ziptie or hose clamp on top of the C-clip to compress the clip. Align the greased axle splines with the greased splines in the star and press the axle into the star. As the ziptie/hose clamp reaches the star, it will keep the C-clip compressed until it slides into the star. Push the axle in the rest of the way, remove the ziptie/hose clamp and check that the axle will not come out of the birf. Congratulations, you now have one assembled inner axle assembly!



This is just a quick first draft off the top of my head. Let me know if I missed anything

 

[Beowulf]

Nice description. This will make an excellent addition to the front axle service with a few pics from Woody or someone else with a disassembled birfield.

-B-

 

[Driley]

I will post pictures tomorrow morning of the birfield in various stages of disassembly, using Adam's descriptions. I am at home and the cruiser is at the office.

I know I have both of the birfields assembled the same way, but the newer looking one is more stiff. It is still dry, but there is definitely more play in the older looking one. Now you guys have me stressing about it. Anyone with a newer birfield experience a bit snugger fit of the cage/star/balls?

I have looked at both birfields repeatedly and know they are assembled identically (you can easily see the different ends of the cage and star with them in your hands).

Riley

 

[Beowulf]

Anyone with a newer birfield experience a bit snugger fit of the cage/star/balls?

The more wear on the birfield the less "snugger" the fit of the balls/cage/star.

-B-

 

[Driley]

That is what I was hoping to hear, thanks Beowulf! I am going to take it apart tomorrow and grease the bowl and take some pictures.

Good evening,

Riley

 

[96r50]

Hey Driley,

If you want to, feel free to copy and edit my instructions to integrate them with the pics you take. Conversely, if you want me to add your photos to my post, I'll shoot you a PM with my email address. Either way, it would be nice to document the birf reassembly and axle shaft installation with proper instructions and photos!