Lotsa grease coming out of left Birf...

[MissouriLC]

I searched, and I couldn't find a thread specifically addressing this, so I apologize if this is an obvious one (but I'm new to this solid axle thing).

Getting tires replaces this morning, and I notices A LOT of grease has come out of my left Birf/steering knuckle:

As you can see, it is all over the brake caliper bracket, steering arm, and the inside of the front mudflap.

There's some on the right side as well (pic below), but its old and dirt-caked (vs the fresh stuff on the left side):

I am assuming this is not normal. From what I read, if the oil seal is bad, the gear oil will leak into the Birfield and out the felt/wipe. Likewise, I understand if the CVs are overfilled during overhaul, the excess will be forced out. Is that what I'm looking at? It doesn't seem oily, and it doesn't have the sulfurous smell of gear oil. It just smells like moly grease. Does this look like bad felts/wipers? I know that the truck had some sort of front axle service about a year ago. I DO NOT know, conclusively, if the Birfs and hubs were overhauled. Looks like that might be in my future...

I guess the next step is to clean it up and then monitor to see if keeps leaking, or if it looks to be leaking gear oil. Just wanted to get the opinions of the more experienced Mudders, since this whole Birfield thing is new to me. Thanks!

 

[Brindleboxer]

You have a knuckle rebuild in your near future. What you were thinking is probably on track. If you cannot fix soon or as you stated are going to clean it up and watch it, make sure to watch the fluid in your pumpkin to ensure you don't run dry and then ruin the gears.

OTRAAM is the video I like best and has a really good video on the knuckle rebuild process and I suggest watching that so you know what will be entailed whether you do it yourself or not. ()

Another video is by a member here @rmgarage ()

 

[John McVicker]

@MissouriLC you need to do this. It’s not hard or difficult but it’s time consuming.

Get your parts from one of MUD’s outfitters, follow along with some YouTube videos & you will be good. The 1st one in post 2 is a good one.

 

[Fj80oregon]

@cruiseroutfit will set you up with the correct parts!

 

[MissouriLC]

You have a knuckle rebuild in your near future. What you were thinking is probably on track. If you cannot fix soon or as you stated are going to clean it up and watch it, make sure to watch the fluid in your pumpkin to ensure you don't run dry and then ruin the gears.

OTRAAM is the video I like best and has a really good video on the knuckle rebuild process and I suggest watching that so you know what will be entailed whether you do it yourself or not. ()

Another video is by a member here @rmgarage ()

I love that OTRAMM video. I first watched that 7 years ago when I serviced the wheel bearings on my Hundy (since the wheel bearings/drive flange is basically the same, and that is the best video on the subject IMO).

Looks like I'll be tackling this on the 80 soon.

Another question... is it customary to replace the Birfs and drive flanges as he did? As in, are they often worn enough that the splines have a lot of play?

The CV axles on my Hundy were very worn in that way, such that I had an audible clunk from the front end when shifting from reverse to drive (or vice versa). However, no such clunk on the 80.

 

[Brindleboxer]

I would say if the 80 isn't your primary vehicle don't sweat getting all the hard parts right away. Take it apart and determine what needs replacing. Do a search, not on mud, for other axle service posts and you will see many ideas and creative ways to deal with minor wear (e.g., swapping axles side to side, setting the seal slightly further in if there is wear, etc.).

It was suggested earlier to go through a vendor on this site and I would concur (I like @cruiseroutfit myself and Kurt or his people will take care of you and assembly a kit of what you need). They are who I got my last rebuild kit through, ease process and you give them some basic information and then they can give so suggestions for options.

I would watch the video with a pen and paper and log what tools are needed, the process and anything that you feel you need for reference prior to starting. Torque values are essential so get those (download the free manual from the resources section as well). Make sure to have the hub socket as it is not commonly carried in some smaller towns/areas.

As John said you can do this but it is messy if done right. Let us know how it goes and post questions if you have them.

 

[ceylonfj40nut]

Right of passage for a cruiser owner. Send it, we are here to help! Any cruiser friends near by? Offer them a trip to Ted Drew’s frozen concretes. Loved that place in San Louis.

 

[ChaseTruck]

None of the answers above are wrong, and yes, we’ve all done knuckle rebuilds, or had them done.

Before going down that road though, I suggest to (i) check via the inspection port that the knuckle is not overfilled with grease (I’ve done that…), (ii) make sure the axle breather is not clogged, and (iii) clean everything on the outside. Get all the gunk off the knuckle/axle. Then drive it until the knuckle rebuilds parts come in, and keep an eye on what’s going on down there.

 

[MissahPapaJ]

Buy a cheap small silicone spatula, it’ll save you a few pairs of gloves when digging out the grease in the knuckle after you remove the axle. If your birfs aren’t clicking in turns full lock in four high I’d plan on swapping birfs from one shaft to the other and get a overdrive seal installer from Delta VS or i think a few other people sell them as well, in case the axle shaft has a groove worn in it from the seal riding on it for a eternity. On Cruiser Outfitters website they sell a 6 pack tubes of grease, four of which are moly and the other two are high temp bearing grease for around 60$ you’ll need it all for the job and at 60$ that’s nearly the same or cheaper than if you went to your local parts store .

 

[cruiseroutfit]

On Cruiser Outfitters website they sell a 6 pack tubes of grease, four of which are moly and the other two are high temp bearing grease for around 60$ you’ll need it all for the job and at 60$ that’s nearly the same or cheaper than if you went to your local parts store .

That’s was our goal! It’s not a money maker BUT for 30+ years we’ve been helping customers with knuckle rebuilds and offering grease was loooooong overdue. For years we offered parts store brand/spec recommendations for the grease but sometimes store X only had one tube of moly, or none at all. The stuff we’re using is fantastic quality and our sales rep is a longtime Cruiserhead win-win.

 

[Old Nick]

I love that OTRAMM video. I first watched that 7 years ago when I serviced the wheel bearings on my Hundy (since the wheel bearings/drive flange is basically the same, and that is the best video on the subject IMO).

Looks like I'll be tackling this on the 80 soon.

Another question... is it customary to replace the Birfs and drive flanges as he did? As in, are they often worn enough that the splines have a lot of play?

The CV axles on my Hundy were very worn in that way, such that I had an audible clunk from the front end when shifting from reverse to drive (or vice versa). However, no such clunk on the 80.

With the 80's solid axle, if the birfields are worn, they will make an audible "clicking" sound when you turn your wheel. My wife's rig was doing just that. From reading here and from checking in with long-time 80 series owners, many people switch the birfs from one side to the other as the wear pattern with the new seals would be different as a result, and you can still get a lot of miles out of them.

If you're not "clicking" I wouldn't worry about switching sides or even installing new birfs/axles.

Just did this job with almost all parts supplied by @cruiseroutfit . Went with RCV birfs and new oem axles. The rig drives beautifully now.... and no more clicking.

 

[MissahPapaJ]

That’s was our goal! It’s not a money maker BUT for 30+ years we’ve been helping customers with knuckle rebuilds and offering grease was loooooong overdue. For years we offered parts store brand/spec recommendations for the grease but sometimes store X only had one tube of moly, or none at all. The stuff we’re using is fantastic quality and our sales rep is a longtime Cruiserhead win-win.

For sure I was juiced to see that offering, even with my automotive tech discount from my venders I was shocked to see the reasonable price for the “ 6 pack “ and all in one place it’s a far better deal than buying it off of the Zon. Yeah I could buy cheaper CRC stuff ( still good ) but I’m thinking like a 10-15$ difference in price between CO and anywhere else. And what’s a couple of bucks between friends

 

[9740th]

Writing in from the South Carolina Lowcountry. I had I local mechanic replace the inner seal on my passenger side front axle, but there is still a lot of fluid leakage that they could not fix (see pic). They installed the inner seals twice, but still leakage. They did not charge me since they could not fix it, so I am back to square one. I contacted another local shop that has a good rep for LC's but they are booked until August. There is no clicking. LC drives great. I only noticed because of a couple of drops on my driveway. Anyone know of a good shop here in South Carolina?

 

[Brindleboxer]

No shop recommendations but they may need to seat the seal deeper when replacing. As mentioned before, there are a couple vendors that sell the tool to put the seal just a bit further in and avoid the area where wear may occur. This may be your issue as a shop has tried unsuccessfully to fix.

 

[Old Nick]

No shop recommendations but they may need to seat the seal deeper when replacing. As mentioned before, there are a couple vendors that sell the tool to put the seal just a bit further in and avoid the area where wear may occur. This may be your issue as a shop has tried unsuccessfully to fix.

That's where my money is too.

I believe that Delta VS (and likely other vendors) sells one of those tools to press in the seals deeper. Saw that when I was watching vids in preparation for doing the knuckles on our rig.

 

[9740th]

Thanks for the advice Old Nick and Brindleboxer. Looks like I am going to tackle this myself. Just going to suck it up and rebuild the whole thing. The Delta tool is out of stock RN, so I may have to wait a few week anyway. Northern Tool carries a seal driver set, but it doesn't have a lip to set a 2MM depth.

 

[Old Nick]

Thanks for the advice Old Nick and Brindleboxer. Looks like I am going to tackle this myself. Just going to suck it up and rebuild the whole thing. The Delta tool is out of stock RN, so I may have to wait a few week anyway. Northern Tool carries a seal driver set, but it doesn't have a lip to set a 2MM depth.

No worries.

You can do it!

I'm sorry that I didn't respond to your question re: a shop in SC, and I'm sorry too that I don't know a shop there.

These things are tough machines. IMHO, you can continue to drive your truck, just be sure to keep you grease topped up and keep an eye on the oil in your pumpkin. When you pull it apart, you're likely going to find a nice slurry of grease and oil... (at least I did... but the rig that I bought my wife was terribly neglected for a LONG time... the knuckles being a mess wasn't a surprise).

 

[Broski]

I'm a bit old school and just use a socket to drive seals just find one that's the right size. If your axle has a grove drive the seal past flush. It's not rocket science !
Sure those seal over drivers are nice but it can be done without them.
And make sure you vent/ breather is not clogged!

 

[MissahPapaJ]

Thanks for the advice Old Nick and Brindleboxer. Looks like I am going to tackle this myself. Just going to suck it up and rebuild the whole thing. The Delta tool is out of stock RN, so I may have to wait a few week anyway. Northern Tool carries a seal driver set, but it doesn't have a lip to set a 2MM depth.

Looks like I bought the last one…… me sooo apology.

 

[ZackR]

One thing I wish I took care of when I did the knuckle job was resealing the front differential. I would highly recommend doing this at the same time since its a common leak area and the axles need to be pulled to remove the 3rd member.

This will also make it easier to clean out the "birf soup" in there.