Northwesttaco's 80 series crawler slammed on 4d's and BS (1 Viewer)

[jcardona1]

Have you driven it without the front driveshaft? I don't have a DC shaft, but I'm also running part-time 4x4. If I try to drive 10-20mph with 4x4 engaged the front driveshaft is not happy.

 

[nukegoat]

Okay I need help. @nukegoat @jcardona1 and who ever else.

Ever since I got the truck back anything over 25mph there is a grind/clatter coming from the front end. It does it while coasting for a few seconds, feathering the throttle, and also there is a very slight take off vibe.. Andrew told me to it is probably u joints in the front shaft but theres absolutely no movement in them and it didn't make this noise before it went into the shop.

So I thought it must be the new diff gears. Tore the whole axle down this evening with my buddy Nick whos the lead at Torfab and he said theres absolutely nothing wrong with the gears, wear pattern looks normal etc..

We found a few things..
Wheel bearings were all very loose but no markings on them at all.
Not near enough grease in my knuckles but that wouldn't cause this sound
And the C clips in my RCV axle shafts were stuck down, which could cause the axle to walk. How ever there are no markings on the diff..

Im taking the third to have gear paint put on and tested to make sure the ware pattern is still good tomorrow morning.

As of right now we think it could be those C clips in the axle shafts causing them to walk, but doubt it. Or the double drilled flange on the front diff that could cause something to be unbalanced? Or lastly it could be the front drive shaft..

What are your thoughts?

Pull the front shaft and lock the cdl. If noise goes away then probably ds though not guaranteed. Is the front shaft in phase? I dont believe anyone who thinks its a good idea to run the goofy 90 degree out that toyota randomly spec'd. The startup vibe followed by grinding whining really is characteristic of driveshaft issues IMO

 

[nukegoat]

For what its worth you cant go off what other people do for caster and lift and so on. You likely will have to dial in way more caster to make a single cardan shaft happy which wont be good for other reasons. Measure the angle of your front t case output flange and then the angle of your pinion flange. And as I said, make sure the driveshaft is phased.

 

[RFB]

Okay so I got the clear depo headlights off eBay like so many people have but can't find an answer to this.

Stock bulbs are 9005/9006 right? And these new headlights take H4/H1 bulbs... so does the stock wiring harness work? Or what are people doing to get them to work?

yes I have the h4/h1s and stock harness wors IIRC

 

[RFB]

Okay I need help. @nukegoat @jcardona1 and who ever else.

Ever since I got the truck back anything over 25mph there is a grind/clatter coming from the front end. It does it while coasting for a few seconds, feathering the throttle, and also there is a very slight take off vibe.. Andrew told me to it is probably u joints in the front shaft but theres absolutely no movement in them and it didn't make this noise before it went into the shop.

So I thought it must be the new diff gears. Tore the whole axle down this evening with my buddy Nick whos the lead at Torfab and he said theres absolutely nothing wrong with the gears, wear pattern looks normal etc..

We found a few things..
Wheel bearings were all very loose but no markings on them at all.
Not near enough grease in my knuckles but that wouldn't cause this sound
And the C clips in my RCV axle shafts were stuck down, which could cause the axle to walk. How ever there are no markings on the diff..

Im taking the third to have gear paint put on and tested to make sure the ware pattern is still good tomorrow morning.

As of right now we think it could be those C clips in the axle shafts causing them to walk, but doubt it. Or the double drilled flange on the front diff that could cause something to be unbalanced? Or lastly it could be the front drive shaft..

What are your thoughts?

I had same thing happen in golden Colorado a couple months ago took it into Slee and it was the new DC DS I had built here in Ma. It was dry as a bone greased it up and its good still after another 8K of hiway/Offroad

 

[Box Rocket]

For me, it happened typically when my foot was off the accelerator and generally coasting downhill. It sounded like the rumble strips etched into the edges of the blacktop on a freeway, but metallic. Then it got really loud, and I thought I had blown a wheel bearing, pulled it over an called a tow truck. It was a freaking dry spindle bushing...couldn't believe I didn't lube it enough. Again, you have a lot going on with your build and a reputable shop did the work, but I was careful too and missed a crucial step...just a thought.

You're talking about the brass spindle bushing not being greased enough right? I've got a similar noise I've been chasing for a while. A lot of the same steps taken. Relatively new diff gears pulled twice to make sure they were set up correctly, no movement in the ujoints in a DC shaft that is phased correctly (I think, I'll check it again). Wheel bearings and trunions are fairly new and not loose. Been thinking it may be a t-case bearing getting ready to sh*t the bed. Never even considered the spindle bushing.

Any specifics I should know about lubing the brass bushing?

 

[Trollhole]

You're talking about the brass spindle bushing not being greased enough right? I've got a similar noise I've been chasing for a while. A lot of the same steps taken. Relatively new diff gears pulled twice to make sure they were set up correctly, no movement in the ujoints in a DC shaft that is phased correctly (I think, I'll check it again). Wheel bearings and trunions are fairly new and not loose. Been thinking it may be a t-case bearing getting ready to sh*t the bed. Never even considered the spindle bushing.

Any specifics I should know about lubing the brass bushing?

Usually the dry bushing noise is random. It will come and go. The drive shaft noise will be a constant under coasting or light pedal. Can also do it under hard acceleration as you are making an even bigger angle on the front axle. Adding more weight to the ass will also make it more noticeable. A DC shaft will fix this noise in most cases. I've had multiple lifted trucks in the shop with big lifts. Some will make the noise some won't or won't make as much. If you're putting a 4" lift on your truck or higher you have to use a DC. Otherwise you are asking for DS issues.

 

[Box Rocket]

Usually the dry bushing noise is random. It will come and go. The drive shaft noise will be a constant under coasting or light pedal. Can also do it under hard acceleration as you are making an even bigger angle on the front axle. Adding more weight to the ass will also make it more noticeable. A DC shaft will fix this noise in most cases. I've had multiple lifted trucks in the shop with big lifts. Some will make the noise some won't or won't make as much. If you're putting a 4" lift on your truck or higher you have to use a DC. Otherwise you are asking for DS issues.

Right. so you think my issue is unlikely to be the spindle bushing? I have a 3" lift, Slee caster plates, and a DC shaft. I get the noise mainly at highway speeds when coasting or light pedal.

 

[nukegoat]

Just so everyone knows, a dc shaft doesnt just allow arbitrary angles. It is just as position sensitive (even more so) as a single cardan. You cant just throw any height lift on and then 'run a dc shaft' and not consider the actual geometry required for smooth running.

 

[northwesttaco]

Have you driven it without the front driveshaft? I don't have a DC shaft, but I'm also running part-time 4x4. If I try to drive 10-20mph with 4x4 engaged the front driveshaft is not happy.

Ohh forgot you're part time.. but good to know it isn't happy if you're center diff is locked.

Pull the front shaft and lock the cdl. If noise goes away then probably ds though not guaranteed. Is the front shaft in phase? I dont believe anyone who thinks its a good idea to run the goofy 90 degree out that toyota randomly spec'd. The startup vibe followed by grinding whining really is characteristic of driveshaft issues IMO

Driveshaft is phased correctly. Locking the center diff the only way to see if it is the DS? I haven't done the 7 pin mod yet but heard its pretty quick.

 

[nukegoat]

Ohh forgot you're part time.. but good to know it isn't happy if you're center diff is locked.


Driveshaft is phased correctly. Locking the center diff the only way to see if it is the DS? I haven't done the 7 pin mod yet but heard its pretty quick.

You can throw it in low, let the cdl engage, then pull the fuse and put it back in high.

 

[LC4LIFE]

Here is how you grease the spindle bushing without ripping it all apart.

Slee - Spindle Grease Tool

 

[NateMob]

Here is how you grease the spindle bushing without ripping it all apart.

Slee - Spindle Grease Tool

You have one of these?

 

[LC4LIFE]

You have one of these?

Negative, but its on my wish list. Back in the day, I hacked one together with an old spindle nut, a socket, welder and grease zerk. Its no longer around, but it did get the job done.

 

[ajax1]

You could use a thin grease needle also pull the nut stick the needle thru the gap

 

[northwesttaco]

Well Nick and I rebuilt the entire axle last night and put oil in it today. Its much better.. initially grinding didn't come on until about 40mph and then it was VERY slight, drove it about 3-4 miles and it started coming back at the normal speeds but it isn't as loud. Going to drive it more after some dinner and see what happens, also going to pull drivelines tomorrow and see what happens.

 

[RFB]

Well Nick and I rebuilt the entire axle last night and put oil in it today. Its much better.. initially grinding didn't come on until about 40mph and then it was VERY slight, drove it about 3-4 miles and it started coming back at the normal speeds but it isn't as loud. Going to drive it more after some dinner and see what happens, also going to pull drivelines tomorrow and see what happens.

that sucks after all that work, youll find it Im sure.

 

[northwesttaco]

that sucks after all that work, youll find it Im sure.

Eh its kind of a blessing in disguise I think. The shop that I had link it I also had do the axle rebuild and we found many things that weren't done "right".. like not near enough grease in the knuckles, wheel bearings were incredibly loose etc..

One thing that I don't believe was their fault was the C clip on my drive side axle shaft was stuck down so the axle did end up walking in and out at least once as we found a couple marks on the carrier when we pulled the diff. So that would have been from RCV.

 

[RFB]

Eh its kind of a blessing in disguise I think. The shop that I had link it I also had do the axle rebuild and we found many things that weren't done "right".. like not near enough grease in the knuckles, wheel bearings were incredibly loose etc..

One thing that I don't believe was their fault was the C clip on my drive side axle shaft was stuck down so the axle did end up walking in and out at least once as we found a couple marks on the carrier when we pulled the diff. So that would have been from RCV.

Oh my, thats why I do everything myself. But youve done so much so fast. he should stand behind it I would hope. good luck brother

 

[northwesttaco]

Oh my, thats why I do everything myself. But youve done so much so fast. he should stand behind it I would hope. good luck brother

Im sure he would but I think im just going to let this go. Its not a big enough deal to argue about