Should knuckles have grease showing? (1 Viewer)

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MoJ

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When looking underneath the truck I can see dark grey grease on the knuckle (spherical shaped part - right?). I had been told that it was normal to have some there and after reading some of these posts it sounds like you shouldn't have any at all. I can see a "fair amount" - just to get it straight - is this normal or indicate the need to re-pack/re-seal? I can't hear any noises when turning and everything else seems normal.

When I get a chance (traveling now) I'll see if I can get a decent picture to describe "a fair amount" a little better.

-Jason
 
grease yes...oil no.

If it is drippy gear oil...not good.

If it looks like grease that is simply being wiped on there as the knuckle turns...good.

pics help to really rule out issues....most of us can say "uh oh" or "no worries" with a simple snapshot with good lighting.
 
Jason,

The seals that sweep across that sphere are designed to constantly weep a bit of grease. The intent is to prevent wear to the seal edges, and provide a dust proof seal and also a water RESISTANT seal. The nice part of the design is that if a bit of dust gets intermingled with the grease at the edge, subsequent grease movement pushes it away. In a way, it's like your eyes, with the slight amount of water constantly sweeping particles away from the lids (and this is why your eyes water a lot when they get grit in them - as a reaction that rinses more aggressively).

You'll get a small 'lip' in the pile of accumulated grease - again normal. The way this grease keeps getting replenished is via the square plug atop the inner steering knuckle. You stick the grease gun in it and give a half dozen squirts whenever you grease the drive shafts.

If there's oil dripping (much thinner) out these seals, then it's only source is differential gear oil. You'll actually find a trail of oil running down to the tire or onto the garage floor in this case. This tells you the axle seal is due for replacement. It's a fine system tailor made for a life in the bush if the owner is aware of how it works and takes modest care of it.

So. If you have a full front differential, no oil running onto the ground, and thick grease constantly weeping onto the spherical area - all is well in 80 land....

Doug
 
'The way this grease keeps getting replenished is via the square plug atop the inner steering knuckle. You stick the grease gun in it and give a half dozen squirts whenever you grease the drive shafts.'


What kind of grease should be used to top off the knuckles? I think I've read somewhere that it's also not good to overfill. How do I know how much is too much?
 
I think it's nearly impossible to overfill, since the pressure would be relieved by the grease gun pump being pushed back out the hole, or lots of weeping at the large sweep seals. But there's no sense in trying, so to repeat myself "You stick the grease gun in it and give a half dozen squirts whenever you grease the drive shafts."

As for type, any moly grease meeting the spec in the owner's manual will do. There are no grease incompatibilities these days that I'm aware of, so fire away. Look in your owner's manual for specifics.

Doug
 
You can over grease, Christo has some pic of grease in the diff from over greasing. Just a couple of pumps will do. Just add the amount you see and wipe the old grease off. When you see build up, add about that much again.
The seal will let grease in, if it is over filled, and then build up at the diff gear.
 

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