U-joint Snap Rings (1 Viewer)

[AirheadNut]

I've been battling chronic driveline vibrations from the rear driveshaft on my LJ78 for the past couple of years. Initially my driveline angles were out of spec due to the engine swap, then I discovered that the driveline shop where I had the rear shaft shortened failed to properly balance the unit, then a u-joint wore out. After fixing all these problems the vibration was mostly gone for the better part of a year, but after a wheeling trip this summer it came back again. Upon inspection I have significant axial play in both axes on the u-joint I replaced.

According to the manual proper snap ring thicknesses must be installed on the bearing cups to limit axial play, but when installing I simply reused the old snap rings. Looking up the part numbers for the different snap rings, most show up as discontinued. Does anyone have a good source for these snap rings, or updated part numbers for a newer version?

Part Number	Thickness (mm)
90520-26038	2.125	Available
90520-26040	2.175	Discontinued
90520-26041	2.225	Discontinued
90520-26042	2.275	Discontinued
90520-26043	2.325	Discontinued
90520-26044	2.375	Available
90520-26045	2.425	Discontinued
90520-26046	2.475	Discontinued

 

[coldtaco]

Don’t they come with the new U-joint? Or am I not picking up what you are putting down? Any new ones I’ve gotten came with snap rings.

 

[sleepydad69]

I've been battling chronic driveline vibrations from the rear driveshaft on my LJ78 for the past couple of years. Initially my driveline angles were out of spec due to the engine swap, then I discovered that the driveline shop where I had the rear shaft shortened failed to properly balance the unit, then a u-joint wore out. After fixing all these problems the vibration was mostly gone for the better part of a year, but after a wheeling trip this summer it came back again. Upon inspection I have significant axial play in both axes on the u-joint I replaced.

According to the manual proper snap ring thicknesses must be installed on the bearing cups to limit axial play, but when installing I simply reused the old snap rings. Looking up the part numbers for the different snap rings, most show up as discontinued. Does anyone have a good source for these snap rings, or updated part numbers for a newer version?

Part Number	Thickness (mm)
90520-26038	2.125	Available
90520-26040	2.175	Discontinued
90520-26041	2.225	Discontinued
90520-26042	2.275	Discontinued
90520-26043	2.325	Discontinued
90520-26044	2.375	Available
90520-26045	2.425	Discontinued
90520-26046	2.475	Discontinued

I know this does not directly answer your question and your asking about repairing what you have... but give them a call they might even have a source for your snap rings.

Toyota Collections

Toyota Drive Shafts At Tom Wood's we specialize in Toyota drive shafts. Offering an upgraded replacement for almost any type of 4x4 Toyota, nobody has more options to replace and upgrade your stock Toyota driveshaft than we do.

4xshaft.com

I have used them several times and can attest they really do a great job. It's not that expensive compared to the time and frustration for me. They can make anything and will work with you to get things silk smooth.

 

[jblueridge]

I always consult the McMaster Carr website for stuff like this.
Need to measure what you have I guess.
snap rings

 

[RHINO]

they are conveinently colored for thickness, black, red, blue, green, brown ect. the u-joints come with the black ones, and most of the time thats fine, when i rebuilt mine a couple years ago the standard black was the right size for me, but i did look and could only find some left over blue and a brown set. i dont know if you'll find anything today.


edit: i just did a quick poke and only see the standard size as available,,, maybe Steadman can locate something?

hope that helps

 

[Tigris]

Spitballing here:

What about ordering the thicker still available ring and then stoning it down to the required thickness?
I have only done this on the snap rings of a lawn mower spindle bearing. The ones I received were out of spec (too thick when checked with a micrometer even when they were labeled otherwise). So I sanded them down on an oil stone using a magnet wrapped in plastic tape to keep the residue off of the magnet. I was able to get an exact reading on all sides of the ring. Going slow meant I didn't have heat problems. I also remember cold bluing the rings at the end to help with corrosion.

I still think that balancing the shafts and having good geometry is the crucial first step on a job like this.

Let us know!

 

[AirheadNut]

Don’t they come with the new U-joint? Or am I not picking up what you are putting down? Any new ones I’ve gotten came with snap rings.

I think you’re probably right, and thinking back on it I probably did use the snap rings that came with the u-joint, but they weren’t the appropriate thickness. I have a spare u-joint and can check if there are snap rings in the package.

I know this does not directly answer your question and your asking about repairing what you have... but give them a call they might even have a source for your snap rings.

Toyota Collections

Toyota Drive Shafts At Tom Wood's we specialize in Toyota drive shafts. Offering an upgraded replacement for almost any type of 4x4 Toyota, nobody has more options to replace and upgrade your stock Toyota driveshaft than we do.

4xshaft.com

I have used them several times and can attest they really do a great job. It's not that expensive compared to the time and frustration for me. They can make anything and will work with you to get things silk smooth.

Thanks for the link, I’ll have to check with them and see if they’ve got a source for the snap rings.

I always consult the McMaster Carr website for stuff like this.
Need to measure what you have I guess.
snap rings

Not sure why I didn’t think to check McMaster, they seem to have everything. I have yet to measure the current snap rings or the play in the u-joint; waiting until I have my dial indicator again at the end of the month.

they are conveinently colored for thickness, black, red, blue, green, brown ect. the u-joints come with the black ones, and most of the time thats fine, when i rebuilt mine a couple years ago the standard black was the right size for me, but i did look and could only find some left over blue and a brown set. i dont know if you'll find anything today.


edit: i just did a quick poke and only see the standard size as available,,, maybe Steadman can locate something?

hope that helps

Thanks for the info. If all else fails I will see if Dave Steadman can find the size I end up needing. Would rather not pay for shipping on four little snap rings all the way from Japan if I don't have to though!

Spitballing here:

What about ordering the thicker still available ring and then stoning it down to the required thickness?
I have only done this on the snap rings of a lawn mower spindle bearing. The ones I received were out of spec (too thick when checked with a micrometer even when they were labeled otherwise). So I sanded them down on an oil stone using a magnet wrapped in plastic tape to keep the residue off of the magnet. I was able to get an exact reading on all sides of the ring. Going slow meant I didn't have heat problems. I also remember cold bluing the rings at the end to help with corrosion.

I still think that balancing the shafts and having good geometry is the crucial first step on a job like this.

Let us know!

That is probably the route I will end up having to take. Hopefully the available thickest size is what will fit properly, there is quite a bit of play so the snap rings need to be significantly thicker than what's in there now. I should know in about a week.

 

[AirheadNut]

Just checked my spare u-joint, it does have snap rings in the package but they measure out to 1.48 mm, much thinner than even the thinnest stock snap ring. No wonder they're loose!

 

[AirheadNut]

I finally got around to removing the driveshaft to measure the u-joint play. Factory specs according to the manual are 0-0.002" axial play. The two axes of the u-joint came to 0.007" and 0.006", so over triple what it should be.

Given that the snap rings that came with the replacement u-joint are 1.48mm or 0.058", and I need to make up around 0.003", then the snap ring size I am looking for is around 0.061", or about 1.55mm. Unfortunately that is still quite a bit thinner than the thinnest Toyota snap ring for this application, so the search is on for a suitable replacement.

The groove diameter on the bearing cap is 27mm; McMaster lists snap rings of the correct thickness but they only go up to a groove diameter of 23.5mm, and the equivalent inch size snap ring is only 0.050" thick. Looks like I may have to get one of the thicker Toyota ones and see abut grinding it down slightly.

 

[Tigris]

Whenever I am faced with a situation where I may end up with an overly thin washer/ring/bushing etc, I can't help thinking of a way to "split the difference" among the mating parts/surfaces. I know that is not always possible or wise, but if I can get away with it, I let the adjacent parts share some of the wasted thickness. Idk

 

[AirheadNut]

Whenever I am faced with a situation where I may end up with an overly thin washer/ring/bushing etc, I can't help thinking of a way to "split the difference" among the mating parts/surfaces. I know that is not always possible or wise, but if I can get away with it, I let the adjacent parts share some of the wasted thickness. Idk

Not totally sure how that would work out in this situation. I have ordered a set of 2.125mm snap rings and am going to see about getting them ground down to the correct thickness.

 

[coldtaco]

Bigger hammer