After my little jaunt down to New Mexico to go caving over Thanksgiving, I realized I could no longer put off working on the 55. The engine was leaking oil like a sieve, my PS pump was eating belts, there was a terrible clunk comming from the rear end, the brakes were still awful, a hub seal was leaking gear lube on my FF, a glow plug was toast, and the washer switch had gone out.
I planned a week to work on the truck.
Looking at the engine, I thought the rear main seal had gone out- there was oil everywhere, enough to make the truck look like it was British. I planned on replacing the seal, and with some help from Steve Fox, got the right parts in. I washed the beast, and as I went to drain the oil, I realized my first mistake: the rear seal was fine. Not a drop of oil back there, but there was a ton around the plug. The gasket was junk, the plug was loose, and there was a small crack in the pan near the diff. I kicked myself for ordering all those new parts without first checking everything. Welded up the crack, got a new gasket. No leaks.
The PS pump was taken care of by my bud Ray. The mount, made by the PO, was off and there was no bolt in the front of the pump to hold it on. It was constantly crooked. We pulled it off and Ray made a spacer for the back stud of the mount that removed any slop. The front was tricker since the holes in the mount were not lined up. The front hole got a plug, then ray line drilled the mount to make sure the pump was perfectly perpendicular with the block. No more slop, everything is straight.
If the oil leaks hadn't made me feel dumb, then the rear diff did. I should say that in ten years of owning Cruisers, I've never had any problems with u-joints before. NEVER. Not one. On the other hand, I've had problems with @&@&@&@&ty differentials before- sloppy lockers, trashed center pins, junk bearings. Knowing the diff in the rear was 30 years old, I suppose I never gave the ujoint a second thought, which is why I felt really dumb to find it destroyed. Getting it out was an even bigger hassle. I managed to break three bearing caps using a press. Absolutely fricken stupid, but much quicker than rebuilding a diff. (Sutpid!)
I planned a week to work on the truck.
Looking at the engine, I thought the rear main seal had gone out- there was oil everywhere, enough to make the truck look like it was British. I planned on replacing the seal, and with some help from Steve Fox, got the right parts in. I washed the beast, and as I went to drain the oil, I realized my first mistake: the rear seal was fine. Not a drop of oil back there, but there was a ton around the plug. The gasket was junk, the plug was loose, and there was a small crack in the pan near the diff. I kicked myself for ordering all those new parts without first checking everything. Welded up the crack, got a new gasket. No leaks.
The PS pump was taken care of by my bud Ray. The mount, made by the PO, was off and there was no bolt in the front of the pump to hold it on. It was constantly crooked. We pulled it off and Ray made a spacer for the back stud of the mount that removed any slop. The front was tricker since the holes in the mount were not lined up. The front hole got a plug, then ray line drilled the mount to make sure the pump was perfectly perpendicular with the block. No more slop, everything is straight.
If the oil leaks hadn't made me feel dumb, then the rear diff did. I should say that in ten years of owning Cruisers, I've never had any problems with u-joints before. NEVER. Not one. On the other hand, I've had problems with @&@&@&@&ty differentials before- sloppy lockers, trashed center pins, junk bearings. Knowing the diff in the rear was 30 years old, I suppose I never gave the ujoint a second thought, which is why I felt really dumb to find it destroyed. Getting it out was an even bigger hassle. I managed to break three bearing caps using a press. Absolutely fricken stupid, but much quicker than rebuilding a diff. (Sutpid!)
It came from a military M1008 Chebby w/ the 6.2 diesel. It's not running yet. I also have a Durex hi flow P/S pump to go w/ the system. I have the same exact setup on my 40. Never a spongy or dbl. pump pedal, but very firm & stops on a dime. I have a few pics on the install in my buildup thread page 15 post 438 ;p