Hey guys, been awhile but I'm still here.

Just found out at 102K my front u joints are toast. Why they don't put grease fittings in them I don't know.

Anyway, anybody replace theirs yet? I'm heading in on Sat to my mechanic buddies place to help him replace them, and yes I'm putting in greasable ones.

I'm looking for any tips or tricks before I embark on this juggernaut.

 

They're not too bad. If you are even remotely mechanically inclined you'll be done and back together in 3 hours.

Just make sure you do one side at a time and jack that side up a few inches higher than the other so none of your diff fluid leaks out when you remove the shaft. When you re-install the shafts, make sure you put a little lube on the end and be careful no to damage the inner seal.

Make sure you have a torque wrench that reads up to 265 ft/lbs for the spindle nut and BF breaker bar to get it loose.

You don't need a press to get them out, but you'll want a bench vise.

Once you remove the c-clips from the inside of the caps, just secure one of the yokes in the vise and use a dead blow hammer to drive the stub shaft yoke down until the cap pops out. Flip it over and repeat.

Once you can get the stub shaft off, set the exposed ends of the cross on top of the vise and repeat the process on the axle shaft itself.

Make sure you hit down as low as possible on the yoke so you don't bend the dog ear of the yoke.

Then, use the vice to put the caps on the new cross. You may need to use a socket on either side to get them fully seated.

 

Thanks for the tips. 3 hrs huh? his ShopKey says 6 for both. We'll see. 3 hrs would be sweet, I don't want to be there all day.

Didn't think about the tipping the axle on one side tip, good idea.

Doesn't the diff cover need to come off and is there a clip on the end of the axle? How are the axle shafts held in there?

 

The diff covers do not need to come off and there are no clips holding the axles in.

The axles are held in by the unit bearing / hub assembly, that's it.

There is no way it takes 6 hrs, even if it's your first time doing it.

1 - Place the truck in 4WD, block the tires and jack up one side of the axle.
2 - Remove 8 lugs on the wheel.
3 - Remove 2 bolts for the caliper adapter, remove caliper and tie it to the upper control arm and pull the brake disk off.
4 - Remove the allen head bolt on the ABS sensor and remove the sensor.
5 - Remove the spindle nut cotter pin and spindle nut.
6 - Remove the 4 bolts holding on the rear of the carrier bear and remove the bearing / hub assembly. You may need a gear puller if you live in an area that salts the roads.
7 - Pull the axle shaft out. You may need to use a wide, flat blade screw driver to get it started.
8 - Swap the u-joint as described above.
9 - Reverse process and put it together.

 

Thanks Coal. I'm going to be there to help so I'll pass this along. 3 hrs would be nice. It does seem pretty straight forward.

 

You'll be surprised how easy it actually is.

The only thing that can be a PITA is the bearing / hub assembly if you live in an area that salts the roads. Then it's a PITA!!!!

If you do live in an area like that, spray the crap outta the bearing with PB Blaster the night prior and let it soak in.

When you reassemble everything apply a good coating of anti-seize to the bearing bore and it'll be much easier if you ever have to do it again.

Also, make sure that if you install greaseable fittings, that the fitting is on the compression side and the not tension side of the joint. (i.e. you want the axles shaft turning TOWARD the fitting and not pulling aways from it)