The left front u-joint is pretty much shot as it's making the angry sparrows noise. Also picked up a pair of Lube Locker gaskets for the front and rear since I'm in the area, might as well. Little by little I'll get there.
My weekend plans in one picture (mostly)
- Thread starter 2002Apex5spd
- Start date
The left front u-joint is pretty much shot as it's making the angry sparrows noise. Also picked up a pair of Lube Locker gaskets for the front and rear since I'm in the area, might as well. Little by little I'll get there.
Buck
New Member
Take some pictures of the axle tube job, I'd really like to see how they work. Thanks! Oh and good luck and have fun!
You sure it's the left front u-joint, and not the front drive shaft? Notorious for the angry sparrows...
OP
Most of the signs point to a bad u-joint. That said, I'll be inspecting everything else down there to ensure it's just that, and not a start or sign of a much bigger problem. And I've already had the thought of buying a Craigslist Dana 30 to rebuild off to the side while I run my current one. I don't really plan on putting massive tires or a lift on this thing so a stout Dana 30 should be more than enough for my needs. That said, should I come across a deal on a Dana 44, I won't hesitate to pick it up.
Thanks for bringing this up though.
ZEN357
TJ Enthusiast
Good luck! Would like to see how this job goes since I can use it as reference material. Thanks!
The axle tube seals are a solution looking for a problem that doesn't exist while creating a few very undesirable consequences. I do a lot of brake kit installs. As such, I get to remove a lot of axle shafts. Owners show up with axle tube seals all the time. I explain why they are bad with the worst trait being that you can no longer tell if you have a failed inner axle seal and the diff is pumping out into the tube when it is really needed in the diff. At least half the time when we pull the long side, the owner gets to see all the oil run out that would have been far better off staying in the diff.
We pull lots of axle tube seals so the owners can sell them to the next sucker.
We pull lots of axle tube seals so the owners can sell them to the next sucker.
OP
Interesting. It's something to think about. I considered adding them since my particular area where I live is often prone to flooding and standing water (also why I'm upgrading to lube lockers), I also tend to help out on my families farms which can get muddy at times and I also plan on taking this thing on some beaches and maybe a desert trip or two at some point. My initial train of thought is that those types of environments would cause issues with my axles if not properly sealed.
Having said that, I agree with your statement that it will prevent me from even knowing if I have an inner seal leak because these would basically prevent me from being able to diagnose and fix this issue before it's too late.
I might sit on the idea of the tube seals for now. I haven't really done anything with them so I could return them or sell them off too.
OP