Crewcab update...
12-20-2020, 02:13 AM
#1441
Registered User
Thread Starter
Decided this year to switch my gear oil in the diffs to a 75W90 Synthetic with a temp flow rating of -50*C, since with the cold winters we get I could sure feel that old conventional gear oil thick as molasses for the first few miles. Was a little hesitant since the last time I put Synthetic in about 5 years ago I got really bad clutch chatter from the power-loc unit in the rear diff. Pretty sure the fluid already had some sort of limited slip additive, but I added an extra bottle of additive just to be safe....been nice and quiet since around the end of October.
But when I was jacking the front end of the truck up in the air to do the fluid swap and grease all the fittings in the front drive line, the wood block I had between the jack and the front diff exploded and it dropped a couple inches and slid out from under the axle and dented the oil pan a little bit.
But when I was jacking the front end of the truck up in the air to do the fluid swap and grease all the fittings in the front drive line, the wood block I had between the jack and the front diff exploded and it dropped a couple inches and slid out from under the axle and dented the oil pan a little bit.
12-20-2020, 02:27 AM
#1442
Registered User
Thread Starter
Then last week figured it was time for the yearly front hub tear down with new seals and re-grease the bearings etc.
Finally got to use the new hub nut socket I got for Christmas last year, has a lip that goes over the nut to hold it secure in place....works much better then the old open style one I was using.
Black grease from water infiltration....from just over a year.
While it was all apart I figured why not toss on a new set of brake pads but I could not get the piston on the drivers side to retract all the way into the caliper, I even removed it and tried in the vice, but would not go the last 1/4"...so guess the bore or piston have corroded so need new calipers.
Finally got to use the new hub nut socket I got for Christmas last year, has a lip that goes over the nut to hold it secure in place....works much better then the old open style one I was using.
Black grease from water infiltration....from just over a year.
While it was all apart I figured why not toss on a new set of brake pads but I could not get the piston on the drivers side to retract all the way into the caliper, I even removed it and tried in the vice, but would not go the last 1/4"...so guess the bore or piston have corroded so need new calipers.
12-20-2020, 02:34 AM
#1443
Registered User
Thread Starter
Patches has been developing a drive line vibration/growl, I replaced the U-joints and carrier bearing back in April, and they all seem tight and in good shape. I had hoped it was something in the front end, but after new seals and grease the vibration/growl is still there. After Christmas is over I will be getting into the rear axle...new E-brake cables and hub seals as well and hope to find a problem that could be causing the vibration/growl. If after the rear axle service I still have the vibration/growl I have a bad feeling that it might be a bearing starting to go in my NV4500 or maybe NP205?
12-20-2020, 06:02 AM
#1444
Registered User
Those growl/roars are hard to track down as they get telescoped to other places. I have one in the XJ I can't pinpoint just yet but me thinks it's the rear end... maybe...
I've got new calipers and slotted & drilled rotors to put on plus driver's side king pin and u-joints (already did other side). Had it for a while but now it has become necessary. Glad I waited until winter...
I've got new calipers and slotted & drilled rotors to put on plus driver's side king pin and u-joints (already did other side). Had it for a while but now it has become necessary. Glad I waited until winter...
The following users liked this post:
thrashingcows (12-20-2020)
12-20-2020, 11:52 AM
#1445
Registered User
Wow have not updated in a few months....
Back in July I had to replace the tail pipe...was leaking really bad and looked like Swiss cheese.
Then in and around August I went through two water pumps, both were used units that had been on the shelf for a bunch of years, in fact I had not installed a new water pump since I bought my crewcab over 10 years ago. First one lasted only a few days before it started leaking, then the next one lasted about a month or so before it started leaking, so I finally bought a NEW water pump and everything has been golden since then.
Here you can see the one I had taken off first. I did not know that it was leaking because it had to weep hole, so the only time it would leak was when it was running. The next used one had the weep hole.
And now with a brand spanking new water pump.
Back in July I had to replace the tail pipe...was leaking really bad and looked like Swiss cheese.
Then in and around August I went through two water pumps, both were used units that had been on the shelf for a bunch of years, in fact I had not installed a new water pump since I bought my crewcab over 10 years ago. First one lasted only a few days before it started leaking, then the next one lasted about a month or so before it started leaking, so I finally bought a NEW water pump and everything has been golden since then.
Here you can see the one I had taken off first. I did not know that it was leaking because it had to weep hole, so the only time it would leak was when it was running. The next used one had the weep hole.
And now with a brand spanking new water pump.
The following users liked this post:
thrashingcows (12-20-2020)
12-20-2020, 11:55 AM
#1446
Registered User
Then last week figured it was time for the yearly front hub tear down with new seals and re-grease the bearings etc.
Finally got to use the new hub nut socket I got for Christmas last year, has a lip that goes over the nut to hold it secure in place....works much better then the old open style one I was using.
Black grease from water infiltration....from just over a year.
While it was all apart I figured why not toss on a new set of brake pads but I could not get the piston on the drivers side to retract all the way into the caliper, I even removed it and tried in the vice, but would not go the last 1/4"...so guess the bore or piston have corroded so need new calipers.
Finally got to use the new hub nut socket I got for Christmas last year, has a lip that goes over the nut to hold it secure in place....works much better then the old open style one I was using.
Black grease from water infiltration....from just over a year.
While it was all apart I figured why not toss on a new set of brake pads but I could not get the piston on the drivers side to retract all the way into the caliper, I even removed it and tried in the vice, but would not go the last 1/4"...so guess the bore or piston have corroded so need new calipers.
The following users liked this post:
thrashingcows (12-20-2020)
04-09-2022, 04:30 AM
#1447
Registered User
Thread Starter
Alright been a while since I have updated this...again!
So back in Oct/Nov 2021 I took Patches off the road and into the shop to get to a bunch of stuff done that I have been putting off for a few years now. Mainly the spring eye bushings were either toast, or the bolts had seized in the bushings and I had uneven suspension travel, or no travel at all.
First was the front springs...
I had decided I wanted to try a set of poly bushings in the front springs just to see if the ride would be noticeably harsher, or that they might last longer, but I had forgotten that I had put in a set of "smooth ride" after market springs and they had the large bushing in the front eye so the kit would only work on the rear eye of the front spring.
Well once I started pulling things apart I found that on the front eyes one side was seized, the other wallowed out. I removed the old bushings with fire and the outer casing on the bushings I used a sawzall to cut most of the way through them, then hammer and chisel to crack them loose and drive them out.
g]
]
So I was in a spot with no bushings for the front eye and started looking on-line for a poly bushing. Well turns out there is no listed kit or single bushing set for the large diameter eye bushings in poly that I could find...OEM style rubber no problem!
I had a vague recollection of some large poly bushings I had bought/received/found decades past so started digging through my hoard....well I did find something and it would work with a little modification!
]
]
I had exactly two of these...what are the odds! But they were to wide to fit within the frame spring bracket so I had to take some material off the outer face...about 1/8"-3/8", but lucky me I have no belt sander so had to put on my backyard engineering hat and come up with a way to do this.
This is what I came up with...
]
Drywall sanding pad with some 120grit mesh then sliding the bushing back and forth...back and forth...back and forth...for what seemed hours until I got them down enough that they would slip into the bracket.
As found on the left, in the process in the middle and finished on the right...
]
Once they were done measured and trimmed the inner sleeve.
]
Then it was lube everything up and install...
]
New bolts with stover nuts installed as well...with lots of never seize this time round!
So back in Oct/Nov 2021 I took Patches off the road and into the shop to get to a bunch of stuff done that I have been putting off for a few years now. Mainly the spring eye bushings were either toast, or the bolts had seized in the bushings and I had uneven suspension travel, or no travel at all.
First was the front springs...
I had decided I wanted to try a set of poly bushings in the front springs just to see if the ride would be noticeably harsher, or that they might last longer, but I had forgotten that I had put in a set of "smooth ride" after market springs and they had the large bushing in the front eye so the kit would only work on the rear eye of the front spring.
Well once I started pulling things apart I found that on the front eyes one side was seized, the other wallowed out. I removed the old bushings with fire and the outer casing on the bushings I used a sawzall to cut most of the way through them, then hammer and chisel to crack them loose and drive them out.
g]]So I was in a spot with no bushings for the front eye and started looking on-line for a poly bushing. Well turns out there is no listed kit or single bushing set for the large diameter eye bushings in poly that I could find...OEM style rubber no problem!
I had a vague recollection of some large poly bushings I had bought/received/found decades past so started digging through my hoard....well I did find something and it would work with a little modification!
]]I had exactly two of these...what are the odds! But they were to wide to fit within the frame spring bracket so I had to take some material off the outer face...about 1/8"-3/8", but lucky me I have no belt sander so had to put on my backyard engineering hat and come up with a way to do this.
This is what I came up with...
]Drywall sanding pad with some 120grit mesh then sliding the bushing back and forth...back and forth...back and forth...for what seemed hours until I got them down enough that they would slip into the bracket.
As found on the left, in the process in the middle and finished on the right...
]Once they were done measured and trimmed the inner sleeve.
]Then it was lube everything up and install...
]New bolts with stover nuts installed as well...with lots of never seize this time round!
04-09-2022, 04:50 AM
#1448
Registered User
Thread Starter
Once the front eyes were done I figured it would be a quick re/re of the rear spring bushings with the poly and front is done...well that was not to be. Turned out one side the bushings in the frame bracket was toast as well, but since I had done the 2wd to 4wd conversion I was able to unbolt them from the frame to make replacement easier.
I decided to drop them off at a local spring shop to get them done quicker...well that turned out to be a fiasco as well. I get a call saying that one bracket was fine but the other once the bushing would just slip in loosely, I know darn well what happened but the owner wouldn't admit it and claimed it was my bracket that was faulty. But I know he let one of his shop apes who lacked any critical thinking skills press out the outer shell with a die that was to large for the bore of the bracket and stretched it out. So he said he would "shrink" the bracket and all should be good, this is what I recieved....
He heated it up and then beat it to misshape it so the bushing would deform going in. Not happy about it but it was the dead of winter and I wasn't going to lay under one of my parts trucks grinding and pounding out cold rivets to get a replacement....I'll do that in the summer if I have time and then replace the bushings myself.
So installed the frame brackets, new poly bushings for the rear eyes and put everything back together.
Turned out one side the bushings in the frame bracket was toast as well, but since I had done the 2wd to 4wd conversion I was able to unbolt them from the frame to make replacement easier.
I decided to drop them off at a local spring shop to get them done quicker...well that turned out to be a fiasco as well. I get a call saying that one bracket was fine but the other once the bushing would just slip in loosely, I know darn well what happened but the owner wouldn't admit it and claimed it was my bracket that was faulty. But I know he let one of his shop apes who lacked any critical thinking skills press out the outer shell with a die that was to large for the bore of the bracket and stretched it out. So he said he would "shrink" the bracket and all should be good, this is what I recieved....
He heated it up and then beat it to misshape it so the bushing would deform going in. Not happy about it but it was the dead of winter and I wasn't going to lay under one of my parts trucks grinding and pounding out cold rivets to get a replacement....I'll do that in the summer if I have time and then replace the bushings myself.
So installed the frame brackets, new poly bushings for the rear eyes and put everything back together.
04-09-2022, 05:15 AM
#1449
Registered User
Thread Starter
Then it was on to the rear springs....
After what the spring shop did to my front bracket I decided I would just do the spring bushings myself with my little 20 Ton shop press. So I ordered up new OEM style rubber eye bushings and go to work trying to get those rear springs out. Turned out all the bolts turned with a little persuasion but one, thank fully it was the pass side front so there was not fuel tank in the way. I worked on that bolt for a week or two while waiting for the bushings, heat cycling, PB blaster, torque on the bolt and repeat...think my bushings had arrived and was getting ready to break out the sawzall to get this out and the friggin thing finally moved!
Once out it was the same as the front...heat and fire to get the old rubber bushings out, then sawzall the outer shell and then hammer and chisel the shell free...
I pulled the top spring off the spring pack to make the re/re of the bushings easier, then reassembled...
If you've ever worked on the rear springs you'll know that the engineers decided that it would be best to have the bolts for the front eyes run through from inside the frame rail, and on the LH side the fuel tank would then be in the way....thus making it a PITA to re/re the springs and/or bushings. So I decided I was not going to go through this again, I picked up more bolts and stover nuts and go to modifying a couple of them to solve this problem...
My solution was to grab some flat bar and make them fit around the nuts....
Then weld said flat bar to the nuts...
Then cut and shorten the bolts to the OEM length...
And install the bolts from the outside with the new nuts and flatbar wedging against the frame bracket so I don't have to try and get a friggin wrench into that tight bracket....worked like a charm! Now I can loosen and re-tighten the bolts every year or two to ensure they are not seizing up.
After what the spring shop did to my front bracket I decided I would just do the spring bushings myself with my little 20 Ton shop press. So I ordered up new OEM style rubber eye bushings and go to work trying to get those rear springs out. Turned out all the bolts turned with a little persuasion but one, thank fully it was the pass side front so there was not fuel tank in the way. I worked on that bolt for a week or two while waiting for the bushings, heat cycling, PB blaster, torque on the bolt and repeat...think my bushings had arrived and was getting ready to break out the sawzall to get this out and the friggin thing finally moved!
Once out it was the same as the front...heat and fire to get the old rubber bushings out, then sawzall the outer shell and then hammer and chisel the shell free...
I pulled the top spring off the spring pack to make the re/re of the bushings easier, then reassembled...
If you've ever worked on the rear springs you'll know that the engineers decided that it would be best to have the bolts for the front eyes run through from inside the frame rail, and on the LH side the fuel tank would then be in the way....thus making it a PITA to re/re the springs and/or bushings. So I decided I was not going to go through this again, I picked up more bolts and stover nuts and go to modifying a couple of them to solve this problem...
My solution was to grab some flat bar and make them fit around the nuts....
Then weld said flat bar to the nuts...
Then cut and shorten the bolts to the OEM length...
And install the bolts from the outside with the new nuts and flatbar wedging against the frame bracket so I don't have to try and get a friggin wrench into that tight bracket....worked like a charm! Now I can loosen and re-tighten the bolts every year or two to ensure they are not seizing up.
The following users liked this post:
Blue Goose (04-09-2022)
The following users liked this post:
Blue Goose (04-09-2022)
04-09-2022, 05:24 AM
#1451
Registered User
Thread Starter
I also removed the shocks and cleaned them up...front were pretty crusty but cleaned them up, coat of primer and paint and re-installed.
Started on the rear shocks and one of them had rusted through....
So was looking at buying some new rear shocks when I thought I should go check the parts trucks...well turns out one of my Ramchargers had the exact same Rancho shocks on the rear, so out into the cold to remove them!
Then cleaned them up a bit and ready to go back on...
Started on the rear shocks and one of them had rusted through....
So was looking at buying some new rear shocks when I thought I should go check the parts trucks...well turns out one of my Ramchargers had the exact same Rancho shocks on the rear, so out into the cold to remove them!
Then cleaned them up a bit and ready to go back on...
The following users liked this post:
Blue Goose (04-09-2022)
04-09-2022, 07:18 AM
#1453
Registered User
Nice work! That kind of job makes these trucks ride and handle a load better, but it's one of those projects that no one wants to tackle. I'll be watching for updates.
The following users liked this post:
thrashingcows (04-09-2022)
04-09-2022, 09:55 AM
#1454
Registered User
nice work TC. I could use the bumper brackets off that Ram Charger for my Utiline.....
The following users liked this post:
thrashingcows (04-09-2022)
04-10-2022, 05:09 AM
#1455
Registered User
Thread Starter
I've needed new over load pads for a lot of years, missing a couple and the others were cracked or missing half....
Was looking around on-line for alternatives since I could seem to find OEM type units, and found a few I thought would work but they were in the 60-80 dollar range...way more then I wanted to spend for 4 pads. Then I happened on an RV site and people were talking about DIY over loads and pads and one guy mentioned using hockey pucks...Ding Ding Ding I think we have a winner! So off to the store and purchased 4 hockey pucks for under $10.
Then I used a flat wood bit in the drill press to counter sink one side, then drilled out the center for a washer and bolt.
Then bolted them in...
I've had a few heavier loads on them and they work great and are wearing nicely.
Was looking around on-line for alternatives since I could seem to find OEM type units, and found a few I thought would work but they were in the 60-80 dollar range...way more then I wanted to spend for 4 pads. Then I happened on an RV site and people were talking about DIY over loads and pads and one guy mentioned using hockey pucks...Ding Ding Ding I think we have a winner! So off to the store and purchased 4 hockey pucks for under $10.
Then I used a flat wood bit in the drill press to counter sink one side, then drilled out the center for a washer and bolt.
Then bolted them in...
I've had a few heavier loads on them and they work great and are wearing nicely.