I am beginning my ball joint replacement and have hit a snag already at the axle nut. It was cross-threaded on at the factory. I had to use a 3ft cheater on my breaker bar all the way to the last thread to get the nut off. I tried putting it back on and it is every bit as hard to go back on - somethings toasted here. In anyone's experience, can the threads on the axle be chased and still be usable with a new castle nut or am I looking at a new axle end? I tried the nut from the 'good' (right) side and it doesn't want to thread on the 'bad' (left) side so I know the threads on the left are hurtin' somewhat, just don't know how much it's hurtin' or if it is feasible to re thread it. Thanks for your replies!

 

The factory did not cross thread it. They all come apart like that. I never have saved an early axle. The late ones changed and do not come apart like that. Our local dealer has them in stock, you just need a new end and I would change the u-joint while I was there.

 

Thanks for your reply badme,
I am not a brilliant mechanic but I have never heard of such a thing. What's the deal with that setup? Why on earth did 'they' build it that way? The other side seems normal - Geeze, what a stupid thing to do! What did they do, cram a course thread nut on a fine thread stud? Is there nothing else I can do but buy a new axle end?

 

Been in the biz over 15 years and have never ruined one. Must be a rustbelt thing.

 

Hi J BODY,
The threads on the stub end look ok, it's just that the nut on the left won't go back on without the very unnatural fight it took to take it off. Right side seems fine. I can't imagine why Dodge would design a stub end that would self destruct when disassembled. Am I misreading badme's message? Do I only have to replace the nuts and not the whole assembly? Somebody please bring me down off the ceiling!

 

I've never run into it after 15 years either.
They should have come with anti-seize from the factory as some get galled on and the nut threads become one with the axle stub's.
I would at least replace the nut and see what happens.

 

Ive never seen this either. I have worked on many Dodges over the years.

 

Thank you infidel and dieselman2300 for getting involved in my plight. I live on the west coast so I have never had any sort of 'rust belt' problem. I guess I will try new castellated nuts and see how it goes. Dealer wants 28.95 apiece for them. They must be made in Beverly Hills by unemployed actors. I think I can get them cheaper if I look around. In the meantime, I will commence with the ball joint replacement. This funky nut thing really blows my mind. I have read on other forums that many other people have experienced difficult axle nut removal but no one mentions how they resolved it. I sure don't want to spring for new stub axles if I don't have to. Thanks to everyone who has responded, I am sad and I need friends.

 

We used to change those early stub axles like they were growing on trees. It is a very poor design from chrysler. The newer ones are not threaded all the way to the end and work much better. It must just be a New England thing.

 

Could you get a thread chaser and clean up the threads? You could probably get a whole set from sears. I've got 2 sets but even meeting half way ...........!!!

 

Hi again badme - I certainly believe you when you say you have seen this many times in the past. It happened in the course of a perfectly normal nut removal and I didn't do anything to cause it. Well D2Cat, I am flirting with the idea of taking the axle to a machinist and seeing if the threads can be helped by running a die on it. Can't hurt to try, eh? Ha, thanks for the offer D2 but it's a long way for me to walk since my truck is out of commission. Thanks everyone for helping!

 

New nut and a little time with a thread file perhaps. Might be a trick to find someone with a die that size.

 

A thread chaser will do as good a job as a die will---a good diesel shop can clean up the threads for you.

 

Thanks again J Body, I've put your idea in my mental tool box. Hi Break Away, I am taking the axle to a large equipment repair shop today to see what help/advice they can offer. We'll see how we go from there......
Thanks!!

 

Thread file is your best bet for cleaning those threads. A die that size with that thread pitch is gonna be like a needle in a haystack.