At 10:05 AM 12/20/98 -0800, fred thomas wrote:
>Listers, 1978 spit 1500, is there a easy way to replace the rear axle
>u-joints without having to remove the rear hub, vertical links, and brake
>drums, yes you guessed it, some bearings are now showing on drivers side
>only and she is a little louder than the radio at 3/4 volume, any
>suggestions or is the manual correct again. TIA "FT"
>
>
Fred,
Manual is correct. You can't get 'em out without removing the axle &
holding the assembly firmly. You risk damaging the hub bearings if you try
in the car.
No need to remove the drum though...that could stay on the axle once it is
removed from the vertical link.
But, try this method of u-joint removal I just got from the Lotus Cars
List. Let us know if it works! (Key to this method is cleaning those
inner bores well.)
Atwell Haines
(resisting the urge to say, "get a louder, more powerful radio")
++++++++++++++++++++++
Courtesy Clive Roberts, ex-TR7 engineer in the late 70s:
<< ) How does one remove u-joints? >>
I was taught by one of those wonder-mechanics you met once in a decade,
never
to apply any force to the bearing cups in a U-joint. His method was to
remove
the circlip, then carefully scrape all corrosion and junk out of the bore
of
the housing, to give the cups a clean path to move along. Then, holding
the
cross in one hand, tap the housing adjacent to the bearing cup where you
just
removed the circlip with a hammer. (Note: the operative word was _tap_ -
not
welt, welly, or beat the **** out of. The fact that you're holding the
thing
tends to be a good force-limiting device). His promise was that the
inertia
would gently move the cup out of the housing. You let that cup move
almost,
but not completely, out of the housing, then turn the assembly over and
so the
same on the opposite side.
As one who had grown used to using arbor presses, clamps and sundry
brutality
to U-joints, accepting that some damage would be done along the way, I
was
sceptical that this _low-impact_ method would work - but it did then,
and has
since, every time I've needed to pull a joint apart. There may be times
it
won't, but I think it's definitely a technique worth learning, as it's
low
stress both on parts and operator. And you never know when it may be
useful to
be able to fix a U-joint beside the road, with only the tools you're
carrying....
Clive
++++++++++++
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