- Location
- In a strange land
I ordered some stiffeners thinking that would be a good project for the Thanksgiving Holiday. At the very least I figured I would get the fronts in. Ha!! Jeep is still on jackstands with no front axle in sight.
It started with the non-stock hardware chosen for the lower trackbar mount. I suspect whoever put it in had a special wrench with a non-standard offset. I can't get anything on it or wedged between it and the axle.
No big deal. That was just the tipping point that convinced me now is also the time to swap in the axles from the Jeep I bought for its axles. D44/D30 with 4.10s and ARBs.
Of course that opens up a new can of worms. The "new" D30 is pretty clearly leaking out the axle seals at both sides. Both lower inner Cs had nice thick pools of oil filled sand. Yippee.
Trying to research what I am in for I am getting conflicting information regarding removing and replacing the ARB. Some posts indicate that a case spreader is required, others no. I can't find anything that demonstrates how one is right and the other wrong. Where is the dividing line between these two perspectives?
Additionally, everything I have read about pulling out and replacing a carrier revolves around the stock carrier. What do I need to know about the ARB? Where are the safe places to leverage against it and beat on it? Where not to?
Anything else important that is not likely to show up in a thread about a stock carrier?
And on a tangentially related subject, I noticed that this "new" axle does not have the plastic dust shields (or whatever they are supposed to be) at the point where the axle shafts enter the inner Cs. My old axle has some plastic flanges there. I suspect they were left out because they would not fit the shafts on this new axle. These shafts are machined differently, I am guessing they are aftermarket. I am wondering if the lack of that bit of protection has anything to do with the failure of the seals and if I should be looking for some sort of replacement.
And if I am going to be going ahead and tearing everything out of this axle does that make this a good time to slap on a truss? And if yes, does the truss get welded on before pulling anything out? Or while everything is out?
At any rate, I think I know what I will be still working on come Christmas.
:looney:
It started with the non-stock hardware chosen for the lower trackbar mount. I suspect whoever put it in had a special wrench with a non-standard offset. I can't get anything on it or wedged between it and the axle.
No big deal. That was just the tipping point that convinced me now is also the time to swap in the axles from the Jeep I bought for its axles. D44/D30 with 4.10s and ARBs.
Of course that opens up a new can of worms. The "new" D30 is pretty clearly leaking out the axle seals at both sides. Both lower inner Cs had nice thick pools of oil filled sand. Yippee.
Trying to research what I am in for I am getting conflicting information regarding removing and replacing the ARB. Some posts indicate that a case spreader is required, others no. I can't find anything that demonstrates how one is right and the other wrong. Where is the dividing line between these two perspectives?
Additionally, everything I have read about pulling out and replacing a carrier revolves around the stock carrier. What do I need to know about the ARB? Where are the safe places to leverage against it and beat on it? Where not to?
Anything else important that is not likely to show up in a thread about a stock carrier?
And on a tangentially related subject, I noticed that this "new" axle does not have the plastic dust shields (or whatever they are supposed to be) at the point where the axle shafts enter the inner Cs. My old axle has some plastic flanges there. I suspect they were left out because they would not fit the shafts on this new axle. These shafts are machined differently, I am guessing they are aftermarket. I am wondering if the lack of that bit of protection has anything to do with the failure of the seals and if I should be looking for some sort of replacement.
And if I am going to be going ahead and tearing everything out of this axle does that make this a good time to slap on a truss? And if yes, does the truss get welded on before pulling anything out? Or while everything is out?
At any rate, I think I know what I will be still working on come Christmas.
:looney: