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Re: [oletrucks] It's not the clutch, so now what?

To: Ole Truckers <oletrucks@autox.team.net>
Subject: Re: [oletrucks] It's not the clutch, so now what?
From: tim <lloydt@Colorado.EDU>
Date: Wed, 18 Sep 2002 10:25:45 -0600 (MDT)
For those following the saga:

I did as suggested and pulled the cross member (48-year-old bolts are not
easy to remove), and that got me able to pull back the ball and get at the
u-joint.  When I got the ball pulled back (after supporting the driveshaft
with a floor jack and jack stand, a few chunks of metal fell to the
ground.  Turns out what happened was the rear yoke on the u-joint had what
we call in the engineering profession a "catastrophic failure."  I'll post
some pictures of the thing on my web site shortly -- it's quite
impressive.  The U-shaped part of the yoke has split in two, and the shaft
part is now in three pieces that don't appear to have ever fit together.

Next week, after I get back from my vacation, I'll double-check the
splines on the drive shaft, as well as the rest of the hardware involved,
to make sure there was no other damage from this failure, and then pay a
visit to Mile High Classic to get a new u-joint.  Unfortunately, I can't
afford to do what I really want, which is to replace the entire
transmission and rear end.  That will come later.

Thanks to everyone for their help.

On Mon, 16 Sep 2002, Thayer, Michael AW1(AW) (HS3) wrote:

> Tim,
> drop the transmission cross member. That will help a Hell of a lot. There is
> a small plate connected to the rear of the transmission and to the the
> crossmember, there is a rubber grommet on this and will probably fall apart
> when you touch it. You will need to take four bolts off holding the bell
> housing in place, and slide the ball back onto the drive shaft. Clean the
> shaft first to make it easier to move. Might want to provide support for the
> drive shaft as it is quite heavy. When you get everything apart, you should
> be able to access the u-joint with no trouble.
> Note: When you reassemble everything, make sure you do NOT use the small
> fill hole located on the top aft side of the transmission as this will over
> fill the ball and the transmission. Use the regular transmission hole to
> resupply transmission fluid (The transmission provides fluid for the ball
> joint as well.) There is a special adjustment you have to make when putting
> the ball back on to the transmission. Use new seals, and make sure you put
> the seals in place BEFORE closing it up (duh. Lesson learned the hard way.
> Had to take it all apart again to put the seals on.) If you don't have the
> shop manual, get one as it will make life so much easier! Might want to
> check to see if the seals on the torque tube are worn as well. (Check for
> fluid levels in the differential. If you open the plug and fluid pours out
> of it, chances are that one of the seals on the torque tube are leaking.)
>
> Mike
> 51 3100 http://nogrownups.tripod.com/Mikestruck.htm
>
>
>
> Date: Sun, 15 Sep 2002 19:22:26 -0600 (MDT)
> From: tim <lloydt@Colorado.EDU>
> Subject: [oletrucks] U-joint removal
>
> I think I've narrowed down my problem to the U-Joint between my 4-speed
> transmission and closed drive shaft.  The speedometer works fine,
> indicating that the tranny itself is fully functional, and the
> gears-not-engaging sound gets louder with higher gears.
>
> My problem is I can't seem to get at the inside of the U-joint.  I've
> unbolted the rear cover, as well as the plate on the crossmember below the
> U-joint.  There's an L-shaped bracket that's riveted to the plate, with a
> big honkin' chunk of metal underneath it that prevents the bracket, plate,
> and U-joint rear cover from moving very far past the crossmember.  What am
> I doing wrong?  Is there something else I should be doing to inspect the
> U-joint?  The shop manual is very unhelpful on this problem.
>
> Thanks in advance,
>
> Tim Lloyd, lloyd@lasp.colorado.edu
> oletrucks is devoted to Chevy and GM trucks built between 1941 and 1959
>

Tim Lloyd, lloyd@lasp.colorado.edu
"Humanity has advanced, when it has advanced, not because it has been
sober, responsible, and cautious, but because it has been playful,
rebellious, and immature." -- Tom Robbins
"The eyes of the world now look into space, to the moon and to the
planets beyond, and we have vowed that we shall not see it governed
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-- John F. Kennedy
oletrucks is devoted to Chevy and GM trucks built between 1941 and 1959

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