Beverly Hillbillies

[m3a1]

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[Mr. Recovery]

, I did not expect it to be rick f of all people to fall for that one!!! Love the way TJ slipped that into the list.

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[rickf]

Thats what I get for reading these first thing in the morning. Ok, but beware, when you least expect it.

[m3a1]

One of our members commented about the seal on the output shaft of the differential, mentioning that it looked like the seal was migrating off the differential. Wow, somebody is actually paying attention and at a glance it does look like that, doesn't it?

Having these particular seals not properly seated can present major problems because beneath that seal is a castellated adjusting nut (actually a big castellated ring) that sets the preload on the outer bearing that supports the output shaft of the carrier and there's a tiny little piece in there whose only purpose is to lock that adjusting nut into place and, odd as it may seem, one of the jobs of that seal is to prevent that lock from falling out of the small relieved area it sits in. So these seals are not something to be ignored if they get off kilter. Improper preload on those bearings will create BIG problems those kinds of problems translates into BIG money.

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But in this case it's actually not off kilter. On this particular side, the differential housing has been machined about twice the depth needed to accept a seal (probably done at the end of a day on a Friday or by some goon who looks just like Richard Simmons and whose only stated purpose in life is to "work that lathe, baby!") and owing to the irregular shape of the casting, that machined surface is even wider at one end which gives the appearance of the seal being on cockeyed. Whereas the machined surface on the opposite side is very pretty and precisely the same width as the depth of the seal.

The moral of this story is, when replacing these seals, first compare the depth of your seal with the width of your machined mating surface because the world is an imperfect place and is filled with goons. So, for quality assurance, I have replaced that old seal (which wasn't that old) with a new seal.

Which brings up a new angle on this subject. How to treat your new seal well. I know. I know. A lot of you fellas are old school. You were born, swaddled in the pelts of small furry creatures until you were 12 and raised to be hunter/gatherers. It's no surprise you want to be out there clubbing seals so, embracing new ideas may not be your strong suit. But try to keep an open mind....at least for a moment.

Installing a new seal can be a blessing, or a curse, depending largely upon (a) your level of patience, (b) how much work you put into preparation, (c) how well equipped you are and (7) your level of sobriety. Now picture Seabee and his mighty hammer wailing away on that poor little seal. Ok, yes, I am engaging in a bit of hyperbole (High Per Bo Lee - It's even fun to say) but the fact is, banging on your seal, particularly this type of seal, is a bad idea and this is why....

That small bit of deformation on the flange translates into deformation of the shoulder of the seal which in turn deforms the circumference of the interior and that makes for a bad fit and bad fits leak. Call me crazy but I think they're called 'seals' because they're supposed to seal, not leak. If they were supposed to leak they would be called 'leaks' but, I digress. And by some strange coincidence, we're also beating the issue of beating on seals *ahem*...to death.

These seals are very precise and are held on with an interference fit so it follows that a reasonable amount of care should be used to put them on, yes?

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One of my favorite things to do is see what we have laying around here that might be a cheap and readily available option for doing the things we need to do on our trucks and we all know I'm a notorious cheapskate. So....Ta DAH!

Yup...that's a threaded cap for a sewer cleanout and because it's made of PVC it's very forgiving...and even if you're a Seabee with a great big hammer it will protect the seal.

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Not too tight. Not too loose. A perfect fit.

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Cheers,
TJ

[m3a1]

A miserable job accomplished today. Just another day with the Beverly HIllbillies.....and it looked so straightforward. Two bolts to R&R the track rod on my 98 F350 4x4....and a little jacking to allow for the removal of the upper bolt.

Of course, that was the easy part. Getting the axle back in line so as to be able to install the new track rod....NOT so easy. That was a matter of hooking up a come-along to one end of the axle, the other end to the frame on the opposing side and a 12 inch extension on the lever. The axle, fully suspended, did not want to come over without a great deal of effort.

Humidity? Through the roof. I was sweating bullets before I even touched a tool. I finally stopped wiping the sweat because it was back a moment later, like being underwater.

Allowing for my usual method of cleanings and inspections this job took far longer than I would have liked. But - it's in, it looks right as rain and the truck behaves far more sanely on uneven road surfaces rather than flailing around like a little girl who has walked straight into a spiderweb in a graveyard after midnight.

With the old track rod, driving over uneven or poorly kept roads at speed felt like the body was going one way and the front axle was going another (which is exactly what was happening.) Gonna keep that old track rod, though. It's a fabulous piece of metal, has a halfway decent bushing in one end and I'll find some way to use it..somewhere. It's a serious hunk of metal.

I also have a new drag link and drag link end so the steering wheel is nicely centered. I hardly know how to act when I'm behind the wheel now. Cowboy Cadillac.

By the way, I saw a fellow driving a OBS F350 4x4 7.3L diesel the other day and of a similar vintage to mine. Probably a 97 or thereabouts. His was a single cab, short bed. Mine weighs far more than his (and is far longer) and it rides like a lumber wagon even on the best road. With every bump, riding in his must feel like being a car crash. Lordy!

-and-

On the matter of my stolen motorcycle (now paid off and owned by the insurance company), it has been recovered. The brainiac who stole it removed about (maybe) $200 worth of parts from it (a far less value if one considers those parts were actually used parts); things such as the painted pillion seat cover, the grab handles on the rear, the side view mirrors and the windscreen. Then, they dumped it down a ditch, doing far more damage to the motorcycle than the simple removal of the parts.

I'll certainly be on the lookout for a guy with those parts on his bike. Maybe I'll even find a special, one-time use for that track bar.

Cheers,
TJ

[D Pizzoferrato]

I'll certainly be on the lookout for a guy with those parts on his bike. Maybe I'll even find a special, one-time use for that track bar.
Cheers,
TJ

If you find that guy, I'd use the track bar liberally as he obviously likes free stuff. Once isn't enough; twice and he'll be wondering if you really meant it, thrice will verify your intent and give him something to remember you by.

[terratek]

Figured I would throw this in here...

M151 ROCK RAIL-190217.pdf

After the first start, I changed the oil and sent a sample of the original to blackstone, found the report.

[rickf]

That looks like a report of an engine that had sat for many years and was started on dry or slightly rusted cylinders. As long as it runs good now I would not worry about it and like Blackstone says, you need to get 2-3 oil changes in to form a pattern for an engine.

[terratek]

definitely sat for many years. i put a half oz or so of mmo in each cylinder before even trying to turn it over, let it sit for a day or two, then turned it over with plugs out. popped them back in, and started right up. shut it off, drained oil, sent out sample, refilled with 15w40 (i think... pretty sure...)

[m3a1]

Today's rant.

I've been prepping my F350 for a longish haul and I will be pulling Xloflyr's trailer so I decided to get that old truck's front end freshened up.

In order to spare my back some of the tortures of wriggling around on the ground I decided to let someone else have a go at it for once. The work is pretty straightforward so I wasn't too worried about letting someone else have a go. So I began the process with a new drag link which consists of a very long rod with a knuckle at one end, a threaded coupler and another knuckle. Also got an alignment. When I went to pick it up I had a look underneath and one of the knuckles was hard over when the other was in its neutral position. Well, that ain't right....and not one smidge of grease on the zerk fittings. Hmmm.

They did diagnose a bad track bar and suggested tie rod ends. Knowing that track bar was going to be a booger I elected to do that one myself but set an appointment to have tie rod ends done (alignment was guaranteed so subsequent alignments were free) and to have that drag link knuckle reset to neutral. So after that work was done I went to pick up the truck and, and again, had a look under the front of the truck. Uh huh...two pretty new tie rod ends and ....STILL no grease. What the heck!! And...yeah...that drag link end was still hard over. So, I went in and hauled Front Counter Guy outside.

That conversation went something like this.

Me: Hey man, look at this. Why is that drag link end so far out of whack?

Front Counter Guy: It looks right to me.

(Now I'm pissed) Well, it doesn't look right to me. How is that supposed to have full range of motion when it's installed hard over? Both those ends should be in phase which is to say when one end is in the neutral position, BOTH ends should be in the neutral position.

(he reaches up to roll the drag link) Well, it does move, see? (clearly, he doesn't know who he's talking to)

Well, yeah, of course it does but that's the whole point. It's supposed to move...but with one end hard over you have effectively limited its range of motion by half!

Well I don't see...

DUDE! Ford designed this assembly with 100% range of motion and your installation has cut that in half and you're telling me that it's "okay"? It's DEFINITELY NOT 'OKAY'. (things are heating up) How about this? I directed you guys to sort that out and it hasn't been done. All he had to do was loosen the bolt on the coupler and roll that end back over a few degrees. (what came next told me this guy had all the deep, abiding comprehension of a dog who had it's head cocked over while listening to its owner play the harmonica)

Well, moving that would change the toe-in and....

HEY MAN!...(now I'm rapping my knuckles on the drag link, rather than his forehead) We're talking about the drag link, here, verstehen? (sometimes when I'm fired up I slip in a foreign word or two just to keep things lively) That adjustment only changes the relationship between the steering wheel and the axle and rolling that a few degrees isn't going to change 'diddly squat'.

Front Counter Guy suddenly excuses himself (probably to find a German dictionary) and returns with the mechanic who is, by all appearances, clearly a big ZZ Top fan. So I go over the whole thing again with him and he reluctantly agrees....

In my best cranky old guy style I tell them both, Look, I'm paying you fellas to do this work because I don't want to be crawling around on all fours in my driveway to do the job myself. But, if you'll notice...NOW, I'm crawling around on all fours in YOUR driveway and I'm not too happy about that.

Front Counter Guy suddenly stops being all superior and disappears.

So ZZ Top Guy gets a few tools and straightens it up. It took less than a minute. But I'm feeling like this mechanic needs a little tune up of his own. School is about to be in session.

Since we've both taken a knee, I point out those sparkling grease zerks and say - I noticed there's no grease on those. Did you lube them?

Well, no, they're lubed from the factory.

Well, yes, of course they are but that's a very small amount of grease. Those boots a completely empty. They shouldn't be full either but there should be a reserve amount of grease in them.

Now he's looking like he's experiencing the growing realization that I'm not the average customer.

Okay, let me tell you who I am. First, I used to run an auto shop so I know a little bit about this. Second, I now spend a great deal of time undoing the abuses others have visited upon vehicles dating all the way back to the early 1940s and the little things, such as that drag link knuckle being rolled over like that, well....they become big things later on. This truck is over 20 years old. There is no reason why it cannot go another 20 years or more with proper care and a little bit of luck. Lucky for this truck, I'm not 'That Guy'....because 'That Guy' would have blindly trusted you to have done the work right. 'That Guy' would have taken this truck and happily gone another 230,000 miles without adding any more grease to these components. The oil change guys certainly cannot be trusted to do it because they know the customer is busy sipping junk coffee from tiny styrofoam cups while perusing Road & Track in the waiting room, totally oblivious to what is, or is not happening in the service bay. So NOBODY is gonna do it. Those empty boots? They'll end up filled with water and God-knows-what....all because you wouldn't take a moment to lube them up. You're The Guy, so if you don't do it, who will?...and where will 'That Guy's' truck end up? On the scrap heap. It's YOUR job to make sure that doesn't happen. Take some pride in your work. If it was easy, ANYbody could be doing it. Next time give those a couple of shots of grease and when the customer sees you have taken that extra and final step, he'll feel assured you are doing quality work for him. It's good for you, it's good for this business and it's good for the vehicles you work on.

(a small glimmer of understanding) Well, I could...

Nope, but thank you. I'm going to handle this myself. I'm not 'That Guy'...and I don't want to beat you up too badly on this matter. I just happen to have a brand new grease gun at home and I'm really in the mood to use it. I've given you kind of a hard time today and I hope you'll take my criticism in the spirit in which it was intended.

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....and that's pretty much how I wrapped things up with these fellas. If and when ZZ Top Guy sees my truck next time he'll know I'm going to be checking his work and who knows...maybe....just maybe, he'll even do a better job for the next fella.

Cheers,
TJ

[1SGCAV77]

TJ, you nailed this one. I too am an old guy that no longer enjoys crawling around on all fours. Oops, I was told by my surgeon, that is no longer possible with those replacements. Fortunately my two grandsons enjoy working on “Paw’s Jeep”. They help so much. As for going to dealership or garage for repairs, I prefer going to dentist knowing there will be no pain killer. Everyone is now a”technician”. That is where the industry has gone to eliminate home repair by folks with mechanical ability.
Hello out there to “technicians”....everything is not on the computer. Recently I went to local corner parts store for a radiator cap. I knew the part number for the application. I knew I was in trouble when I was greeted by a cute little blonde young lady behind a computer. After her friendly greeting, next thing was “what vehicle” does this go on. I told her I had no idea, just need this particular cap. Do you have one in stock or not ? She looked at another screen. Yes, we have two. I only need one thank you. I was allowed to purchase without telling her “what vehicle”.

Time has sadly caught up with so many of us. Mechanic’s with the ability to make lasting repairs without a computer, days are numbered. True mechanics are similar to WWII, Korean, and Vietnam veterans....we are losing them daily.

God Bless America.

[rickf]

Oh I LOVE that one! I have told this one several times, I went into the local Auto zone and asked for a distributor cap for a 454 big block Chevy HEI. They asked what vehicle it was in and I said a 76 CJ-7. Deer in the headlights look, I was informed that the CJ-7 did not have a 454 in it. I said I know that. They insisted it didn't I asked the young man to step outside and I raised the hood and I said do you recognize what engine that is? He said it is a 304 AMC. I asked him to get his manager who I knew was an older guy and he came out and the fist thing he said was nice job on wedging a big block into a CJ. I told him he needed to explain to these younger people that not all vehicles have what they came with.

Same store a couple years later, same Jeep but I had taken out the 454 and put in a 401 AMC. Tired of breaking things and I needed it more drivable. Go in the store and all new people with the exception of the manager. I get a different young kid and I tell him I need a power steering pump for the Jeep and same question, what engine. I tell him 401 AMC. I am informed that it cannot be a 401. Well since I love to torment these people I just drag it out and this time the manager is already watching knowing that I had done the change so he was on board the whole way. I said well how do you know this CJ doesn't have a 401 in it? The kid says it will not fit! He is confident if not very smart. I ask if he knows how to identify an AMC V8 and he says he does so out we go and under the hood. The manager just sort of hangs out just outside the door. The kid is looking all over the engine for a tag but there are none so he falls back on his original statement that it is too small for a 401. The manager lost it and spit out his coffee. And at that point the kid knew he was in trouble. The manager says the marking is clear as day if you REALLY know where to look. Back he goes.................. Nope. I finally point to the 401 welded into the block casting. He sulks away saying I probably put that there. So we go in and the manager asks me if I am going to tell him about the steering pump? The kid look at me and says what? I say it does not matter if it is a 304, 360,401. They are all the same basic block and the same pump fits them all so you really did not need to go through all of this. I don't know if that kid was drinking age or not but I am guessing he got good and drunk that night.

[m3a1]

Yesterday, my A2 got new brake shoes all around and new wheel cylinders and hoses up front. Now, she'll stop on a dime and give you nine cents in change.

But, doing the job brought me to a realization that while discussing brake overhaul on The Doom Buggy (which has two front suspensions) I may have overlooked a few things so here's a little bit of random discussion just to kind of round things out for everyone.

While working on the back brakes I was reminded that the spring anchor (that little bit the brake shoe alignment spring hooks to) is pretty near impossible to remove from the brake backing plate, owing to the close proximity of the backing plate to the casting to which it is mounted. So, what to do about that?

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Well, the answer is - don't remove it. Just leave it in there. After all, it's one less thing to do, right?

Which raises the next question. How do we unhook or re-hook the alignment spring from the spring anchor while it's still in place? And, the answer to that question is - When using the pin punch on the spring it is possible to extend the spring and also steer it off and away from the little loop in the spring anchor. It is rather difficult to see in there and having a light source (and somebody to hold it for you) makes the job far easier to do.

In short, it is possible to unhook the alignment spring from the spring anchor while the spring anchor remains in place in the brake backing plate. Truth be told, doing it in this way extends your alignment spring far less than if you had pushed the spring all the way through the backing plate to remove the anchor. Thus, if you are in a position where you are forced to re-use brake shoe alignment springs that are old but otherwise in good condition, hooking and un-hooking them in this way is a better option. Get a pin punch for your trailside repair kit.

A final note on this issue is, when reinstalling, pre-align your spring anchor and your alignment spring. Orient them in such a way that hooking them up is easier. All this sounds kinda iffy in print but it is very, VERY easy to accomplish.

Ok, enough about that. So, I had a right front wheel cylinder that was hanging up but only a little bit. It would usually hang up after the truck had not been driven for a while. After one or two stops, all would function as normal. A quick inspection showed the brake return springs were all in good working order). You may recall that Rick sagely mentioned that sometimes a brake hose might also be the causative factor.

I had ordered new wheel cylinders and hoses and all that got replaced yesterday. To be fair, this is a job that is easier said than done. I was lucky enough to have the use of a lift (Thank you Xloflyr. You are THE MAN!) so that really made the job go quickly and easily. Yes, it would be a miserable job to have to do while laying on the ground under the truck so having good friends with good tools is a huge bonus. Probably the most difficult thing to have do on this job is wrangle those brake hose retaining clips off.

What follows is the most important advice you'll receive from me on this particular job.

The space available to work on the inboard ends of the hose is very limited and very close. If you must attempt to do this job while laying under the truck, start there, on the end closest to the oil pan. That's going to be the hardest part. If you cannot get those off, call it quits and don't even bother with the rest.

My hoses were not occluded but they were looking rather nasty on the outside with some small cracking on the outer skin. If you have ever cut one of these hoses in half you will find that they are extremely well built and can look absolutely horrible on the outside and still work just fine. So, because we cannot judge the health of a brake hose from the outside, judgement on when to replace hoses really should be based more upon how long they've been in your truck. This is just one of those jobs that is best performed on a preventative maintenance schedule rather than waiting for something bad to happen and friends, having new hoses will give you a lot of peace of mind.

I pulled the wheel cylinders out and had a little look inside them. They came apart easily but a lot of junk was starting to build up in the cylinder's reservoir between the wheel cylinder piston cups. Where did the junk come from? Probably the inside of the hoses as they were old enough to have begun to degrade.

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Note that the stuff in there looks like somebody's chewed tobacco. If you see that sort of thing, that's the interior of your hose degrading. Kinda makes you want to replace your hoses in the near future, doesn't it?

The pistons themselves were starting to gather some sticky gunk on them (which wiped right off, by the way) which meant sticky gunk was gathering on the walls of the cylinder, right?. So, I caught these cylinders before things went really bad ("bad" = pitting) and with a good dose of brake cleaning solution, some judicious scrubbing and some new cups (these cups weren't bad but always installing new cups is a very good policy) these particular wheel cylinders (these wheel cylinders...yours may be different) could be reassembled and put right back into service without any dramas whatsoever.

Having NEW wheel cylinders is always better. If you are inexperienced with this sort of thing, when you get around to replacing your old wheel cylinders with new, take the old wheel cylinders apart, clean them up, play with them and see what makes them tick. Maybe buy a kit and develop some new skills. Learn by doing but don't bet your life (or the lives of others) on the learning process because a learning curve can be VERY steep.

You mentioned "Piston Cups"?

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No, not THAT kind of piston cup! Wheel cylinder piston cups are readily available at most auto parts stores and they are very inexpensive. They are the seal against the cylinder wall that allows the wheel cylinder to pressurize. If the cylinder wall is pitted or if the seal is in poor condition, the wheel cylinder will perform poorly, perhaps even allow brake fluid to bypass the seal and leak out. How do you know what piston cup to ask for? Well, most automotive piston cups have their specs right on the inside face of the cup (the face upon which the internal spring rests). True, most auto parts stores will want to sell you a whole "wheel cylinder kit." That's not really such a bad thing but, with a little snooping around you can find piston cups independent of a kit.

At the end of it all and after adding new DOT5 we bled the brakes. Remember, on this job, I only did wheel cylinders up front and still, we bled ALL the brakes. What did I find? Well, I got a little water out of the left rear wheel cylinder. DOT5 (being essentially silicone) does not mix well with water. So, if water is allowed into a brake system equipped with DOT5 it will have a tendency to gather in one spot and then create corrosion there. The takeaway here is, take a little extra time and invest in a little extra DOT5 and bleed ALL those brakes...not just the ones you were working on. Your truck will thank you.

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Cheers, TJ

[rickf]

Something else to think about if you are using DOT 5 is that like TJ said, it is silicone and water will sink to the bottom of the lowest points. The bottom of the wheel cylinders. Now think about this for a moment, Where are the bleed screws? They are designed to let air out, so they are on TOP of the wheel cylinders. The water is on the bottom of the wheel cylinders. Yes, you will get some turbulence and stir up a little and you will get some out but not all of it. The only way to get all of it is to open up the wheel cylinders by pulling them apart. Hence why I have converted to DOT 3 fluid. The moisture is suspended in the fluid so when you flush the system, (You do flush your brake system every couple years don't you?) then the moisture ALL comes out with the fluid.

[m3a1]

Excellent point. I really bled that LR wheel cylinder a LOT when I saw those little grey blobs of water floating in the brake fluid that had been pushed out. How much is enough? Well, I continued bleeding until I got three sequential bleeds with no water. The supply line is at the bottom so it will have a tendency to stir up the liquid contents of the wheel cylinder...especially those at the bottom. It's not a perfect system but it does what it's designed to do rather well.

I've no idea what that water has done thus far to the interior of the left rear wheel cylinder but it seems to be working well enough at the moment so we may have dodged a bullet. Where did the water get in? Well, perhaps the cap on the master cylinder wasn't making a good seal. There IS a seal there, in case you haven't noticed. The cap certainly wasn't loose and nothing else leaks and I sure don't swim my truck.

So this is all illustrative of something we MVers must think about... Everything may look and behave perfectly well and yet...mysteriously...stuff happens, which is really the whole point of preventative maintenance, I suppose. Old MVs need a lot of lovin'..

Now, if you find water in your brakes, understand that water tends to gather where it's inclined to go and not just everywhere. So, if you find some water in one place, you don't have to go bonkers and tear your hair out looking for it in every corner.

Also, if you are going to be pulling apart a wheel cylinder as Rick suggested, be smart. Have two new replacements on hand because they're like Forrest Gump's proverbial Box of Chocolates"...

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...you never know what you're going to find. You may find you've opened up a can of worms and wouldn't it be nice just to slap new ones in there and be done with it?

And why two? Because, unless it's an emergency, always replace in pairs which ensures dependability and that translates into safety. Your life and the lives of others depends upon this stuff. Starting is easy. Stopping is not.

Cheers,
TJ