So i just did my ball joints on my 06 2500. And i'm putting the front axles back in, and i realize that the axle tubes are all full of dirt, sand, rust, dust, ectect. Are you just supposed to push those axles in and hope only some dirt gets pushed into the front diff. Must be great for the axle seals to have chunks of rust pushed through them???? I don't get it? Seems like a stupid design. The short axle isn't so bad but the passanger side is impossible not to scrap the dirty tube on the way in.
any secrets out there??

 

I have seen techs use rags wet in parts cleaner clean axel tubes like cleaning a gun barrel.Have a number of rags handy!

 

If you have a shop vac and are creative you can use a piece of PVC and vacume out the axle tube, I have done this in the past on my 79 Power Wagon.

 

This would be a good time to change diff fluid and while the cover is off blow all the dirt out of the tubes.

 

i have been known to do this, along with using compressed air to blow it out... let us know what you end up doing/what worked best for ya, good luck!

 

Find a washer that fits into the inside of the housign with about 1/8 slop around it.
Cut it in half.
Get a long peice of all thread and bolt the washer on it.
This allows you to insert the washer/all thread scraper tool into the housing, keeping the rounded end at the top.
As soon as you get to the Diff end, rotate, putting the round end of the washer on the bottom. Pull out and left all the crap out the kunckle with it.
Its how all front 4x4 axles are cleaned.
I think someone makes a tool for it, but the washer/all thread is free.

 

ok, thanx for the info. I cut a piece of the plactic " crazy carpet". Those things you slide on in the snow. I slid the passenger side axle into the diff on that. But still, if you don't fully wipe the axle tube with solvent or something there is gonna be little chunks of rust and crap on the axle....i think anyways.

 

Dirt will always be in there as there is no way to keep it out. You only need to clean out the area so you don't push the junk into the carrier.
Mad4wd makes an outer tube seal that keeps everything out.
Only for a 60 though.
I don't know the ID of the AAM.
http://madmfg.com/index.php?main_pag...2b739d31aeda7a