can you get a prybar in behind one of the caps that are all the way out and force it over?

I cannot ever remember one that the socket method didn't work on, I've been frustrated as all get out and had to walk away for awhile though.....

I'm at a loss if the wedge method doesn't work.

 

The part of the cap that's sticking out of the yoke, take a chisel and smack the side of the cap and it should shatter. If you have a vise, capture the cap in the vise and wiggle it out.

I did the exact same thing yesterday for my rear joints. total time was a little over an hour for both joints.

Jeff

 

I would try grabbing the center of the u joint with a vice grip to keep it from turning, then put the yoke in a vice, get a medium pipe wrench on the cap and play magilla gorilla. That should give you enough leverage to break either the cap or the whole joint. be careful not to tighten the vice too much, just enough to hold the yoke.

 

Thanks for the ideas guys, ill try to pick up a vice in the morning(still havent bought one yet since I built my workbench)

If that doesnt work, ill probably hunt down a shop that can have fun messing with it, maybe theyve encountered the same thing before and have some magic fix.

I kinda feel like an idiot, since ive swapped them many times before, on other vehicles, and never had an issue like this, the cap has always come off when pressed out the opposite side, piece of cake. But NOT this one!

 

I had the same thing about 6 months ago. I think it took me about 6 hrs to get it done. I just pushed them back and forth with a ball joint removal tool and sprayed them with wd40 until I could get the end caps off with a vise grip. Very frustrating, but after much time it worked.

John

 

Been there, with my front axle shafts a few months ago. Hit the side of the yoke. I know they say not to do it, but I hit mine twice and the cap jumped out like it was on a spring. I tried everything else before that, except heat. I don't heat my yoke except as a very last resort. I did the press, the PB Blaster, the working it back and forth, the hair pulling...
That doggone smacking the side of the yoke though, worked like a charm. Didn't smack the end of the yoke, but the side, where the metal gets thicker as it transitions into the shaft, but still right beside the cap. I figure less chance of permanently deforming the hole due to the extra metal there as it transitions.

Chris

 

Well, I finally gave in, and took it up to Pep boys, since they are 2miles from my house, and I was done messing with it, after a total of 5hrs alltogether of trying to muscle them out, I had enough.
They were able to get the old one out, took them almost an hour, only problem is now I need to shave down the snap rings, not sure if the Ujoint is taller, or the snap ring is thicker, but they wont go in the groove all the way.
I read in another thread that someone had to shave theirs down to make them fit. So much for a "drop in" replacement greaseable U-joint


On the plus side, the test drive down the freeway was vibration free now


Thanks everyone for their input! I still couldnt get it, but thanks for the tips, maybe they will help someone else in the same predicament as me...

 

After all that trouble, I would have got a hack saw and gone to town. Sawzalls/cutoff wheels/etc. sure are convenient and easy, but sometimes there's just no substitute for good old elbow grease. Glad you got it taken care of.

I replaced a ujoint in my Mom's truck that looked like that. I was amazed she'd been driving it so long (+/- 1000 mi without ever asking me why it was shaking) Yikes. Had to use a full blown sledge to get it out.

 

You actually paid pep boys and they didnt even finish the job?

 

When my retainer rings don't fit I pull it apart again because that usually means that a needle bearing fell when installing the cap. I have had retainers tight enough that I had to tap them into the groove with a punch but never had to modify the retainer rings.

Chris

 

Make sure you clean the grooves that the retainer ring goes into. Mine were fairly rusty and the rings would not seat until I cleaned out the grooves.

 

To get to work today, yes, had no choice....



Ill double check on the retainers tomorrow, so far they are in most of the way, but not fully seated like they should be...

 

Did you ever run the Precision 330As?

Ive seen a few other posts on here about them being slightly taller than the stock U-joints and people having issues getting the retainers installed....

 

Mine might be Precisions. I'll have to look. I think the box is still in the garage. I get the highest quality Napa has, since they don't carry Spicer joints. Are those Precision? The last set I did were the rears in my 99.

Chris

 

I believe so, best greasables you can get at Napa...