Prop shaft front joint

Post by **ndevans** » Mon Mar 19, 2007 4:40 pm

Hi all. After a disastrous attempt at putting a new spider into the front u/j without a vice, I think I may have damaged the yokes. The problem was that as I tapped the 2nd cap home some of the needle bearings got dislodged and the cap wouldn't go home fully.
To cut a long story short I then managed to get said cap stuck loose on the spider between the two yoke holes. As I tried to tap it back through the hole, it got wedged, I think this was because the cap wouldn't sit square because of the dislodged needle bearing being underneath the end of the spider. After several hours tapping with a hammer, sockets etc, and a few choice additions to my vocabulary, I bought a vice, and I've now got it apart again, but there is a bit of damage to the yoke. It's not ovalled (is there such a word?) badly and the cap sits firmly in there with no movement, but there is a bit of "scuffing" of the yoke where the cap was gouging it's way through. The spider does bind a bit as well.
Question is-do I need to replace the front piece of the prop shaft, or is it ok to use with frequent greasing and checks for play?
cheers, Neil.[/img]

Post by **Willie** » Mon Mar 19, 2007 6:37 pm

If you have the joints with grease nipples then the proof will be in the use of the shaft, if it is at all now out of true you will soon experience
a vibration which was not there originally at a certain speed, if it is due
to the 'scuff 'marks it will get steadily worse from the commencement
speed upwards. If not then you have got away with it .

Post by **bmcecosse** » Tue Mar 20, 2007 7:32 am

As long as you haven't bent it out of true - it should be fine.

Post by **ndevans** » Tue Mar 20, 2007 9:40 am

Well I got both pieces back together last night. The propshaft joint binds slightly more than the joint on the splined end, but as the spider has grease nipples I will keep it well greased and check it for play and heat when I take it on a run. Got to replace the springs before that though.
Before replacing the joint it was awfully rough between about 50 & 58mph but calmer above about 60, so hopefully it'll be better. I've not replaced the rear joint as it is newer than the front one and also has grease nipples-the front one was sealed. There's no play at all in the rear joint so I'm leaving well alone for the moment.
Thanks, Neil.

Post by **Willie** » Tue Mar 20, 2007 4:19 pm

Neil, If you get mild imbalance you can either have the shaft professionally balanced or you could try a large Jubilee clip which you can move around the circumference by trial and error.

Post by **Innovator** » Tue Mar 20, 2007 5:50 pm

Replacing a UJ should not require a rebalance. Propshafts do not just go out of balance. A weight may come off, splines wear, ujs wear, underseal on one side etc etc. There is always a good reason why a shaft vibrates.

If you have scoured the yoke then the uj may feel notchy. the scour can be cleaned up with a file or die grinder. As long as the uj is a tight fit in the yoke it will be OK.

When the joint is assembled tap the yoke with a hammer. The yokes spring together slightly when you push the joint in, the tap makes it spring out agan. This will make the joint looser but it still may have a notchy feel.

John

PS I used to work with props and have changed 1,000`s of UJ`s.