[camdenbuck]

U-joint failed at 65 and a neat staccato sound occurred so had it towed home.
Had a shop press a new u-joint into the spline but it didn't seem right (binding a little when I rotated it in my hands and I could move the caps with my fingers) so I ordered an entire (junkyard) DS assembly from LKQ online. Assumption was that at that speed, there may have been some deformity/distortion that occurred at the DS-slip yoke connection at that speed.
Since I am replacing the entire shaft assembly, I speculate there will be no need to mark where the old shaft meets the flanges because it is being replaced in its entirety (the old one isn't being put back on).
Speculation: The junkyard DS from front flange to rear differential flange must be "in phase and balanced" in and of itself, and can be bolted on (4 bolts at each end) without additional consideration for flange position. Is this a fair speculation? Any real clarification or feedback would be awesome. I am 8 bolts away from the truth!

[fourwd1]

The U-joints at each end must be in phase with each other.
About the only way to get them out of phase is to slide the shaft apart and put it back together a spline or 2 off. Most, but not all driveshafts have a keyed spline joint to prevent this.
As far as bolting it on, just do it.

[camdenbuck]

Thank you. I will make sure they are lined up and get these bolts in and go for a spin.
Here is a look at what I have:

[camdenbuck]

[drallan]

I replaced mine last fall after the u-joints started squeaking terribly. I just found a junkyard one and bolted it up w/ no issues so far. A couple of pointers. 1) Make sure you the the correct DS length for your drive train. The transfer case is slightly different depending on your year and 4wd options. 2) Make sure the E-brake is on and vehicle is chocked. As these are rwd trucks, once that DS is disconnected nothing is preventing it from rolling (don't ask how I learned this lesson).

[camdenbuck]

Originally Posted by drallan

I replaced mine last fall after the u-joints started squeaking terribly. I just found a junkyard one and bolted it up w/ no issues so far. A couple of pointers. 1) Make sure you the the correct DS length for your drive train. The transfer case is slightly different depending on your year and 4wd options. 2) Make sure the E-brake is on and vehicle is chocked. As these are rwd trucks, once that DS is disconnected nothing is preventing it from rolling (don't ask how I learned this lesson).

The Ds is the correct one for the truck. It is a 2001 4Runner 4wd SR5. The junkyard sells the same DS for the 2001-2002 models. I was surprised at all of the variations. This one looks exactly the same as the one I'm trying to remove. The front flange bolts are on there really tight so I will have to soak them overnight (PB Blaster) and use a breaker bar on them tomorrow morning. The bolts on the rear flange by the differential were 14 mm and easy to crack. Oddly, the nuts and bolts on the flange up front don't seem like two 14 mm. The bolt seems like it is a 15 mm and the nut fits my 14mm wrench. Tacoma's seem to have a 17 mm and a 14 mm nut.