shaft grease

orcking

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This is the second time I am doing this.
First time was straight forward.

This time I noticed one u joint had one side where grease was not coming out.
Also the yoke zerk was not taking grease. ordered new fitting for that one.

I am doing the grease on the floor without lifting. would lifting the truck remove the pressure on the u-joint for better results? should I lightly tap on the u-joint with a mallet to help the pressure?

also on the limited 4 full time, how do you turn the front shaft by hand?

Thanks
 
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On my 4th gen it's just luck on where the grease fittings will line up, front and rear shafts. I grease what I can and then move the car a little forward or backward to make the shafts rotate. It's all trial and error for me.

Grease doesn't come out of every area on the U-joints. If any comes out then the job is done. In my lifetime of owning and greasing drive shafts I've had to replace only 1 U-joint. Grease will harden and prevent it from coming out sometimes, but movement and heat will get the job done.

On my T4R I lube all the U-joints with each oil change. Keeping the grease fresh helps move it along and prevents hardening/blockage.
 
On a limited you can not turn the driveshaft by hand. Just move the 4runner forward or backwards until the grease fittings line up to where you can get to them. You do not have to lift the 4runner to grease the shafts.
 
I've always used wheel bearing grease. The same stuff I put in the boat trailer. It's waterproof so I figure it will last longer. I guess it doesn't make a difference if you lube when you change your oil. I just happen to have a boat trailer so I keep a grease gun handy for topping off those wheel bearings.
 
Lucas Red N' Tacky. Why? because this:

[Is Cheap Grease better than Lucas Red N Tacky? Let's find out!

I use the Lucas X-Tra for the wheel bearings and T4R drive shaft U-joints. I have the Red 'n Tacky for other things. The X-Tra really holds up when exposed to water. Not only that but when my dust caps came off the axles the X-Tra stayed in the hubs and kept the bearings from burning up; good stuff.
 
This is the second time I am doing this.
First time was straight forward.

This time I noticed one u joint had one side where grease was not coming out.
Also the yoke zerk was not taking grease. ordered new fitting for that one.

I am doing the grease on the floor without lifting. would lifting the truck remove the pressure on the u-joint for better results? should I lightly tap on the u-joint with a mallet to help the pressure?

also on the limited 4 full time, how do you turn the front shaft by hand?

Thanks

Toyota calls for a "MP" Grade of grease for driveshafts and U-Joints, you can also use an EP if you want; but basically any automotive grade "multi-purpose" grease that meets MP standards should be fine.

I use a moly grease at work (was using Valvoline's multi-vehicle Moly and then got a few tubes of the Sta-Lube for my little greaser and grease gun; have always had good luck with Sta-Lube in other applications), on our lifts, and in my own 4th gen; never had problems.

By the way, I don't know if it's because they get painted over or what, but I have had many zerks on drivelines not take grease at first. I'll scrape the tops of them with a pocket screwdriver or pick and then give the little ball a poke to make sure it hasn't rusted itself shut. 9/10 it gets the fitting working and shouldn't give you any problems. These aren't hydraulic systems after all. :)
 
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On my 4th gen it's just luck on where the grease fittings will line up, front and rear shafts. I grease what I can and then move the car a little forward or backward to make the shafts rotate. It's all trial and error for me.



Grease doesn't come out of every area on the U-joints. If any comes out then the job is done. In my lifetime of owning and greasing drive shafts I've had to replace only 1 U-joint. Grease will harden and prevent it from coming out sometimes, but movement and heat will get the job done.



On my T4R I lube all the U-joints with each oil change. Keeping the grease fresh helps move it along and prevents hardening/blockage.
Grease should purge from all 4 seals. If not, it hasn't been lubed correctly.
 
Grease should purge from all 4 seals. If not, it hasn't been lubed correctly.

To be clear, you should hear a sort of popping/wet "crackle" and see water/debris be pushed from the seals; or at the very least old/dried grease. You don't need to keep pumping grease into them to blow out the seals; just enough to get them to "purge" and that's it. Just figured I'd mention that because I have seen guys keep pumping them until the seals blow out of the end caps.
 

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