"Telescoping" front drive shaft stuck

[cvonh]

Hey guys, finally getting around to replacing the front transfer case seal on my runner this weekend, as it's been leaking pretty bad for a few months. Took off the four bolts that attach the shaft to the companion flange, removed the pressurized grease fitting so I can "slide" the shaft up and get access to the Tcase seal, but the shaft will not telescope:







When I pulled out the grease valve, nothing happened.. No grease at all. I then stuck the grease fitting back in, pumped the shaft full of grease and drove around in 4wd for a little while on dry pavement, hoping to unstick whatever's jammed up in there. Once I got back I tried the following things:

1. Ratchet strap (pictured) tied between the shaft and a front cross-member. I've tightened it as much as possible.

2. Oiled the hell out of the smaller section of the shaft and particularly the area where the smaller section meets the larger section

3. Lots of hammer tapping (and a little bit of bashing) where possible

You can see that a little bit of grease has come out, but the shaft doesn't appear to have moved at all..

Any ideas??

Thanks!

Conner

 

[jeremyc74]

Let me first say that I haven't had mine out, and I'm just taking a guess here..... but are you sure it will get any shorter? I mean the transfer case and front differential are both mounted solid and stay in the same relationship to each other, so maybe it's completely compressed where it's at?

 

[4Reak Show]

Hey guys, finally getting around to replacing the front transfer case seal on my runner this weekend, as it's been leaking pretty bad for a few months. Took off the four bolts that attach the shaft to the companion flange, removed the pressurized grease fitting so I can "slide" the shaft up and get access to the Tcase seal, but the shaft will not telescope:

View attachment 165502

View attachment 165503

View attachment 165504

When I pulled out the grease valve, nothing happened.. No grease at all. I then stuck the grease fitting back in, pumped the shaft full of grease and drove around in 4wd for a little while on dry pavement, hoping to unstick whatever's jammed up in there. Once I got back I tried the following things:

1. Ratchet strap (pictured) tied between the shaft and a front cross-member. I've tightened it as much as possible.

2. Oiled the hell out of the smaller section of the shaft and particularly the area where the smaller section meets the larger section

3. Lots of hammer tapping (and a little bit of bashing) where possible

You can see that a little bit of grease has come out, but the shaft doesn't appear to have moved at all..

Any ideas??

Thanks!

Conner

What I do in the shop is wedge a very large pry bar into the U-joint area and just pry it off of the flange. I would imagine that the slip isn't necessarily stuck, but that there is rust or corrosion locking the flanges together. Try spraying some PENETRATING oil (NOT WD-40, this is NOT a penetrant, but rather "water displacement" agent hence WD). Anyway try soaking down the seam where the flanges meet. I see them lock together pretty good before. And don't be shy to smack the sh!t out of it too. They can take a pretty hard beating. Look at it this way: if you damage the u-joint by hitting it because the slip yoke is THAT seized then you needed a new front driveshaft anyway.
Keep us posted and good luck

 

[UnderFire]

^ What he said, it's probably the flanges stuck together, get a big ass hammer, a punch and a pry bar and go to town till it breaks loose.

 

[cvonh]

Roger that, thanks for the info, guys! I've hit it with a bunch of liquid wrench and will commence the whamming in the next hour here. I'm such a ***** when it comes to bashing on my own vehicles, even though I know they'd do the same thing if I brought it to a mechanic. :cry2:

 

[TheDurk]

If you undo the other end, it's nuts and bolts, not nuts on studs, so the flange can slide when you remove the bolts.
Much less compression needed. Then you can pull the other end straight back.

 

[cvonh]

Hey guys! You were right, the flanges were welded together with rust. I liberally doused with penetrating oil and left it overnight. Bought a small chisel this morning and whammed it inbetween, and it came loose. Now I'm onto the next problem...

I've gone through about 3 screwdrivers on this staked nut, and I just broke the end off a steel chisel in the gap. It's about halfway unstaked... Is that sufficient to hit it with the impact wrench? I'm not sure what else I can do with the drive shaft and cross member getting in the way of the hammer.

 

[4Reak Show]

I rarely bend the lock tab back out. 1/2" impact @ 150 psi. Blast off!

 

[cvonh]

Woo! Good call.. My compressor only goes up to ~120 PSI, but that was just enough. Onto the last problem...

I knew it would be dirty, but this is pretty exceptional. There's so much greasy dirt crap around the seal that it's prettymuch welded in place. I've been wrenching on it with pliers and I actually don't know that I'm strong enough to get it out.. I'm worried about squirting any degreaser into the area with the tcase open like this. This is the kind of crap they don't talk about in the DIY guides :/

 

[4Reak Show]

Holy smokes. That is a nasty mess. I know they make special seal pulling tools. Looks like a tiny little ice pick that snow climbers use sort of. I can send a picture once I get to work if you need me too. Otherwise, I would just try to get a little pry bar under the metal lip of the seal. (The metal lip beyond the actual rubber seal portion.) Ive used a self tapping screw and a tiny slide hammer before but it seems as tho space is an issue for you so I would try the prying tactic. Just try not to scratch the machined surface where the outside of the seal rests too much. Send out pictures if you're nervous.

And I highly doubt that 1/2 oz of lube getting into 2-4 quarts of 75w90 gear oil is gonna make a difference man. I understand your concerns, but bottom line is, it's gotta get done.

Let us know and good luck.

 

[cvonh]

Thanks man, I really appreciate all of your help.. I picked up a set of small picking tools/wedges, and I'll see what I can do on this thing after work. Once the old seal is out I'll clean it out and "slide" the new seal in with some thick grease on the outside edge. I'm telling myself that that will fill in all the scratches that end up there as a result of the removal. Har har.

 

[cvonh]

Good deal. I picked up one of the seal removers you mentioned and the old muddy POS popped right out. There was muddy grease all the way up to the back of the seal! Got it all cleaned out and stuck the new one in there. Now to drive it around in the 100+ heat for a few days and check for leaks Appreciate the help!