Tire size, bearings & brakes Questions.

[Tony Smith]

Originally Posted by Les Kovacs

I read that diehard wheelers would drain water from their front axles after a river crossing by removing one bolt from the lower bearing caps. (Four Wheeler 1990's...with pictures)....can this actually be done?

lesk

Yes, it can be done exactly as described, however, it won't drain water from your Axles, only from each swivel hub. It won't drain water from your diff (which will most like be mixed now with your diff oil and need drain and change), and nor will it drain water from your wheel bearings or free wheeling hubs (if fitted). The wheel bearings and hubs will generally be fine for water crossings, but the diff can "inhale" water through the diff breather on top as the oil cools as you drive through the water.

[Les Kovacs]

Thanks Tony....the article only mentioned water drainage from the kingpin cap bolts so I assumed that you can open one up and grease the kingpin bearings.

Regards,

lesk

[rob love]

Once maintained, I suppose that method is better than nothing. But if yours have not been done in X amount of years, that little bit is grease is not going to undo the wear on those bearings.



A somewhat quick way to decide if you need the bearings is to lift and support the front axle, remove the tire and tie rod end at the knuckle, and turn the knuckle by hand left to right. If you feel a roughness to the bearings, it is time. The cups normally end up grooved where the rollers sit.



You will need to order a shim kit at the same time as you order the new bearings, and you might as well order the large seal kit for the knuckle at the same time. You will also need a fish scale to set the preload on the bearings.



It is a larger job, but is one of the neglected items to the Jeeps steering system.

[Les Kovacs]

Thanks Rob....I think there is about 5000 miles since a full rebuild on the jeep which included new kingpin bearings & races....I just wanted to see if I can maintain the bearings longer if I pumped in fresh synthetic grease via the cap bolts. Last spring when the front tires were off I did swing the knuckle back and forth...it was very smooth. I remove the front axle rear hub/knuckle bolts and squeeze in synthetic grease every 2-3 weeks then lock in the hubs for a while so the grease can be flung all over....I think this helps as well.....not sure though.

Any idea the size of the 67' M38A1 brake shoes?....front axle is labelled as Dana 25.

Regards,

lesk

[rob love]

They should be 9" x 1-3/4. There is the possibility that you can have the older brakes from the 52/53 series of Jeeps, which had anchor pins on the bottom, but most likely you will have the same shoes Jeep used for over a decade. NAPA has them under part number TS40.

[Wayne Hingley]

The shoes Rob refers to should look like this...

The sets also go by NSN 2530-00-307-8860. Same shoes front and rear.

[Les Kovacs]

Thanks Rob and Wayne for the pics....Rob....thanks for the Napa part number....off to do some ordering & shopping.

Regards to both...

lesk