seal problems

[sully72]

well after my fun in the mud it looks like the seal between the rear drive shaft and my differential went bad so i have two questions what are the steps to replacing it and how can i clean all of the sand and bad gear oil out of the diff without taking everything completely apart???
thanx
Jim

[sully72]

nobody knows how to clean out gear lube??

[rick]

I'm assuming you're talking about the pinion seal... You have to remove the pinion yoke by removing the nut (it's really tight, like 150 ft-lb so use an impact wrench), then remove and replace the seal, then reinstall/torque the pinion nut. The torque on the nut is set at around 150 ft-lb if I remember correctly, but you need to check the preload on the bearing as you tighten it to make sure you don't get it too tight. I have done it by just turning the pinion prior to removing to see how much resistance it has before changing the seal. Obviously you need to jack the vehicle up, remove the brake drums and allow the axles to turn to do this. There is a specification (I believe it's 12-17 in-lb for my D44) for the torque on the pinion bearing that is a measure of the preload, but this is set with the axle shafts out. So I forgo the pulling of the axle shafts and just feel it by hand. I believe I ended up torquing to just over 150 ft-lb. If you're lost at this point, get yourself a factory service manual. There are companies out there selling reproduction FSMs for CJs.

As far as cleaning it out, you shouldn't have dirt/crud too far past the seal or you have much bigger problems... You should be able to pull the seal and wipe the pinion shaft off with a rag.

[sully72]

thank you very much Rick
Jim