Dammit...dammit...dammit!

[Flyin_Freddie]

Just got back from Virginia Int'l Raceway over Memorial Day weekend...lotsa fun, lotsa cars, lotsa good friends. Good times with old friends...can't beat it.

But, last night I finally got around to washing #770 to begin prep for Mid-Ohio track time and London Cobra Show. I washed it...dried it off...wiped out the engine bay and began checking for any problems. Jacked it up, put it on jack stands and slid under the car to look for any leaks....hmmmm, minor leak around the rear of the pan...probably not the rear seal, but from higher up on the engine and this was run-down residue I was seeing. Wiped it all off, didn't notice anything else. Slid back to the rear of the car to look at the CV joint boots...checked U-joints on the way back, all looked good. Checked left hand inner and outer boots, both looked okay. Slid over to the right hand side...inner boot okay...no leaks. Looked at the outer boot....

...IT'S GONE...!

...and there's enough grease slung all over the inside of the right rear wheel well, suspension parts, etc, to make a small dent in Saudi Arabia's Gross National Product...! What a freakin' mess...! It must have happened during my last track session on Tuesday afternoon. Moreover, can I get this fixed before I leave for Mid-Ohio this coming Monday? Called Dennis O about 8:00PM last night on his cell - I hated to do it, but I had to know if he could fit me in between now and next Monday. After some discussion, he's going to overnight me a complete axle assembly today...I should have it tomorrow. In our conversation, he says he's confident I can replace the entire right rear axle in about an hour. I'm thinkin' he's got more confidence in my mechanical ability than I do, and I appreciate his confidence in me....but, I dunno.... Do I have the right tools? I've got a pretty well equipped garage, and I think I'm a better-than-average mechanic, but I dunno....never removed a rear axle before. I've already scheduled Thursday as a vacation day to undertake this project...I gotta get it done, or Mid-Ohio and London Cobra Show is out of the picture for me this year. I just don't want to attend w/o my Cobra.

So...my question to my fellow SPF owners....especially those who know me...can I do this in a couple of hours? Anything I should be aware of before I begin...? Any special tools I'll need to get together...?

[bobcowan]

I've had to replace the boots a couple of times. It generally takes me about an hour to R&R the axle and replace both boots.

Remove the brake caliper and hang it out of the way. remove the center nut now, it's easier than on the bench. Remove the three bolts holding the arms to the upright. Pull the upright and axle as one assembly. You often need a pry bar or screwdriver to pop the stud out of the differential.

Use a couple of zip ties in the boot for added strength.

[Clois Harlan]

Bob is right on and the time is exactly right. Pretty simple but a little greasy.

When I read your post I thought you were Calling Jay Nordstrom (DAMMIT).

Good Luck Freddie, will we see you in St. Louis in October at Run and Gun?

Clois

[Flyin_Freddie]

From what I understood from our conversation last night, Dennis is sending me a complete axle assembly...both stubs, both CV joints, and the axle shaft with both boots attached and already greased. From studying the cars suspension, looks like this is a rough outline of the procedure...

Remove the caliper and emergency brake caliper
Remove the Trigo adapter
Remove the grease cap
Remove the axle nut
Remove the brake rotor
Remove the upper rose joint suspension pivot bolt
Remove the two lower suspension pivot bolts
Withdraw the hub carrier
Withdraw the axle assembly
Insert the new axle assembly
Reinstall the hub carrier
Reinstall the two lower suspension pivot bolts
Reinstall the upper rose joint suspension bolt
Reinstall the brake rotor
Reinstall the axle nut
Torque all fasteners to proper specs
Reinstall the grease cap
Reinstall the Trigo adapter using the metal template
Reinstall the caliper and torque fasteners
Reinstall the wheel and knock off

Howzzat sound...?

Now....where do I begin repairing all the shee-ite that I'll probably break in the process of doing all the above? And, can I remove the rear axle nut without knocking the car off the jackstands? Anyone know the torque setting...?

[HI Cobra]

I can't help you with the torque spec on the axle nut but even though it is
a mess - at least you caught it in time to do something about it rather
than getting there and then discovering it. Sounds like you have a good
outline to follow to do the job - good luck.

[Flyin_Freddie]

Okay...Dennis just called me...confirmed it is the right axle I need. He walked me through the removal/reinstallation procedures, and I was pretty much on target with my outline above. He did say I would need a 36mm socket to remove/install the axle retaining nut...but he's going to put one in the box with the axle half...I'll return the old axle and socket to him in Ohio next week. Also...I'll need an impact wrench to remove the nut. All these years of playing with cars, motorcycles, and all things mechanical and I don't own an impact wrench. But...Hey....Father's Day is just around the corner, right...? Guess what just made #1 on my Father's Day gift list...? Yepper...I'm off to Sears this PM...

Besides...how can one have a Manly Garage without the unmistakable sound of a pneumatic impact wrench coming from the back of the garage...? Argh-argh-argh...MANLY....More Power....Gotta have MORE POWER!

More later...I'm think I'm starting to build some confidence... Pride doth cometh before a fall....

[Flyin_Freddie]

I got the torque specs....

200 ft/lbs for the rear axle nut, plus red Locktite
90 ft/lbs for the suspension bolts
15 ft/lbs for the caliper mounting bolts

Think I'm all set...stopping by Sears on the way home for a pneumatic impact wrench and a 36mm socket ...Lowes for some red Locktite.

Just need the axle now...

[rdorman]

Not to worry Freddie, you wil be ready in no time flat. Look at the bright side... the problem had nothing to do with a water heater

[Flyin_Freddie]

Roger that, sir...roger that. Dunno if I could stand another water heater incident!

See you a week from today...I hope... Look for me...I'll be in the blue car w/white stripes.....

[hey,littlecobra]

Freddie. Even I have an impact wrench!!!

not sure why, but i bought it anyway....

missed you in Austin.

good luck with your minor repair and have a safe, fun time in london.

K

[Lowell W]

You may need a puller, too. My axles were very tight in the hubs. I left the hubs connected at the top link, pressed the axles out and swung the uprights up and out of the way. Saves you having to replace all those shims on the top link, which is a fiddly nuisance, and gives you more leverage for holding the parts when you R&R the axle nut.

Good luck,

Lowell

[Flyin_Freddie]

Lowell...how did you press out the axles...and from what? Are you referring to the hub carriers...? And did you employ a hydraulic press, or just a BFH? I like your idea of not having to remove the hub carriers, but Dennis O says removing them is the quickest way to withdraw the axle half-shaft. I'm prepared to remove the carrier and keep track of all the shims, etc...no bigee.

I bought a Craftsman impact wrench at Sears yesterday evening - 580 ft/lbs of torque - and a 36mm socket for the axle nut. I think I'm ready to go...downloaded some instructiions from SCOF...got everything lined up. And I cleaned up suspension and wheel well last night...what a mess! I used a whole roll of those blue paper shop towels and three pairs of nitrile gloves. When I was done wiping everything off, I wet a towel with Ditz-O and wiped everything down again to remove that oily film...it's pretty clean again.

[Lowell W]

Freddie,

I just used a three arm, screw-type puller: Hooked the arms over the edge of the hub and pressed the axle out of the hub. You could take the whole upright and hub out of the car and put it in the hydraulic press, but you would still have to press on the hub flange to avoid putting pressure on the wheel bearing which supports the hub.

Your axles may not be as tight in the hubs as mine, but mine were awfully, awfully tight. I had to start by tightening the puller, then giving the center screw a rap, then tightening the puller some more, rapping the screw again, etc. There was quite a bit of Loc-tite in the splines, so maybe that was part of the problem.

If you do decide to remove the bolt from the top link, use a magic marker and mark a line on all the shims on one side of the link only. Then when you pull out the bolt and they go all over the floor, you'll be able to tell which ones went in front and which ones went behind the link, since there are several different thicknesses. With the bottom bolts out, the hub and upright will start to swing upwards as the hub comes off the axle stub. When it comes all the way off, you can just wire the upright up out of the way and you'll be able to pull the half shaft straight out.

You'll also need a torque wrench to install the new axle nuts. I believe SPF gives a figure of 270 ft# and Ford uses 250 ft#. A lot of 1/2" drive torque wrenches, including mine, go up to 250 ft# and I can't see how another 20 ft# could make much of a difference, especially if you run the old nuts down on top of the new ones. Another good suggestion, made by someone else, was to make some witness marks on the axle stub and the nut. That way, you can pop off the cap and look in there to be sure your axle nut hasn't moved.

Good luck,

Lowell

[Flyin_Freddie]

Yepper...I gotcha now, Lowell.....

In my conversatio with Dennis O, he said I'd have to use the impact wrench to remove the axle nuts. Then, when re-installing them, use some red Locktite, and hammer 'em down as tight as I can get them. He said not to worry, they won't budge. I'm not too worried about this, as red Locktite has a sheer strength in excess of 200 lbs. Plus, #770 has the old style single axle nuts. I had planned on marking them with some Tippet for witness marking. I'm thinking this will be good to go... my torque wrench only goes to 150 ft/lbs, if I recall correctly

My concern is pressing the old axle out of the hub carrier. Sounds as if yours were very difficult to remove. I'm hoping mine aren't that difficult. But, worse comes to worse, I'll remove the hub carrier and support it in my big vise, then use my lead hammer to smack the end of the old axle to loosen it. I'm thinking that will work okay... I'll know tonight.

[Lowell W]

Freddie,

However you go about it, you want to hold or support the hub FLANGE (the part where the lugs go through) rather than the carrier itself. If you don't have a puller, this would be a good excuse to buy one...

Or, if you take the whole assembly off and put it in the hydraulic press, set the flange on a couple of heavy steel bars and press on the end of the axle.

Lowell

[Flyin_Freddie]

Well...there was a problem and my axle wasn't shipped until today. But, tonight I was able to remove the old axle and hub carrier. I removed the axle with the hub carrier then placed the hub carrier on top of my big vise with the axle hanging down below it. I didn't want to strike the end of the axle too hard, for fear of damaging the bearing in the carrier. I screwed the axle nut back on the end of the axle about 6 turns...just enough so it was flush with the end of the axle. Using one of my lead hammers and with my buddy (Ron Frohs) holding the axle, I just tapped on the end of the axle pretty gently...it started to move almost immediately. I continued tapping until the axle fell out of the bearing in the carrier. It was not difficult to remove, nor did I ever feel like I was hitting the axle very hard...just enough to keep it moving. No problems with it sticking like yours did, Lowell. It came out very cleanly and smoothly.

But...one of my wheel drive pins mushroomed when I was trying to remove it...(dammit!) I ended up using a cold chisel to remove it from the stud. It finally came off, but it's unusable. I spoke with Dennis O and he said he'd bring one to Mid-Ohio , but I'd feel better having him overnight a couple of them to me tomorrow so I'd get them on Friday. I'd like to road test my car Saturday AM to be sure everything's okay...

Man..it's always something., ain't it..? I should have my axle in the AM, and I hope to be ready to put the wheel back on by lunchtime tomorrow. I'll go ahead and finish all my other prep work tomorrow...all except mounting the wheel - I can do that Friday PM and be ready for a road test on Saturday AM for a Cobra breakfast with the locals... Sure hope that axle shows up tomrrow!

I'm cuttin' it close, I know...but, if all goes well, I'll be at Mid-Ohio next week with a smile on my face and the wind in my (thinning) hair... If not...I may still be at Mid-Ohio...but with a margarita in my hand...! Hmmmm...guess I coould always take my V-Rod chopper....that'd be neat!

[Lowell W]

Great!!! Glad it came out so easily.

Speaking of V-Rods...Several years ago, on the way into London, there was a guy on a V-Rod waiting at an intersection for all the Cobras to go by. Somebody must have slowed down to look at it, and all of a sudden there were Cobras slamming on the brakes and running off this side and that side, trying to avoid a pile-up. Anybody remember that?

One small caveat re. the drive pins: There are several sizes so compare the new one to your old ones to be sure it isn't too long.

Hope you get all reassembled and back on the road!

Lowell

[Flyin_Freddie]

Well...not a bad day today...made some progress. My axle was delivered this morning at about 0930, and by 1230 I had it all buttoned up and ready to go. But...since I boogered up one of my Trigo wheel drive pins, Olthoff Racing is overnighting me three drive pins and I should be back on the road tomorrow PM.

The axle went in this morning as easy as can be. I smeared the splines on the outer end with a little wheel bearing grease to make them slip into the hub carrier easier...and they went right in. After threading on the axle nut finger tight, I picked the whole axle hub assembly up and stuck the other end in the pumpkin...twisted the axle shaft a little and "ca-lick"...it snapped right in. "It can't be this easy," I said out loud. But, when I inspected it while on my creeper, it had snapped all the way home and I was ready to reasemble the rear control arms to the hub carrier. I ran into virtually no problems, and buttoned everything back up in about an hour or so.

Wish I had those drive pins...I'd have been driving this afternoon. Oh well....I changed the oil, put another coat of Zaino on, and had a couple of cocktails this evening in the garage. I should get the drive pins tomorrow AM, and I'll wrap it all up before dinner tomorrow evening. Hell, I make may Mid-Ohio in spite of myself...

[Tom of VA]

Freddie,
That's my kind of day! You just made me want to go home and work on the car.

[rdorman]

Good to hear my friend. See you soon!