Spindle woes

[PaulS]

Background:� I have two front axles to work with.� The original is a Dana 25, but I have a D27 as well.� I'm reinstalling the D25, for various reasons.

The D25 came with Rzeppa joints, while the D27 has Spicer/Cardan joints.� (It's substantially newer.)

Now, here are the spindles out of the D25.

Notice that the one on the right is a bit chewed up?� But that's right where the grease seal rides on it.� That can't be good, can it?

Now, the 27's spindles are a lot smoother in that area.� So I was thinking I'd use those.� The spindles, I believe, are the same.� It's just that the bushings are different.

Bushings on the D25:


And on the D27:


The weird thing is that Walcks sells the same bushing for use with Rzeppa or Spicer shafts, and a different one for the Bendix shafts.� Since neither of these has Bendix, why are they different?� But most importantly, can I use the D27 spindles with those bushings with my D25 and its Rzeppa shafts?

And just to throw a wrench in the works, here's the inside of one of those D27 bushings--it's all scored up.� (The other one, and both the D25 bushings, are clean.)� Does this matter?


How difficult would it be to press the bushings out and switch the D25 bushings to the D27 spindles?� I have a press, but I don't want to damage anything...  Or can I just use the D27 spindles as is (i.e. with the scoring on the inside of the bushing)?  Or should I use the D25 spindles as is (i.e. not worry about the sealing surface--after all grease is pretty thick)?

Thanks,

-Paul

[Carls_jeep]

Both the spindles need help. Both need speedie sleeves where the seal runs. The one on the right has the bearing area completely destroyed and is not usable without welding and machining. The one on the left has a badly scored bearing area and may need help but may work.

It looks like the bearing has been spinning on both from miss adjustment or they had a bearing failure.

[PaulS]

Here are the ones from the 27:


They certainly feel a lot smoother.� Can I use these?� And if so, what about the bushings?

BTW, I heard a story from the PO's son, with no details, that a front wheel may have come off at some point.� That may be related to the damage...� The bearings on both sides looked very new.� I bought a lot of new bearings, but I chose not to replace the front hub bearings.� The spindle washers, however--I think this picture is from the same side as the chewed up spindle:


-Paul

[Carls_jeep]

The spindles from the 27 look ok but still need speedie sleeves on the seal area. I would replace all the retainer washers and not trust the used ones. The bushings can be pulled and installed in what you use. I would prefer to use new bushings and you have to use the correct bushing with the correct axle shaft. One type uses a flanged bushing and the other types use a bushing with no flange. You will have to research that.

[PaulS]

What is a spindle sleeve?� It doesn't seem to be a part listed on any website I've found.� Is it something a machine shop does?

BTW, I already have new spindle nuts and washers--I wasn't going to be reusing those!

-Paul

[F Bill]

Speedy Sleeves.or maybe Speedi sleeves......They are a thin press on usually stainless steel sleeve that covers bad areas on your spindle.


You may get away with a quick polish on the better spindles  without sleeves, as pictures sometimes tell a different story than actually feeling the damage. You don't want any grooves in the actual sealing area. Minor damage where the bearing seats is no big deal, as long as the overall diameter is still good.

New spindles should still be around....

[PaulS]

Looking over at the 2A forum, it seems like the flanged bushings can be used on any type of shaft.  It is a requirement for the non-threaded (snap ring) shafts (my 27 Spicer shaft is of that type), but isn't a problem on the threaded ones.

But perhaps I should order up a new pair of bushings regardless, just to eliminate any wear.

-Paul

[F Bill]

http://www.cj3apage.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1290640691

Good thread about spindle issues, pay attention to the link Larry (Rocketeer) gives to his thread on putting a full floater in his 3A. He has an alternative seal you may be interested in.