Posted by Matt Wilson on Thursday, June 21, 2001 at 10:24PM :
In Reply to: WC56 4wd problem diagnosed...now what? posted by Matt B on Thursday, June 21, 2001 at 7:40PM :
If you don't have a manual for this truck, it would be really handy to have one about this time. Vintage Power Wagons carries them (641)472-4665.
First, you have to remove the tire, if you haven't already done so, then remove the brake drum, followed by the hub, which houses the wheel bearings. The hub can be removed by removal of two stacked, thin, large-diameter nuts that are used to adjust the wheel bearings and lock the hub in place. This part is just like any other full-floating axle setup, as found on the rear axle assemblies of many 3/4-ton and most 1-ton trucks (and virtually all heavier trucks). You can buy a wrench that will fit this nut at Vintage Power Wagons, and probably at some of the other places listed in the home page of this forum.
After the hub is off, you need to remove the brake backing plate and axle housing spindle, which come off with the removal of 5 bolts that screw into the steering knuckle. At this point, you can remove the entire axle shaft assembly (inner and outer shafts) together.
I suggest you very carefully clean everything inside your spindle and steering knuckles, so as to removed all traces of metal debris. It's also a good time to have a visual inspection of the bronze bushings that the shafts ride in, to determine if it appears that there is a lot of wear there. If it looks like they need replacement, they can be removed with a slide hammer puller, although it sometimes requires considerable effort. If you do decide to replace them, its a good idea to replace the seals behind the inner ones, as well. They will likely be destroyed by your attempts to remove the bushings, anyway.
Assembly is basically the reverse of what I described above. It would be of considerable help for you to get a manual, if you don't have one.
As for interchangeability with the M37 shafts, they are not. The M37 uses a totally different type of internal joint with axle shafts that are shorter than those of the WC. However, according to John Zentmyer's "Power Trains and Interchanges" manual, the front axle shafts and joints out of a civilian 1-ton (flatfender) Power Wagon will fit and work in a WC axle housing, so long as you install the entire axle shaft assembly from the Power Wagon (inner and outer shaft and the intermediate piece). The reason you have to use the whole thing is because the Power Wagon used a different type of joint than the WC. If you go this route, I don't believe you will have to worry much about checking the amount of play in a used assembly.
Good luck!
Matt
|
Follow Ups:
This board is powered by the Mr. Fong Device from Cyberarmy.com |