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14ff Hub Failure

dhcomp

dhcomp

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Ok, So i posted in the PAD post some quick pictures.

A few weeks ago, i rebuilt my rear drums, and replaced all the bearings.

Timken bearings, packed with a bit of grease, then filled the rear with 75w90 synthetic gear oil. Tipped the axle side to side (1 day each way), and spun the hub a bunch. Bearings should have been well lubed.

So, driving today, it was a bit sluggish, and then started making wierd noises. Pulled over, and the whole assembly had walked about 2 ft from the side of the truck :doah::eek1:

Quick inspection says the lock nut is broken, but still there. And, I THINK the outer bearing snap ring is still there.

What causes this? Its pouring rain here, but obviously, i'll tear into it soon.

Either snap ring failed, or bearings ran dry and exploded, right?
 
Looking at that last picture, I think I'm seeing the lock nut and just the inner bearing race, both roughly in place. If the snapring failed, I would expect to see the whole bearing on that shaft (roughly intact, like the other bearing), rather than just the inner race.

So I'm thinking a bearing failure, and the lock nut got destroyed on the way out. But I've not personally encountered this issue.

Let us know what you find!
 
On the outer bearing, did you drive the race back against the snap ring after installing the snap ring? Not doing so will leave a gap between the race and snap ring that will allow the race to move causing the nut to lose its torque.
 
You'll be real lucky if that spindle isn't hurt.
 
I've had an identical failure when I re-used a snap ring I beat the snot out removing without the right tools. The snap ring broke and let the hub exit left stage with the axle shaft, drum and tire. When the hub came off it messed up the lock nut and outer wheel bearing in similar fashion but left the inner in relatively good shape.

I had to replace the wheel hub in my case, so I just swapped a new axle in instead.
 
nvrenuf said:
On the outer bearing, did you drive the race back against the snap ring after installing the snap ring? Not doing so will leave a gap between the race and snap ring that will allow the race to move causing the nut to lose its torque.
Click to expand...

Yep, thanks to a quick phone call wiht 4x4 high, I DID in fact drive the bearing/race up against the snap ring.
 
Thanks for the ideas guys.

I'm guessing the shaft is bent (after a tow truck ride home, truck bouncing up and down on the shaft).

I also will guess that the spindle is trashed.

Who has a 4.10 3/4 ton width 14ff around?
 
That bearing (or should I say what's left of it) is DRY. My guess is you adjusted the spindle nut too tight which caused an extreme amount of heat and it fried the bearing then grenaded as you are now seeing.

What was the procedure you used to adjust the wheel bearing preload?
 
Standard procedure.

I forget the exact torque values, but i used hte right ones.

I THINK it was torque to 50 ftlbs while turning, back off 1/4 turn, torque to 35.

I know that you also are never supposed to go tighter to get to the keyway,always looser.

Who knows what i did.

Are the 14ff spindles replaceable?

I'm going to look at it tonight or tomorrow, but i'm up against some big life changes, and won't have time to fix it in time.

Want to make sure what i broke is replaceable, so i can take it to Mark's shop or an axle shop to get it put back together. Rarely is it worth the $$$, but my time over the next month or so has become very valueable. More details on that on Monday.
 
I would hazard a guess that you can re use the spindle and axle shaft. The wheel hub you'd need to inspect closely before deciding to use it again though. It's probably toast
 
As i see it, the hub is easily changed. So, if that's what i lose, so be it.

How do these shafts do in this condition? Often get bent, or no?

It sat on the shaft very briefly, i'm guessing it'll be good.

We'll roll it across the garage floor and see what's up.

The toughest part of getting this thing towed again after inspecting, is it won't roll at all. Not sure how we'll get it transported without harming it.
 
And, the follow up question ,being if the spindle is damaged, is it replaceable?
 
Got it.

Thats what i just found.

We'll find out what the damage is tomorrow when i tear into it.
 
I've gone through this a couple times now. Check this out...

http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/general-4x4-discussion/1109922-bent-spindle-14bolt.html

Do you have a good spare axle? If not, get a hold of one. The way I check mine without an alignment bar- Get a new hub, assemble it onto the spindle like normal. Stick a known good shaft in there, the axle flange should be square to the hub surface. Also you shouldn't have to force the axle to line up the bolt holes, just take the weight off it. If that's good the spindle is probably ok. If not- pull the other axle, pull the carrier out, put a light bulb on one end, and look down the whole axle. You will see the bend if it is bent...

Here's an better explanation with pics- http://performanceunlimited.com/documents/diffstraighten.html
 
Thats nuts! Looks as if the outer bearing failed. Also LOOKS as if the nuts backed off a fair bit possibly causing the bearing to fall off its outer race? To me just looking at the pics, it looks like the nut backing off is what caused this failure.
 
So, the spindle is toast. Egged out at the end, inner race of the outer bearing is on there for the rest of time.

Axle shaft has a little scratch, and is still straight.

At the point the spindle is a write-off, i didn't even inspect the hub yet.

Now, to find what my options are for another 410 gov loc axle, or get a shop to swap the spindle. Anyone know going spindle swap rate?

I'll announce my big life change tomorrow on here, but I really don't have time to work on it anytime soon, and need it to be functional.

:(
 
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