What's new
CK5
Register an account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members.

2 questions about the K5...

rjfguitar

rjfguitar

3/4 ton status
GMOTM Winner
Joined
Aug 28, 2002
Posts
9,120
Reaction score
175
Location
california
1) I have been driving around town for a couple of days now in the K5 and forgot to unlock my hubs from using it around here on the ranch in 4wd. :doah: Is it hard on the hubs and/or tcase running down the road with them locked? Reason I ask is because I have heard both that it is fine and that it will damage them.

2) On my way home today the brake light in the gas guage came on. I figured I blew a wheel cylinder or a line, or just low on fluid. Checked everything and fluid level is fine and no visual leaks and/or broken lines but I have no back brakes all of a sudden, what would cause that?

As always, thanks. :xmas:
 
Running w/ the hubs locked and t-case in 2wd is fine. I run mine like that every couple hundred miles, just keep the gear oil splashed around. Keeps everything good and lubed up.

As for the brakes, do you have a height sensing valve on the back axle? It coulda gotten screwed, and is cutting fluid to the rears. Perhaps the prop valve? Is any fluid leaking between the master cylinder and the booster like as if a master cyl went?
 
how fast were you driving with the hubs locked? they accually say to engage them for a mile or so every month to keep things lubed. if you were driving less than 55mph i wouldnt worry. if your going 75 down the freeway thats probly pushing it.

does your brakes feel weaker? have you pulled both back wheels to check slave cylinders?they might be leaking in the drums but you cant see from the outside. maybe you've got and airleak somewhere thats caused a loss of pressure, but doesnt leak fluid.
 
I didn't see any leaking fluid around the master cylinder. The pedal feels good except for a loss in braking power from the lack of rears. I don't think I have any kind of heigth sensing valve, I have the stock system, just with a 14BFF rear. I am wondering about the prop valve too but I don't know how it would go bad.
 
The brake light is controlled by a switch that grounds itself out when the little dividing piston inside the prop valve goes one way or the other. Your switch could be bad, or you could have a short to ground on that wire or you may need to reset the switch by pushing on the little rubber gromet on the end of the prop valve to push the dividing piston back into its spot. You can also disconect the switch from the wire by unhooking the little rubber connector. You could also have a bad e-brake switch too as i believe that light is also the e-brake light.
 
Jonny-K5 said:
how fast were you driving with the hubs locked? they accually say to engage them for a mile or so every month to keep things lubed. if you were driving less than 55mph i wouldnt worry. if your going 75 down the freeway thats probly pushing it.

does your brakes feel weaker? have you pulled both back wheels to check slave cylinders?they might be leaking in the drums but you cant see from the outside. maybe you've got and airleak somewhere thats caused a loss of pressure, but doesnt leak fluid.
Click to expand...
I just got in about 15 mins ago so I haven't pulled the back wheels off but I have a lot of experience with bad wheel cylinders and when they go you can see the oil running down the bottom of the tire, usually of course, plus both cylinders are new. :confused:
 
when i rebuit my rear axle the brake light came on when i started it. i adjusted the ebrake back to normal position(had it adjusted all the way out) and it went away.
 
zcarczar said:
The brake light is controlled by a switch that grounds itself out when the little dividing piston inside the prop valve goes one way or the other. Your switch could be bad, or you could have a short to ground on that wire or you may need to reset the switch by pushing on the little rubber gromet on the end of the prop valve to push the dividing piston back into its spot. You can also disconect the switch from the wire by unhooking the little rubber connector. You could also have a bad e-brake switch too as i believe that light is also the e-brake light.
Click to expand...
Yes, that light comes on for both the ebrake and a loss in brake pressure. I have sort of ruled out that a sensor is bad since I have no back brakes. :thinking: :screwy:
 
I am wondering if I just sucked in some air for somehow. I am going to go bleed my brakes, I'll be back.
 
More on the hubs...last winter when my truck was still running and I drove it to and from school every day (50 mile round trip), I would usually just leave the hubs locked in when the roads got bad, which was often a few days at a time.

I only drove it about 60 mph tops, in 2 Hi and 4 Hi, and had no problems. This is one of the reasons I am going to stick with the factory drive flanges on the Dodge D60 thats going under it here soon :whistle:
 
its a seasonal thing...

In my trucks I usually lock in the hubs in the first snowstorm in november or december and leave them locked until april or may,since I dont do too far,or at very high speeds..I used to be anal about locking them only when absolutely nessasary,but after wading thru mud and snowdrifts I learned to just lock them in and shift to 2wd hi,and let the axle shafts and driveshafts spin,and to hell with the added wear it might cause,and the poorer gas milage(you dont get 15mpg plowing anyway!)--and more than once my hubs iced up with slush and froze in the unlocked position,had to melt it with a propane torch and dissasemble the hub to make it work again--big PITA in a snowstorm!!.

I figured I was saving wear on the U-joints by leaving the hubs unlocked as much as possible--but I found they actually last longer when you let them spin!!--every u-joint had a completely rusted cap with no needles left,if I didnt use the 4wd for long periods of time--then I drove it over 2000 miles with the hubs locked in over the next winter after putting fresh joints in,and they were still perfect come spring,only greased them when I installed them too---and I didnt neglect greasing the first ones!!
After I experienced that,I realized that a NP203 full time T-case probably has less u-joint and shaft problems due to the fact its always turning compared to a part time case,and the added differential in the NP203 probably takes a lot of stress of the joints and shafts too.....:thinking:
 
Thanks for all the comments on the hubs guys, that was an easy "fix." i am more interested in what to do with my non workin rear brakes now. :crazy:
 
Have you checked the fluid level yet? Did bleeding do any good?

Also, on the prop vavle itself, there's a little rubber covered reset button. If the system doesn't have any other issues, that button will reset the valve and turn the light off. You'll have to figure out your rear brake issue first. If it's just rear brakes, then it's just process of elimination. Trace the line from the master cylinder back to the wheel cylinder. Master cylinders are cheap and easy to replace, and yours is probably older than dirt anyways. If you can't find problems in the brake lines/wheel cylinders, replace the master. Just be sure to bench bleed it correctly.
 
is the fluid full in both resivouirs??

I have a similar problem in my 82 diesel--th rear chamber in the master cylinder is always low or empty,I have no leaks in the lines,the wheel cylinders may be the cause,as they are old,but I see no brake fluid drooling out of the drums--and my brake light is on all the time too,and it feels like the rear brakes are rusty and dragging ,sometimes it feels like one wheel is locked after it sits a week or so--after I bled the brakes it was ok for a while(light was off) but after a few days it would come on and go off at random,now its on constantly again:mad: -I'm wondering if the master cylinder is leaking into the(hydro) booster??--either that or air is getting into the rear lines,but no fluid is leaking out that I can see(and I looked very closely,since rusted brake lines are a yearly occurance here)--might be the old wheel cylinders letting air in,and I think a rear axle seal leaked into one drum,that might be why the brakes seem to be dragging on that side--but the fluid is going somewhere,its go me baffled--usually after a few times of refilling the master,you see a stain or puddle somewhere--none that I can see,if you figure out why yours is doing this,let me know!!!..:crazy:
 
Leaving the hubs locked in will not hurt anything. The old full-time (203) trucks didn't even have hubs and people drove them at all speeds for years and years on end with no problems.

For the brakes, look at the simple stuff first and make sure the rear shoes are properly adjusted. When I still had drums on my 14FF I had problems after every trail ride that involved any amount of mud and water. The gunk would cause a lot of wear on the shoes and make them go out of adjustment. The wheel cylinders are huge and draw a large amount of fluid while trying to expand all of the way, this then drops the fluid level in the reservoir and triggers the light.

Do the brakes get better if you pump them a few times? If so, then I would bet the adjustment is the issue.............
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest Posts

Top Bottom