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Cleaning OUt Axle Tubes???

E

elks

1/2 ton status
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I am putting in brand spanking new axles shaft into my dana 40 front the 72 blazer I own. I noticed that when I removed the old axle there was some significant sand that came with it. This was not from with in the pumpikin, but sitting in the axle housing. So when I get everything taken apart how should I clean it all out? I was thnking about lifting one side extra high and trying to spray it out using gravity to pull the water and dirt out the end. I also thought about air, but I do not have a very big compressor, but can get about 100 pSI.

How should I try it? PS Inner axle seals are not looking and are not going to get replaced unless I screw it up.
 
first off you mean dana 44 right ?

next hit the harware store

1 3ft length of 1/4 or 5/16 threaded rod.

1 reg nut and 1 locknut

1 fender washer that will fit almost tight in the tube hole were the shhaft fits.

cut 1/3 of the washer off to make it 2/3 round and 1 flat top .

install reg nut on 1" to threaded rod. add special washer. install and tighten locknut.

then you have a tube cleaner tool. slide it in the axle tube with flat spot down and holding it all up to the top of the tube. when you get to the diff seal stop rotate 180* to act as a pull plow tool. then drag the crap out the end of the tube and do this till clean.

its cheep and real easy to make.
 
There isn't a way to get them super clean without pulling the cover/carrier etc.

If you want to clean the tubes the best bet is like you mentioned, get the opposite side as high as you safely can and and drop the side you're cleaning to let gravity help you. Then scrape it with a long pry bar or something similar.

I have seen people use a kind of sled on a string kind of deal to let the shaft slide over the junk in the axle tube and then be pulled out once the shaft engages the seal. Not sure how well that worked, things can still pile up in front of it and into the shaft and anything on the outside of the seal still gets contact.

When rebuilding an axle (personally, I don't do that for ORD) I clean the tubes but after that they pretty much just get slid back in. If the tubes looked really bad I'd clean them first but IME it's not a huge deal.
 
HD shop vac, with a reducer for the thin tube, with a brush head. See if that fits and works for ya.
 
You're putting in brand new axles that you spent some good coin on. And you're NOT replacing the axle seals? Why? Any little bit of sand left in there and gets in between the axle and seal will first wreck the seal and possibly wreck the axle seal surface too. Then when you go to replace the seals when they leak that surface will wreck the new seals. They are cheap and not hard to replace once you have the axles out. Pull the center chuck (carrier and ring gear) and just pop out the old seals, clean the tubes from the inside out and put in new seals with the new axles. Start fresh, it's worth it.
 
went and dug out my cleaner tool i described above and took pics.

only diffrence is i used a old shock/strut cone washer on the end cut down and its a scoop when pulling it out so i get more per pull.

stupid simple and cheep. but works perfect. :thumb:

100_3147.JPG

100_3148.JPG

100_3149.JPG

100_3150.JPG
 
Buy A wire wheel that fits in the tube and will chuck up in a drill gun. Then weld some round stock to it and Chuck in the drill. It works very well.
 
496truck said:
You're putting in brand new axles that you spent some good coin on. And you're NOT replacing the axle seals? Why? Any little bit of sand left in there and gets in between the axle and seal will first wreck the seal and possibly wreck the axle seal surface too. Then when you go to replace the seals when they leak that surface will wreck the new seals. They are cheap and not hard to replace once you have the axles out. Pull the center chuck (carrier and ring gear) and just pop out the old seals, clean the tubes from the inside out and put in new seals with the new axles. Start fresh, it's worth it.
Click to expand...

x2. It sucks to have an axle torn down that far and then put back together and the seals leak first trip out. Just don't cheap out and get the car quest /napa ones. Get the spicer ones. They have a bell shaped thing that helps guide the axle in.
 
rdn2blazer said:
:haha::haha::haha:He said sweety. :whistle::haha:
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I wasn't going to comment.........I figure what happens in the lounge stays in the lounge..............

But then I realized its the Garage......
 
sweetk30 said:
:doah:last time i give him a good tip :whistle: callin me names like that. :haha:
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i'll have you please keep your "tip" as far from me as possible!! :eek1:

could be worse. i could've called you sweet peaches or something like that.

hmmm. maybe i'll edit it
 
danyosun said:
Buy A wire wheel that fits in the tube and will chuck up in a drill gun. Then weld some round stock to it and Chuck in the drill. It works very well.
Click to expand...

That's what I did, a wire wheel the next size up, chucked in the drill. I used a 1/4" shank wire wheel, and used a hollow tube with 4 slits in the end and a large clamp as an extension, you can practically clean them to bare metal. But I did have the center section out.
 
Hey thanks for all the great answers. I ended up replacing the axle seals. to clean mine I used the broom stick(old seal removal tool duct tape and a small hand broom to scrub the housing then I used a rag and basically swapped the bor like a cannon working from the inside out. Worked great. now I just have to put the knuckles on axles in and hubs. then I can go this weekend and scout some mule deer...
 
I used my jack handle as a scraper with a rag on it. Seems to work. I pushed everything in and vacuumed it up. Seemed to work fine. Like said above, the perfect time to do axle seals.
 
danyosun said:
Buy A wire wheel that fits in the tube and will chuck up in a drill gun. Then weld some round stock to it and Chuck in the drill. It works very well.
Click to expand...

Same here, then washed the tubes out and painted them. Added some Mad 4x4 outer axle seals and they are still clean after 3-4 years.
 
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