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Front end thumping under load in 4WD

T

TC70C10

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harvest, AL
I thought is was the front drive shaft so I took it and had a new spline installed, balanced and new front u-joint (Spicer). He checked out the CV u-joints and said they were fine. Went to the hunting cabin this weekend and my thumping sound is still there when I climb or descend hills in 4 Hi or 4 Low.

Ideas?

First thing I'll check is the Warn Hubs and make sure something didn't tear up in the hub.

It's hard to drive the truck and look underneath at the same time and noises travel.
 
Spider gears , and or ring gear teeth broken . Did my front 10 bolt in Moab , made the same sound the last morning I was there .
 
I'll check out the hub assembly tonight. What about the u-joints on the axle shaft? What's the easiest way to test them? Prybar or long screwdriver and test for slop?

Spider and ring I can pull front diff cover and inspect for missing/broken teeth.
 
TC70C10 said:
I'll check out the hub assembly tonight. What about the u-joints on the axle shaft? What's the easiest way to test them? Prybar or long screwdriver and test for slop?

Spider and ring I can pull front diff cover and inspect for missing/broken teeth.
Click to expand...

Twice a year at least you should eb changing the diff fluid if you wheel anyway , so this is a good time to check in there .

Front axle joints ? Well its as good as time as ever to remove your hub , inspect the wheel bearings , pull the shafts and check the joints .

Easy is cool , but even if its annoying , you need to tear stuff apart sometimes to check things :D
 
Thanks I'm going to jump in tonite. how much did it cost to fix the front end you broke at Moab?
 
It cost me beer for the axle I took gears out of , and the cost of new seals . And the wifey got me a front locker :thumb:
 
are you actually on terrain that would allow for slippage when this happens? if you're on regular paved roads, or in a situation which really does not require 4wd, that's quite possibly the issue. happens to me every time... which isn't much. :)
 
Now what?

Here's what I found out last night.

Pulled the Warn Hubs no problem, dumped the Hypoid Gear oil from front diff and it looked like brand new. No shavings, chunks of metal or discoloration. Pinion shaft, gears and ring and pinion look like new. U-joint on axle shafts appear tight. Disconnected front drive shaft and no play on the yoke end of pinion. Doesn't appear to be any play on transfer case side of drive shaft.

Last Saturday at the cabin as a test I put the front bumper up against a tree and hit the gas. The soil is somewhat sandy and i got the rear two tires and the front left tire(DSide) to dig in. The right front didn't appear to dig in. During this test I heard the thumping sound.

I had my buddies dad do the same test while I watched and I kept an eye on the right front tire. Again, rear tires dug into the dirt, front DS dug and the front right tire tried to dig in. I could see the tire trying to bite but it would not spin forward.

Any help is appreciated.
 
Well if alls good , and you did pull the axles and inspect the bearings and the axles for problems . Maybe you have a bad bearing on the spindle inner that the stub shaft rides on :dunno:

Maybe it is just binding :thinking:

As for one tire spinning up front , if its open diff , on loose ground , that is what they do if one tire has traction more than the other .......... or an axle snapped at the spilnes .
 
It was really sloppy on the first hill with wet red clay and it was still making the noise. Thumping sound increases with RPM's. Sounds like a damned freight train.
 
Front Drive shaft was hitting the crossmember. Made some adjustments to get an extra 3/16". Hope to test this weekend or sooner.

Thanks for everyone's inputs.
 
TC70C10 said:
Front Drive shaft was hitting the crossmember. Made some adjustments to get an extra 3/16". Hope to test this weekend or sooner.

Thanks for everyone's inputs.
Click to expand...

We pulled my crossmember , and cut the area under the shaft out . Lots of material left , and I doubt I weakened it too much as I have 3 years on it come March :D
 
TC70C10 said:
Front Drive shaft was hitting the crossmember. Made some adjustments to get an extra 3/16". Hope to test this weekend or sooner.

Thanks for everyone's inputs.
Click to expand...

Same thing happened to me when my transmission mount took a dump. Good find!
 
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