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Dana 44 Axle Bearings???

Dana 44 Axle Bearings???
M

Mtz95

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Location
Toledo
Vehicle(s)
'75 CJ5, 258 Straight 6, T14, Dana 20, Dana 30 Front Dana 44 Rear
On my 75 CJ5 I recently noticed I had some crazy wheel wobble in the rear. After ruling out the wheels themselves, wheel spacers, and drums, it was pretty obvious I had an axle / hub issue....

Tearing apart the axles, I found some exploded axle bearings on the wheel side and a slight bend on each hub.. I had a donor jeep of what I thought was the same model and year so, I figured I'd just rip those axles out and slide them in mine.

Here's where I'm getting confused. The donor axles have bearing cups, and the ones out of my jeep do not. Do I need the bearing cups? was my axle missing them or are these two different axles, maybe a different model year or, different altogether? Did not having bearing cups cause the bearings to explode?

Ultimately I've decided I need new bearing sets at the minimum and need to know what to order.
 
Your old races are still in the axle tubes. they should come out fairly easily. When replacement bearings are purchased the races are somehow set on the bearing, but they become free of the bearing cage fairly quickly when running.
 
Hedgehog said:
Your old races are still in the axle tubes. they should come out fairly easily. When replacement bearings are purchased the races are somehow set on the bearing, but they become free of the bearing cage fairly quickly when running.
Click to expand...

That's what I thought initially but, when I tired to pull the old races out they didn't budge so I was under the impression that maybe there was a model with set in races... Shows my lack my lack of knowledge! I just went and tried again and they're in there tight but, they do move so it looks like you're right!

Now that I'm past that problem I'm facing another.... Will I need to take these somewhere to have the new bearings pressed on or is there a DIY trick to do the job?
 
The races are a loose, but precise fit. You need to pull them absolutely straight out. There are special pullers for a slide hammer that are great. For the tough ones you can make a puller with a flat bar stock arranged across the inside of the race to bridge the hole with a piece of bar stock or all thread in the middle to pull with.

A Dana 44 bearing kit will come with the seal, a new press on steel collar and a new bearing with the race stuck on the bearing. I usually cut the collar and bearing off with a Dremel tool/die grinder or an angle grinder. Just cut'em deep and for a final cut split the steel with a chisel. It's easy to cut to deep and hit the axle with the die grinder blade, you don't want to do that.

To do it properly the bearing and steel collar should be pressed on. The redneck way is to use a properly sized pipe on the bearing & collar and a BFH. Both work equally well.
 
These manuals are FAR better than any Chilton's manual. Yes they are expensive, but well worth the price. I have the Hayes and Jeep manuals. Unfortunately I only have the manual for a '80 Jeep, but it covers most of my needs. I do have general access to the '75 manual and should purchase one.
 
So I called my local shop and they want $90 per side not including parts.... Sounds pricey to me but what do I know. Thankfully I found a friend with a press. Parts are on the way and if everything works out I'll end up saving some money to dump into some other project. Or a maintenance manual..
 
OMG - $180 to press on 2 bearings .... 5 minutes work! My jeep guy does mine for free.
 
Hope you're not go'n the cheap on the bearings.
Agree with HH-$180.00 to press on 2 bearings, is robbery.:mad:
LG
 
My thoughts exactly... They do great work but, they're sooo overpriced. Almost expecting to get billed just for the time on the phone with the guy..... He wanted to setup a time for me to come in and I took really hard pass.
 
Are there any Jeep CJ clubs in your area?
You should hook up with one, as they are a great resource for info and help.
LG
 
Lumpy Grits said:
Hope you're not go'n the cheap on the bearings.
Agree with HH-$180.00 to press on 2 bearings, is robbery.:mad:
LG
Click to expand...

I got the Timken set with Yukon outer seal. From what I can tell that's the way to go. Every thread I've seen on bearings pretty much praises Timken.
 
Lumpy Grits said:
Are there any Jeep CJ clubs in your area?
You should hook up with one, as they are a great resource for info and help.
LG
Click to expand...

Kind of... There's a general 4x4 club but, it's mostly Jeep guys. A few cherokees and trucks, mostly wranglers. Only a couple CJ guys.
 
You got the good bearings and seals.
Get to know those CJ guys better!
LG
 
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