Removing Center Joint and Torque Tube

[coolchrisp]

I jsut spent 8 hours JUST tring to get teh dougnut on any thing. ITS TO SMALL!! And doesnt fit!!!! and guess waht, i ripped teh brand new dougnut in half tring to push it over teh bearing. how can this be done??? so far waht i have been threw im thinking of sending to some one with more expirence, if any one was willing to do it. vasileine grease any thing i found i packed on there! didnt slip, i had my hole 250 pounds on it!! and it wont go on. then i got it half way and then i pushed once more and it riped in half. then i instaled teh 2 new rubber cylinder bushings and one of them broke!! i dunno if it was me or if i jsut got some bad parts... anyone close willing to do this for me for teh price they see fit...or advice on this matter, would be appreciated. ive read every thing!! it wont be till monday till i can order new parts and ill speak with gil...

GRRRRRR!!!! thats a waste of money!

chris

[jordan]

You are attempting to put the donut on from the internally splined coupler side that goes into the differential right? It may be difficult but I do not see how it could ever rip in two.

[neuropel]

I'm in the middle of rebuilding the torque tube (on a Manta), and need to briefly revive this thread...

Originally Posted by kwilford Even if the bearing feels "gritty", it might just be a bit of sand and dirt inside the shell. The bearing sits in a four piece "clam shell" (descriptive, if not accurate) housing, that can get a bit of dirt inside. On mine, the bearing sounded TERRIBLE, but when I removed the outer shell and cleaned it up, the bearing itself was perfect. Here are some photos of what I mean. The rear shell is welded to the shaft, but the front shell is held in place by the yoke. The bearing is then encased in another pair of shells.

The bearing in my torque tube felt gritty, so I pressed off the yoke and removed it. After a quick cleaning in a parts washer, it now feels smooth. Do I need to split this inner pair of shells to remove the bearing and pack it with grease? Or do I just pack the inner area of the shells (i.e. between the outer shells)?

[RallyBob]

Originally Posted by neuropel I'm in the middle of rebuilding the torque tube (on a Manta), and need to briefly revive this thread... The bearing in my torque tube felt gritty, so I pressed off the yoke and removed it. After a quick cleaning in a parts washer, it now feels smooth. Do I need to split this inner pair of shells to remove the bearing and pack it with grease? Or do I just pack the inner area of the shells (i.e. between the outer shells)?

If you washed the bearing assembly in solvent, then you need to press off those sheet metal shells from the bearing, and re-pack with a high-speed grease.

[neuropel]

Originally Posted by RallyBob If you washed the bearing assembly in solvent, then you need to press off those sheet metal shells from the bearing, and re-pack with a high-speed grease.

Thanks Bob. I'll attempt to split it apart as indicated in the attached picture (meant to post that pic in my previous post but forgot to convert it to JPG). Are these shells as thin as the outer ones that sandwich the assembly on the shaft?

[kwilford]

Originally Posted by neuropel Thanks Bob. I'll attempt to split it apart as indicated in the attached picture (meant to post that pic in my previous post but forgot to convert it to JPG). Are these shells as thin as the outer ones that sandwich the assembly on the shaft?

Todd, this thread is over four years old. I barely recall what I had for lunch today, let alone what I did four years ago. But IIRC, you have to remove the yoke first, and then the front shell cover slides off, then the bearing comes off next complete with the case. The case is then split to reveal the bearing. And IIRC, the bearing case is just sheet metal, so be gentle.

HTH

[neuropel]

Originally Posted by kwilford Todd, this thread is over four years old. I barely recall what I had for lunch today, let alone what I did four years ago. But IIRC, you have to remove the yoke first, and then the front shell cover slides off, then the bearing comes off next complete with the case. The case is then split to reveal the bearing. And IIRC, the bearing case is just sheet metal, so be gentle. HTH

Sorry to ask you to exercise your hippocampus Keith! I'm trying to figure out how to press the two halves apart and remove the bearing without deforming/ruining the shells. There's no flange or anything to grab and separate.

[tomking]

So you stick a small screwdriver into the split opening and slowly drive each half off with hammer taps to the screwdriver.

[neuropel]

OK...thanks Tom!
Now I'm trying to track down whether OpelGT Source sent me the heavy duty support bushings or the regular duty. The ones I received are rubber, but they're fully cylindrical and don't have a taper in the middle like the originals. Also, they have bonded washers on each end and a bolt that goes through the center. The diameter looks to be a little bigger than the original ones I pulled off.

[RallyBob]

Originally Posted by neuropel OK...thanks Tom! Now I'm trying to track down whether OpelGT Source sent me the heavy duty support bushings or the regular duty. The ones I received are rubber, but they're fully cylindrical and don't have a taper in the middle like the originals. Also, they have bonded washers on each end and a bolt that goes through the center. The diameter looks to be a little bigger than the original ones I pulled off.

Them's the heavy duty ones.

[neuropel]

Had a few minutes free this evening and managed to split apart the bearing housing - I was expecting to find a bearing inside that I could re-pack with grease, but it's actually a sealed unit. There's a small spacer (not shown) that fits on top of the bearing (inside the bearing housing) as well. With all this stuff now clean, the bit of "crunchiness" that I felt before is gone. Since the bearing itself is a sealed unit, I'm assuming I should just clean the bearing housing, re-assemble, and pack the cavities on each side of the bearing with grease? I'm hoping I have enough spare time tomorrow that I can get the torque tube assembly back together with the new bushings, because it'll be two weeks before I can even look at it again .

[markandson]

Originally Posted by neuropel Had a few minutes free this evening and managed to split apart the bearing housing - I was expecting to find a bearing inside that I could re-pack with grease, but it's actually a sealed unit. There's a small spacer (not shown) that fits on top of the bearing (inside the bearing housing) as well. With all this stuff now clean, the bit of "crunchiness" that I felt before is gone. Since the bearing itself is a sealed unit, I'm assuming I should just clean the bearing housing, re-assemble, and pack the cavities on each side of the bearing with grease? I'm hoping I have enough spare time tomorrow that I can get the torque tube assembly back together with the new bushings, because it'll be two weeks before I can even look at it again .

Unless that bearing feels absolutely perfect I would not re-install it. Try not to rush it, it's worth doing it correct the first time, once you rebuild that center unit you sure don't want to take it apart again for a looooong time.

[RallyBob]

Originally Posted by neuropel Had a few minutes free this evening and managed to split apart the bearing housing - I was expecting to find a bearing inside that I could re-pack with grease, but it's actually a sealed unit.

Technically it's a 'shielded' bearing rather than a sealed bearing. A sealed bearing has a water-tight rubber/metal seal, the shielded variety has the sheet-metal cover you see in your pic, but it's certainly not waterproof or anything.

Those shields can be pretty easily pried off (teeny jeweler's screwdrivers work well), then cleaned and repacked with synthetic grease, then the shields pressed back on.

[GTJIM]

NEVER re-use a bearing unless a new one is totally unavailable - especially if it is a steel sheilded bearing rather than one with rubbber seals.
For sure the old one has seen the best of its service life and will need replacement far sooner than a NEW one.
Steel sheilds allow grit or water into the bearing far easier than rubber seals.
SO Get a NEW quality brand bearing with two rubber seals if you can - that should last nearly 100,000 kms - at least.

Also, heating the rubber dounut in hot water makes assembly a bit easier.

[neuropel]

Thanks for the tips and recommendations guys. I'm not going to bother even trying to pop the bearing apart. Since cleaning it, it feels perfectly fine and smooth, but I'll be ordering a new bearing from OGTS shortly. The cost of the new bearing is $35 (which seems kind of high to me for a bearing that size), but as mentioned I don't want to have to tear all this stuff apart again anytime soon.

I'll also try the hot water trick!

Todd

[ghcoe]

I just overhauled the center joint in my Ascona leaving the axel and crossmember in the car. Only thing I unbolted was the park brake cable and u-joints. I did not even un-crimp the metal clips that hold the donut in place. Took me 4 hours from beginning to end and that included taking the bearing apart, reassembly and cleanup. That is no joke.

George.