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I am working on the 1994 K3500 6.5 diesel. Replacing ball joints.. I had the left fr

7K views 18 replies 5 participants last post by  jrsavoie 
#1 ·
I am working on the 1994 K3500 6.5 diesel. Replacing ball joints..

I had the left front wheel bearing replaced not to awful long ago.

They screwed up. Apparently they did not get the grease cup on the half axle slid in properly and it was all folded over - which in turn ripped off the back of the seal.

Can I buy the grease cup for the half axle to replace it?

The seal does not look replaceable to me. I thought I had read before that those seals could be replaced.

By the looks of an old - half pulled apart bearing I have here - it looks like the inner seal is inside of the the inner half of the front wheel bearing on a 1994 K3500 4x4.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

My plan is to just pack the seal with grease, put it back together and run it until the bearing pukes.

On 2nd thought I may just fill the inside of the seal with caulk or The Right Stuff

But I really need the grease cup for the half axle to give it any chance of living for a while.
 
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#2 · (Edited)
Once again looking for torque specs.

Upper ball joint 4 bolts Ball joint to Knuckle 18 ft lbs.

Bearing and shield to Knuckle - 4 ea bolts 15 mm head 133 ft lbs ?

Upper ball joint 84 ft lbs

Lower ball joint 94 ft lbs.

Hub Nut 180 ft lbs.

Half axle to front differential - 6 bolts 15 mm head - Haven't found yet

Lower ball joint to steering knuckle - 4 bolts - Haven't found yet
 
#4 ·
Has to be Foot lbs. 133 inch lbs would not be enough.

Torque specs for the 1994 K3500 and 1998 K2500 Suburban

Torque Specs for the 1994 K3500 and 1998 K2500 Suburban




Front wheel bearing to steering knuckle 133 ft lbs.




Half axle to bearing nut 35mm or 36 mm 180 Ft lbs.




Lug nuts 140 Ft lbs.




Half shaft to front differential 58 ft lbs.




outer tie rod nut 35 ft lbs




Starter bolts 35 ft lbs




turbo to exhaust 43 ft lbs




turbo drain tube 19 ft lbs




4L80E pan bolts 18 ft lbs.




Belt tensioner 37 ft lbs




alternator 18 ft lbs.
 
#5 ·
The part I need is called the ring deflector in the book.

I called 3 stores and a dealer.

So far the only way I can get it is to buy a half axle and swap it.

In the 1994 book it is page 4C10 part #20

Is there a matching parts schematic with part numbers?

Or a description with the real O.D. and I.D. for that part. Mine is to mucked up to get an accurate measurement.

I will try getting measurements off the half axle tomorrow

If anybody has a half axle with this part in good condition, I would buy it.

Near as I can tell most half axles are returned for core charges.

I have 2 half axles off of gasser K1500's but they are smaller diameter

http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/63...list-information-6-5-answers.html#post7233722
 
#6 · (Edited)
4 bolts upper ball joint to control arm 18 ft lbs

Upper ball joint to steering knuckle - 75 ft lbs. Suburbans I found 85 ft lbs for the truck

caliper slider bolts - 38 ft lbs

outer tie rod end - 35 ft lbs

stabilizer bar link - 13 ft lbs

lower ball joint - 94 ft lbs.

pitman arm nut - 52 ft lbs

idler arm to center rod - 46 ft lbs

Upper A arm to frame 140 ft lbs

Lower ball joint to control arm nuts 52 ft. lbs.
 
#7 ·
Ok, your right, the wheel bearing assembly Is 133 ft-lb, I was thinking the bearing sheilds, which I don't think the independent front suspension had.

And yeah, you'll need to order another half shaft- but here's the kicker, only GM factory ones "may" come it, no aftermarket ones do- even new ones, rebuild cores are hit and miss. I had to find one for a 1500 recently...ended up at a junk yard and pulled a busted axle out...paid more then I should have for a small part.

Sent from my SM-S920L using Tapatalk
 
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#8 ·
I've decided about my only route may be to do some measuring. Get the inside and outside diameters and make a trip to Motion Industries. If that is still what they call it. Might have to post on Facebook and ask first

If a I find a seal with the correct dimensions I think I can gut it and use it.
 
#9 · (Edited)
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#10 ·
The part I am looking for would go onto part number 12. Looks kind of like a seal only no rubber
 
#11 ·
I cannot find a part # for that part.
Closest GM gets to repair parts for the CV axles is this kit -
26037364 or 26020728
You can get complete axles new for less than 100.00.
 
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#12 · (Edited)
Could be worse...if you need the rubber bushings that go in the frame on the passenger side, for the front axle mount, according to GM you need to buy a whole new frame (at least for a GMT-800)...
 
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#14 ·
I've heard a few bad things about doing that. Somethings that do not necessarily show up right away. Damage to the front differential. Damage to the CV's.

Torque Spec for the front caliper hose /banjo bolt 33 ft lbs.

Caliper to steering knuckle bolts 38 ft lbs.
 
#15 ·
I was able to straighten the dust cover out enough to re-use it on the left/ drivers side.

When I took it for alignment he discovered the boot on the right / passenger side half axle was ripped.

What are the best half axles to buy?

Where is the best place to buy them? I found sopme that looked really nice this morning for over $1000 per side.

A tad out of my price range

I have heard there can be a huge difference in the life span of the boots - some are lucky to last 2 years. Rockauto had several choices.

I did not see an AcDelco available

Any advice would be greatly appreciated
Thanks
 
#16 ·
I ordered the Stainless brake hose kit CT1012 from inlinetube.com

Looks OK. Did not come with the mount by the ball joint.

The Russel kit 672370 looks to be the same as the inline tube kit. It also does not come with the mount by the ball joint - Kind of a PIA to swap it over.

The Russel Kit is cheaper. Don't know if that is for good reason or not
 
#17 · (Edited)
I would recommend against the Russell kit. I got the set for my truck, and:
-it came with cheap aluminum washers (vs copper ones)
-the ends were just straight (vs other kits that are bent to match the OEM connections)
-no middle support for the two front hoses (others have them, and they can flop against the tire if not restrained)
-the rear lines were the wrong length. One line was slightly short (goes right on the caliper bracket), the other was significantly too long and rubbed through against the tire
 
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#18 · (Edited)
I'll check which CV 1/2 axle I got from Rock Auto, JR. I just had to snap the external ABS ring off of it but the quality looked really good. While we're talking about all this stuff, I learned a painful lesson this week. I replaced the ball joints and tie rods on my Impala like 6 months ago and guess what? I think the control arm bushings are shot. God Dam it!!!!! Do you think I could have replaced the whole control arm with the ball joint already installed for $40 more bucks? Noooooooooooo. Wish I had known at the time that these were the worst rivets in the world to get out. Rant over.
 
#19 ·
I think my upper control arm bushings were bad do to the front bolt not being tight. The rear bushing was still good. The front bolt had grooves wore in it from slopping around. I am surprised the nut never worked it's way off.

When getting ready to loosen the bolt, I first tried my long handle ratchet, I was surprised when I met zero resistance. It was close to finger tight. I think it was just dirt/rust that kept me from just spinning the nut off with my fingers. I believe the wobble that wore the bolt was what took out the front bushing. It wasn't terrible, but had perceptible movement

I guess the free alignment with the set of tires wasn't such a good deal
That was 30,000 miles ago or so. Kind of hard to go back on them now
 
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