Drive shaft Maintenance

Topic: Drive shaft Maintenance (Read 761 times) previous topic - next topic

Drive shaft Maintenance

May 27, 2025, 11:51:07 am

I have lost a u-joint (started to viberate) on way home. I made it home ok, but I had to drive it to the shop to have it fixed. That was scarry.
What business does your greasing of the drive shaft and u-joints?

How often do you grease the drive shaft?

Pat,

Re: Drive shaft Maintenance

Reply #1 – May 27, 2025, 11:56:20 am

You can grease your own every few thousand miles,sounds like you did not do it but I would have had them change both joints.

Re: Drive shaft Maintenance

Reply #2 – May 27, 2025, 12:07:05 pm

Quote from: John44 – May 27, 2025, 11:56:20 am

You can grease your own every few thousand miles,sounds like you did not do it but I would have had them change both joints.

Good advice.

Re: Drive shaft Maintenance

Reply #3 – May 27, 2025, 12:31:50 pm

There are so many zerks to grease on motorhomes that I finally broke down and bought one of these. It took the job from something I constantly put off to something almost cathartic

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I suspect regular chassis lubes, and fluid changes are the two most important things that you can do for anything automotive

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Re: Drive shaft Maintenance

Reply #4 – May 27, 2025, 12:50:16 pm

Or in your previous life have equipment that will outlive you.

Re: Drive shaft Maintenance

Reply #5 – May 27, 2025, 01:24:02 pm

I cringe at the thought of spending thousands on something you should/ could take care of your self. Any truck stop will know how to lube your entire chassis components. Always use safety stands before going under your coach. Working Safely around your Foretravel That being said it will probably be a junior tech doing the work and like your self may not know that NOT every grease zerk gets greased. Until you understand how they are to be lubricated and when stay away from lubing the grease zerks on the brake calipers. Yes they get lubed a couple time during there life but only by someone who knows they are very special, require specific grease, and need to have excess internally removed. Dont touch them! Get your self a hand pump grease gun with a locking end. Clean the zerks off with a paper towel or rag. I dont recommend the power grease guns for anyone with a lower skill set than Elliot. Use eye protection and disposable rubber gloves. There are several points to lube on on the drive line and equally important to lubing is removing the condensation. Your front end will also need lubrication at the same time. Sure lubing every couple thousand miles wont hurt anything I stay under 20k miles and or annually. I do not pressure wash anything that is pressure lubed. Period, never. I will before removal and complete tear down to rebuild, but otherwise never. King pins and rod ends will live forever if lubed. Drive line too. Pump untill grease is released on drive line, king pins. Ball joints you may only seal the boot bulge. Wipe excess grease off with a paper towel. So for a 50$ investment thousands can be saved
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Re: Drive shaft Maintenance

Reply #6 – May 27, 2025, 01:24:19 pm

Hi Foreforums,

U-Joints usually have two grease fittings with both feeding the same cambers. It takes some special technique or effort to be sure some grease comes out of each of the four bearings. Quick pumps of a manual grease gun may keep the flow moving to all four. Many find the almost continuous pumps from a battery powered grease gun does the trick of getting grease to all four bearings. Also put some grease in the spline zerk fitting.

Re: Drive shaft Maintenance

Reply #7 – May 27, 2025, 01:30:43 pm

Quote from: Barry & Cindy – May 27, 2025, 01:24:19 pm

Hi Foreforums,

U-Joints usually have two grease fittings with both feeding the same cambers. It takes some special technique or effort to be sure some grease comes out of each of the four bearings. Quick pumps of a manual grease gun may keep the flow moving to all four. Many find the almost continuous pumps from a battery powered grease gun does the trick of getting grease to all four bearings. Also put some grease in the spline zerk fitting.

Don't forget the spline, for new people the spline is one location where you wont see new grease escape and know to stop. I put 10 or 12 "pumps" into the spline.

Re: Drive shaft Maintenance

Reply #8 – May 27, 2025, 01:47:14 pm

" won't see the new grease appear "
I always give it many pumps, but doesn't it eventually come out the end of the spline ??

Grease is cheap. I do it every oil change, or about 3,000 m.

Re: Drive shaft Maintenance

Reply #9 – May 27, 2025, 03:15:36 pm

Quote from: Bob & Sue – May 27, 2025, 01:47:14 pm

" won't see the new grease appear "
I always give it many pumps, but doesn't it eventually come out the end of the spline ??

Grease is cheap. I do it every oil change, or about 3,000 m.

Greasing the drive shaft spine with coach raised up there's a big void that will accept more grease than needed.

Re: Drive shaft Maintenance

Reply #10 – May 27, 2025, 05:21:46 pm

I have in the past done the job myself. I know how. I have a battery powered grease gun. I have h0me made ramps, but they are a pain. I don't like using the jacks and I don't have jack stands. I just don't want to get under it and at 77 yrs old it is not as easy. In Lufkin, TX we have a grease monkey place that will do it, but they are out of grease they say.

I just wanted to know:
what business does it for you if not done by you.

I change my oil and filter every 6000 miles and I want to grease the drive line at that time. I have three zerts, 1 on each u-joint and 1 on the slip part of the shaft.

Pat

Re: Drive shaft Maintenance

Reply #11 – May 27, 2025, 05:49:23 pm

If you are in Lufkin Pat and the "grease monkey" you trust can't for whatever reason, If I were you I would get Keith to do it in Nachogdoches.. 27 mile drive and its off your mind.

Re: Drive shaft Maintenance

Reply #12 – May 27, 2025, 08:11:09 pm

Quote from: Doug W. – May 27, 2025, 03:15:36 pm

Greasing the drive shaft spine with coach raised up there's a big void that will accept more grease than needed.

See my reply #9 from this topic. There is a big void indeed. Since the coach lowers so quickly i was worried that it may have blown a seal when it forced the grease out. The worst part of over greasing the splines is that it has slung grease all over the underside of the coach and all of the components near the splines in a way that is absolutely not cleanable. I will adhere to the "no more than 10 pumps" advice.

Do the basic maintenance or you will pay

Re: Drive shaft Maintenance

Reply #13 – May 27, 2025, 10:04:52 pm

A word of caution about greasing the spline and u joints as on some coaches (like ours) the fast acting valve is located just above the drive shaft. If your coach is this way these air valves need to be cleaned at least around the exhaust port. I even went so far as to add a scatter shield above the drive shaft to protect the fast acting air valve. Yes I may add a little much grease at times but rather this than having the grease worms go hungry and eat up the trunnions.

Mike

Re: Drive shaft Maintenance

Reply #14 – May 28, 2025, 12:30:05 am

Mike
"the fast acting valve is located just above the drive shaft. If your coach is this way these air valves need to be cleaned at least around the exhaust port."

Would love to see a pic of one of these.

Re: Drive shaft Maintenance

Reply #15 – May 28, 2025, 02:12:14 pm

I think I posted some pics. log ago and will see if I can find them and post the link here. If not I might be able to take some pics without uncovering the pit (we are in the middle of our rainy season almost 6" in 5 days our chickens are wearing hip waders) so let me see what I can do.

Mike

Re: Drive shaft Maintenance

Reply #16 – May 28, 2025, 03:44:29 pm

I looked through the Meritor book but did not see it identified in the pictures.

However it does mention "the vent hole in the Welch plug" & "loosening the bearing cap bolts"

I do see the cap screws in the picture but don't know if that is what Mike is speaking about.

Re: Drive shaft Maintenance

Reply #17 – May 28, 2025, 05:02:18 pm

Frank,

I am talking about the exhaust port on the fast acting air valve nothing on the drive shaft. Your coach may be new enough that Foretravel relocated fast acting valve to get them out of line of fire. If you are under the coach looking at the drive shaft look up to the floor of the coach. If your valve is there you will see it mounted to the crossmember. The exhaust port will be pointed strait down. the port is about the size of a silver dollar.

Mike

Re: Drive shaft Maintenance

Reply #18 – May 28, 2025, 06:12:48 pm

What is a fast acting air valve. I'm not familiar with that.

Re: Drive shaft Maintenance

Reply #19 – May 28, 2025, 06:35:56 pm

Quote from: Geodmann – May 28, 2025, 06:12:48 pm

What is a fast acting air valve.

I know we are getting off subject and maybe one of the moderators can split this off to it's own thread.

In short it is a device that makes the antilock brakes work. Also when you release the brake treadle it rapidly changes air to the rear chambers so you don't have to wait for all the air in the air lines from the front to do something.

Mike

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