Dana 71

[Doug Czaja]

Hello all,



Well true to my trucks nature, as soon as I got one thing fixed (front wheel bearings) something else has failed.



It appears the passenger side rear brake is dragging. It got so hot on me yesterday it was smoking. I crawled under the truck this morning, bumping my head on the hitch , to back off the automatic adjustment thought the backing plate which had become so tight that I couldn't spin the tire. Being concerned about drum and shoe damage, I tried to remove the brake drum. I removed the bolts on the hub, but was unable to budge the axle shaft.



Now for the questions. Will the differential have to be opened to remove the axle shaft or can the axle shaft be remove by just taking off the hub bolts? Is this something that I should try to attempt myself? I have very little experience with the internals of this or any axle. The "Two Fat Guys" store just quoted me $400 for seals, shoes, & labor. Now you KNOW they will find something else



Any suggestions & advice are welcomed,



Doug

 

[dodgenstein]

Axle shaft should only be held in by bolts on end of hub, however some older Dodge trucks had a cone shaped washer under the bolt/stud and nut. If this is the case, they can be a PITA to get out sometimes. They can sometimes be dislodged by a sharp hammer blow inward on the end of the axle shaft, then turned with pliers or Vise Grips.

 

[Philip]

With the year of your truck it has the centering cones washers in it. A sharp hit in the center of the axle hub should loosen it enough to eather grab them with vice grips or to wedge a small screw driver tip into it. Then slide it off.



If the brake was tight enough that it wouldn't turn. Sounds like something came loose and got wedged in between the shoes and drum.

 

[Doug Czaja]

dodgenstein / Philip,



Thanks for the input, I'm headed out to the shop right now to give it another try.



Philip - Once I backed off of the self tightening device the wheel loosed up. My guess is that a spring or cable or something came loose & is causing the self adjusting part to over-tighten. I hope it is something simple & INEXPENSIVE!



Thanks again guys,



Doug

 

[Doug Czaja]

Update

dodgenstein / Philip,



Your are scholars & gentlemenOo. Subscribing to this site for another year has paid for itself yet again!! Any of you guys lurking, as I did for over a year, may want read some of prior posts. The knowledge & experience here is invaluable!!



After an hour or so of 10lb sledge hammer, verbal abuse, & a couple of beers, the cone washers decided they had better give up. They finally gave way after a threat involving a gallon of gasoline & matches !



Philip- You in particular, have bailed my @$$ out on a couple of occasions. If you are ever in the San Antonio, Texas area give me a shout, I owe you a brew!



Doug

 

[Paychk]

Easier way to do it is to rock the truck back & forth with the engine, pops them loose every time.

 

[Doug Czaja]

Paychk,



Good advise, will remember that next time. But I got to tell you there was quite a bit of satisfaction in using the hammer . Therapeutic even .



Thanks guys,



Doug

 

[Paychk]

Therapeutic venting, been there a time or two myself.

 

[MMiller]

Pay attention to the brake cylinders. Several years ago I had problems with the rear brakes staying out after a hard application, usually right after a brake stand on dry pavement go figure. Any way the cylinders got rusty enough that the springs could not pull the pads away from the drum. This was probably because I wheeled the truck alot in standing water at the time of the failure.



I use the big hammer method too!! Then I use a small flat screwdriver to open up the split in the wedges and screw them off. I converted my rear axels to the type with no wedges on my old 75. Good luck. Ain't it great working on old school stuff!!



Michael

 

[Philip]

After an hour or so of 10lb sledge hammer, verbal abuse, & a couple of beers, the cone washers decided they had better give up. They finally gave way after a threat involving a gallon of gasoline & matches !

ROFLMAO Yea they can be a bear. Old age and rust. Plus Dana most likely had someone that liked staying on the impact a little longer than needed.

 

[Doug Czaja]

Found the Problem

Well it appears the parking brake cable was the problem. Apparently the cable that engages the passenger side has become "sticky" between the cable & the cable housing & is causing the brake not to release fully. Bandaided it by disconnecting the pass. side cable.



TODAYS PROBLEM!!! . Drove it to work this morning (in the upper 30s) & thought it was sluggish, wrote it off to the cold weather. Had an job interview this afternoon, so I left work at noon (temps in the 50s). Truck is still sluggish. Got home, jacked up the rear, everything is fine. Jacked up the front and the it took all I had to spin the front wheels . It appears the pistons in the calipers are not fully releasing now . So I get home from the interview @ 5:00, jack up the front & the @#%^& front wheels spin freely.



I eventually want to swap out the dana 60 for a dana 61 (still looking for one)and don't want to put a bunch of $ in the dana 60.



Now for the questions: Does this sound like the calipers need to be rebuilt or replaced? How much should I expect to pay for a rebuilt caliper? I know I saw a 1st gen thread on this just recently.



The worst part of all of this is I had to drive the four letter "F" word to the interview... . yea thats right my dad's f150 !!



It's getting harder & harder to keep the faith on this old truck



Thanks for any advice folks,

DC

 

[Philip]

I would try replacing the rubber hose from the frame to the axle. I could be bad. Thus restricting the return flow of fluid when you release the pedal.

 

[Doug Czaja]

Hey Philip,



I was hoping you were on line tonight. Forgot to mention, I replaced the rubber hoses going from the tubing to the caliper maybe 2-3 months ago. They were brand new from on of the local auto parts stores. I checked them over pretty well before installing them..... but it wouldn't be the first time I got something "new" & it was faulty!



It kind of odd because both front wheels would hardly turn @ noon and when I got back 4hrs. later they turn free. It's hard to believe that BOTH calipers were locking & Both let loose a few hours laterconfused:.



Master cylinder?



DC

 

[Philip]

There is a third flex hose on the front alxe. It is located to the left (drive side) of your center section. It comes from the cross member down to the axle itself. Then the steel line goes out to the wheels. If it has gone bad inside and the rubber broke loose. It could have a rubber flap inside that is closing off the return flow.

 

[MMiller]

Why are you wanting a dana 61, and what is the difference between a 60 and 61F. I thought I new dana axels pretty well but I know nothing of dana 61's. I could make a good home for your 60F if need be!!



Maybe your calipers are hanging up? I know its a longs shot having both do it, but something to look at.



Michael

 

[cerberusiam]

Doug, check the caliper pistons and see if you have the nylon or metal ones. If they are nylon very carefully remove from truck and THROW THEM AS FAR AS YOU CAN!



Well, you don't have to throw the whole caliper, I think they make a replacement piston that is metal. I just felt like doing that the last time a set did that in the dead of winter when I am having to plow thru bumper deep snow and trashed a set of rotors.



I want to say the caliper is the same between the 44 and 60 but not positive of that. It does sound like you have a piston that is hanging in extended position for whatever reason.

 

[Doug Czaja]

Thanks for the replies folks,





Philip: I forgot to mention that when I replaced the two outer hoses I replaced the center hose at the same time. They were all bad.



cerberusiam: The pistons in the calipers appear to be metal, but this front end has over 200k miles on it & I am concerned that there are rust spots on it causing them not to release.



Rest assured that when I find the problem, the faulty component(s) will be properly blessed, charred from the gas & matches, beat w/ a sledge hammer, & thrown as far as humanly possible.





MMiller: From what I understand the 3. 07 gear will not fit in my current axle (4. 10).



Thanks again guys,

DC

 

[Philip]

Next time the calipers hang up. Unhook one of the brake lines and see if the wheels turn then. It could still be a bad rubber line or a master cylinder hanging also. Remember the master cylinder has a restrictor in it to hold about 2PSI to keep the pistons extended in the bores. If it hangs it can cause the same problem.



I wouldn't go buy any parts till I knew for sure what is causing the pistons to stick out. If one was sticking I could see it having a problem. But for both to hang at the same time with no other issues. This would make me want to backup a little farther into the system to a place were both have a common connection.

 

[MFalkinham]

I had posted a while back about my disc brakes constantly pulling to the right. When cleaning/lubing the slides didn't fix the problem, someone suggested the calipers might need to be rebuilt. The Bendix caliper pistons were rusty looking, so I purchased a set of rebuilt calipers from the local parts store. Cost was around $40 each, with another $25 each for the core charge.



I had trouble getting the brake hose banjo fittings to seal tight on the new calipers. Had to pair up two new copper washers between each banjo fitting and caliper to stop the leak. Now the pulling is gone, and I am so happy!



- Mike

 

[Doug Czaja]

Mike,



That is the post/thread I was trying to remember . Thanks, $40 each doesn't sound too bad, considering the how much frustration the truck has caused me this last week. Just out of curiosity, did you price a rebuild kit for the calipers?



However, I am going to try Philip's suggestion first. It just odd that both calipers seem to locking & releasing @ the same time



Thanks Guys,



DC