2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission U-Joints

[TStinson]

Any preferences on brands/sources for U-Joints for 1999 2wd 5-spd 2500?

Believe mine are starting to squeak... hard to hear over the Sweet-sounding Cummins! The original factory joints only have 190000 mi. on them.

 

[John]

Personally, I favor the Dana/Spicer (1410) U-joints. This time I went with their triple lock seal, permanent lube model (i. e. , solid crosses). I was looking for the ultimate in strength, and their patented seals are superior to anything else currently on the market.

 

[radixr]

I prefer greasable joints. I replaced the joints in my front driveshaft assembly with the greasable joints and they didn't look significantly weaker than solid joints. Unless you are putting 1000HP on the ground, I don't think they would break. My old ones showed signs of running out of lubricant but that won't happen now. It is advisable to orient the grease nipple so that it is in compression when under a load, but again, unless you are way up there in HP, even this is probably not necessary.

 

[Ncostello]

I kinda agree with redixr. I've seen shafts twist in half before the zerk equipped ujoint fails. Depends on how much real power you've got and how much your pullin.

 

[WadePatton]

Just the other day a sled puller mentioned to me that you are wasting you time with anything but the spicer joints. If anybody should know.



Yeah, and I slipped a little lube under the exposed caps the other day when I had the "propeller(DC)" shaft out for a clutch change. OEM bearings looked fine at 80k.

 

[John]

#1) The non-greasable U-joints are stronger (all other things being equal)! There is NO internal grease channel cavity to reduce the strength of the cross.



#2) The seals on the Dana/Spicer non-greasable U-joints are not only patented, they seal better (due to their triple lock seal) than ANY other seal on the market.



#3) On the other hand, seals on greasable U-joints are quite a bit lower quality, allowing contaminants in... they are intentionally made looser, allowing the old grease to escape when maintaining them. That in itself is not all that bad as long as you keep up your maintenance on them... religiously.



#4) I have seen numerous broken U-joints to only one twisted driveshaft (where non of the U-joints failed).



This is the first time I have EVER replaced OE U-joints with non-greasable counterparts however, I made my decision based on many a lesson learned in the past. Besides, I wanted to take every precaution on driveline strength... I don't want a broken U-joint while laying down well over 400 BHP.

 

[Briar Hopper]

Everything John said above, I've heard from two other highly experienced mechanics, including Dave Mitchell. The non-greasable ones are the way to go, Dana/Spicer only. The replacements have lasted much longer on my truck than the original factory ones...