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Towing!! Removing axle on Heavy duty truck!!


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There are tons of different final drive systems out there. And each one has a specific procedure to dis-engage it properly. with that said I had found over the years that On most single screws ( 1 drive axle ) As long as the diff lock is dis-engaged,( if equipped ) Pulling one axle will do. On certain twin screws, one from the first axle does the trick as long as the power divider is disengaged. If time and space allows I used to pop one axle out from the first drive, then move the casualty a few feet then look to see if the drive shaft turned at all. ( a quick mark with a grease pen or piece of tape on the drive shaft makes it easy to see if it rotated at all ). If it did not move then I was on the road, If it did then I would pull a rear shaft out as well. I cant say for certain that my system is 100% the right way, but it worked for me the very few times I had no choice but to pop axles. I was never a fan of pulling axle shafts and I can probably count on one hand all the times I ever had to resort to it throughout my career. I am most certainly a pull the drive shaft guy. And knowing this, i made sure to buy all the right tools ( proper, quality sockets, good impact as well as breaker bars and ratchets and a good u-joint press tool for those particular types out there ) to make removing drive shafts as painless as possible. Just be careful playing with all the different setups out there, especially with todays fancy stuff.   

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PROFESSIONAL TOWING & RECOVERY IS NOT JUST A JOB.. IT IS A LIFESTYLE

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On 5/15/2020 at 12:12 AM, GRUMPS The Towman said:

There are tons of different final drive systems out there. And each one has a specific procedure to dis-engage it properly. with that said I had found over the years that On most single screws ( 1 drive axle ) As long as the diff lock is dis-engaged,( if equipped ) Pulling one axle will do. On certain twin screws, one from the first axle does the trick as long as the power divider is disengaged. If time and space allows I used to pop one axle out from the first drive, then move the casualty a few feet then look to see if the drive shaft turned at all. ( a quick mark with a grease pen or piece of tape on the drive shaft makes it easy to see if it rotated at all ). If it did not move then I was on the road, If it did then I would pull a rear shaft out as well. I cant say for certain that my system is 100% the right way, but it worked for me the very few times I had no choice but to pop axles. I was never a fan of pulling axle shafts and I can probably count on one hand all the times I ever had to resort to it throughout my career. I am most certainly a pull the drive shaft guy. And knowing this, i made sure to buy all the right tools ( proper, quality sockets, good impact as well as breaker bars and ratchets and a good u-joint press tool for those particular types out there ) to make removing drive shafts as painless as possible. Just be careful playing with all the different setups out there, especially with todays fancy stuff.   

Thanks! I’m not a special fan of poping out axles too but when you have said to be sure to have all the right tools to remove drive shaft have you special tools that you use ? Other than ratchet and socket and braker bar.. tools that are very good to know to help.

thank you 

Thanks,

Félix 

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A good high quality cordless impact tool is a big one to have. Also, with the right socket it will help with caging brakes too. A can of brake clean and a wire brush is good to have for cleaning the grease and crud off of the bolt heads to make sure you get your socket on those bolts with a good bite. and a u-joint press tool for the pressed -in style u-joints is a must have. there are ways to pop them apart with out the tool but i am not going to mention how because I feel it is very dangerous. A good u-joint press is a lil expensive but worth its weight in gold in my opinion. Of course a good pry bar and hammer is a must have as well. If you are new to this then I also suggest contacting some sort of training academy or at the very least stopping in at a local truck shop and talking with someone who disassembles this stuff regularly. they will have some tricks and suggestions to help you out there. Not only can you cause alot of expensive damage if you dont know what your doing, you can get badly hurt as well. 

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PROFESSIONAL TOWING & RECOVERY IS NOT JUST A JOB.. IT IS A LIFESTYLE

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  • 2 years later...

Hi, kind of a little off topic but I think you guys would know the answer.

 

If being towed some short distance....

The transmission in is gear - I guess a gear that is appropriate for the speed your being towed so the transmission does spin too fast or too slow.

Keep the clutch is disengaged.

Would the transmission would still move the oil around?

Would this fix the problem of towing destroying the transmission.

The scenario I am thinking of is a truck or4wd being towed/ pulled off a track back to a place the driveshaft can be removed...or the vehicle fixed.

 

Basically my question is should you disengage the clutch when being recovered a short distance? (Let say the engine is dead.)

 

Edited by Andrew Lyons
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On 1/13/2023 at 6:44 AM, Andrew Lyons said:

The transmission in is gear - I guess a gear that is appropriate for the speed your being towed so the transmission does spin too fast or too slow.

This was brought up quite a few years ago on the board...honestly I don't remember who, but I have thought of it numerous times. So in theory, if the trans was in high gear, the engine would spin as you went down the road. It isn't going to start without the key on. The compressor would maintain the air pressure. The transmission would be lubricated since the input shaft is turning. This would probably work....

 

Other side of the coin...

 

If there was a mechanical issue with the engine, this would potentially modify/ destroy or at least harm it further.

It would presumably pull substantially harder since you're driving everything.

If for some reason it wasn't actually in it's highest gear selection and you exceeded that speed for whatever gear it was...you're going to grenade the engine. 

 

I don't know...I never tried it other then a pull start with someone in the truck. Soon enough everything will be automatics and it won't make a difference anyway...

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