I see the bearings, I see the retainers, and I see NO WAY to get the retainers out to get at the bearings. I had planned to take it apart to lube it - can I just slop a tub full of white lithium in there instead? The Tardell Bishop book makes no reference to disassembly - just liberal lubrication.
The U-joint may be the only early Ford part I have never disassembled--I've never encountered one with slop in the bushings. The sideways sliding is not slop--that is aligned (or misaligned) by the fit of the trans to torque tube. Make the thing into a huge ball of hand packed grease when you install it, then pump grease into the assembly until your arms hurt and you want to trade the thing for a Kia. I don't have any Ford info here, but I dimly remember a picture involving a punch and a really big hammer. I do believe the slots are just wide enough to accomodate the expanded retainer rings, and you just drag them out by brute determination and any available means of violence, and whack them back in by aligning the relevant slots, sticking the open side of the retainer in there, and wielding influence as required. So, just packit and forgetit. The whole thing doesn't look like it could ever get enough lube to live, but it's actually ready for another fifty years of going round and round, somehow fed by that huge wad of grease, trans leaks, and centrifugal force. It's a holdover from Model T days, a device lubed by parapsychology and Henry Ford's WILL.
Perfect. You know I've seen rebuild kits with funny shaped snap rings. Thinking this over during lunch I realized the rings are most likely shaped with those extentions and bends for easier installation/removal. So I could Dremel the old one in half several times, pick out the pieces, install the new bits and go. I won't though. There is no noticable slop in this piece after 60 years and I've got at least one good spare.
A sidelight: I was discussing a rare Lincoln needle bearing U joint (Fords are plain bushing type) with my favorite dealer in realdamnexpensiveandrare Ford speed stuff, and he said that he too had never needed to replace a Ford joint, but had never found a Lincoln one that didn't need a rebuild...
That makes sense. I could see the races in a Lincoln unit getting pounded and eventually dimpled when the clutch is dumped. I've replaced more than a few "indexed" headsets on loaded touring bicycles and even road bikes that were ridden in loooong straight lines on bumpy roads.
Interesting... Was just last week told that "the Ford joint lasted 3wk, & the "Lincoln" joint went 5 wk, maybe lubrication was short". This car was a pavement modified (circle track) Pinto body, Hilborns on Chev 427, driving thru '39 toploader. I'd love to see some pix of this cross!
Everytime I had to pull the driveline in my 296 Flatty powered 27 TRPU I had to replace the ujoint. The yoke ears were always spread . Went through a bunch of trans over a few years . Ya think 3000 RPM clutch side steps may have something to do with it??? LOL
The Jalopy Journal
