Hi all, Decided to replace the u joints on the 75 today, i have a problem with the rear one, the u joint is from MOOG and the ref# is 430. There's no threaded hole on the body of the u joint, only a non threaded hole in one of the cups, there's a classic greaser in the box wich is impossible to screw in the hole of the cup. Do i need a special tool to grease this u joint, any ideas how to mount the classic greaser on the cup ??? Thanks for your help. Eric https://image.noelshack.com/fichier...929-369973983522824-1710320595050168320-n.jpg
Some U-joints don't have grease fittings, because they're made to not be regreased. Consumable, I guess. I ran into that when I replaced the U-joints on my '67. Also, I remember the grease fitting located at the "crook" of the U-joint itself, and the legs of the U-joint being hollow to allow for the flow of grease. I don't remember anything that had the grease fitting on an end cap. Joseph
You might find the grease nipple will cut its own thread as you screw it in the hole. Grease nipples in the spider can be awkward to get the grease gun on due to position of the propshaft, you have to rotate it to find the sweetspot. A grease point located in the cap should be easier to reach.
The 'zerk' fitting is a pipe threading, and all U.S. pipe threads on such fittings are oversize, and do cut their own threads in order to make a strong seal. Start the threads in the hole, then use a box & open wrench to manually screw it into the cap. Once the hex of the fitting bottoms out and is tightened, then you can pump grease in.
I use this same style grease fitting on my Ranchero's front u-joint(don't have room for traditional zerk fitting greasing due to X-pipe exhaust) , using this type of fitting(type of needle grease fitting) makes greasing the joint EZ. Some designs of this type have a rubber tip to help with sealing, the zerk fitting has a "seat" which allows a good seal. On a side note, u-joints without grease zerk fittings are inherently stronger since there is no channel within the joint for grease to travel, they are lifetime lubed from factory. My Ford 7.3 4x4 SD uses these and it had 275K miles when I changed the rear u-joint (was ready to change all 3)and there was virtually no wear within the factory original u-joint. Hope this helps.
I chatted this afternoon with a guy from MOOG and it seems the u joint in the box isn't their ref# 430, however it fits at the rear of my drive shaft. The grease fitting is correct for the #430 but not for the u joint that was in the package....mispacking he said..... Thanks all for your comments, i think i'm going to order another one.
Andy, the metal is so hard that i can't press enough on the fitting to start a thread. What do you call "box" please ?
1) a 'box and open' wrench is one where the 'box' end is enclosed, with 6, 8 or 12 sides inside it for grabbing and turning bolt heads that are either 4,6, 8 or 12-sided heads; 2) if the steel is too hard, you would need a U.S. pipe thread tap to begin cutting the threads in. Some have the threads already cut, some don't, but usually, if no threads are cut, the fitting is supposed to cut the threads.
handy_andy_cv64 said: ↑ The 'zerk' fitting is a pipe threading, and all U.S. pipe threads on such fittings are oversize, and do cut their own threads in order to make a strong seal. Start the threads in the hole, then use a box & open wrench to manually screw it into the cap. Once the hex of the fitting bottoms out and is tightened, then you can pump grease in. That's why I suggested the fitting multi tool
We Americans have been saying that about the corporate morons who buy from the Chinese...but it hasn't yet happened.
