The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk 1967 Chevy 4x4 front drive help

I'm looking to buy a farm fresh 1967 4x4. The previous owner told me that the front U-joints are loose, and should be checked out before I do anything but farm driving.

Does any one know how involved and expensive it would be to replace the steering U-joints. Front ball joints are shot too.

The truck is mostly straight with a little rust and a 283.
Tell me what you think

pictures are at the link below.
http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/boundstaffpress/album?.dir=/162f&urlhint=actn,ren%3as,19%3af,0

did he mean the front driveline u-joints? those are really easy to change, and not very expensive. to change those you just unbolt the drivline and pull out the old u-joints, put on the new ones and bolt it back in. ball joints are a little more dicey, and based on my experience and limited abilities i have had those done at a shop in the past, but if you have the tools, time, and know how it could be done at home. don't let that discourage you from buying that truck though, 67's are a great looking truck and a 4x4 is pretty unique. personally i would buy it and start working on it, if it turns into a basketcase you can always sell it again. but i am a little biased and have a tendency to fall in love with vehicles that are wrong for me, just like women :-) i it is the truck you want and you can live with the repair bills, whch you will have with any older working truck, then get it and start the fun/maddening/irritating/rewwarding experience of rebuilding an old workhorse. good luck, keep me posted.

a 67 doesn't have balljoints, not stock at least. the closed knuckle d44's under them have little kingpin-like pins, with roller bearings.

also, just a tip...make sure your Rockwell transfer case doesn't leak. you may get a nasty surprise if you run it low on gear oil. my truck had the Rockwell, but it leaked down while I was driving and the front input bearing blew up into the guts of the case. not pretty.

My understanding was that the steering knuckles were the worn part. I've looked all over the web, and onlly found one place with info on changing out steering knuckles. Looked easy enough for me, but they didn't have much on price.

I'll probably leave the ball joints to my mechanic.

Anyone replaced the knuckle u-joint and have a round figure on the bill?

Any ideas on value of this truck? I'm thinkin' $500 to $800

if the truck runs, drives, stops, and doesn't leak anything too horribly i would say it is in the $1000 dollar range, depending on how things work. as for the steering knuckles i do not know.

Sweet truck. I'm really digg'n that seat cover!

I agree with FORT KNOX on the value. That one looks pretty solid from what I can tell.

You might want to consider getting a newer front axle and sliding it into place. Another Dana 44 from a 1/2 ton or 3/4 ton will fit with no mods and you can get away from the closed knuckle style and get disk brakes while you are at it.

Checked out your pics of the truck and I would easily pay $1,000 for that truck. It's in pretty decent shape.

Thanks guys. I'm gonna put $500 in the budget for font end work. After some more research I think I can do most of the work. I'll have to farm out the alignment once I get everything reassembeld.

Things I know I have to address. Tires, brake cylinders and pads, starter, u-joints, all those little things that you always find the week after you buy a vehicle.

Can you send me a site address so I can research more about the newer dana 44.

Fort Knox....I haven't fallen in love with the wrong truck yet.

I was going to get married to this gal about 10 years or so ago. I bought a truck instead. I still love the truck!

for the axle swap i would check 4x4 magazine web-sites. just google them, there are tons out there and they always have tech tip sections about swaps and transfers. also check with the people at www.offroadunlimited.com they sell things along those lines. my favorite chevy axle parts page is www.offroaddesign.com they do all kinds of custom work and thy will also build parts to order, they are the best. hope that helps some.

It's not exactly the same, but I've done steering knuckle work on the Dana 27 front axles on early CJ Jeeps. It's not really that difficult. Actually, the closed knuckle setup is kind of nice from the standpoint that it keeps the crud out of the joints. Some closed knuckle setups have Cardan Cross ujoints, and some have a CV type joint. The CV joints can be a bit more difficult to service, but servicing the cardan cross type is almost exactly like doing a torque tube ball.

For lubricant, google "knuckle pudding", its a mixture of gear oil and grease that keeps those joints well lubricated without leaking out the seals.

I love the '67s. Look for rot in the floor near the doors. If it doesn't have any it can't be a '67.

I used to own a '70 four-wheeler and the spring shackle mounts were all loose on the frame. It drove a lot nicer once I fixed that problem. It has been beat to pieces by a previous owner.