The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop '54 3/4 ton pinion nut and yoke

hi all,

i'm replacing the pinion seal on my bolt. that is if i can track down the right socket. according to my measurements it's a 1 11/16" nut. does that sound right? finding a thin walled socket in that size was tough this weekend.

then i will have to find a new nut. someone went after this one with a punch at some point in its life.

also, if the seal was leaking should i expect the yoke to have a groove on it? the truck has 55k miles.

1 5/8" and a big old 3/4" air impact.
DG

I don't know where you would get a new nut but they do make a speedi sleeve for that yoke in case you have a groove. For sure NAPA has the sleeve. Probably CarQuest would carry it too. That was the answer to my continual drip.

i guess i was off by a 1/16". a local shop owner is willing to let me use his air tools. if he has the right socket great, if not i'll drop some $ on the 1 5/8" thinned walled socket. if i'm lucky napa will have the sleeve, nut and socket. maybe i'll go crazy and replace the bearings and race.

this should solve the biggest leak. the other two around the engine and tranny are not severe enough for me to worry about.

thanks for the info

Have you checked to see if there is side play at the yoke? Replacing the bearing requires the removal of the pumpkin. With my yoke NAPA just looked up the seal and then looked up the sleeve for that size.

In another application, at CarQuest, I bought a combined seal/sleeve product for the crankshaft so I guess they handle it differently. Another interesting twist is that CatQuest had an offset seal for the crankshaft that rode on a different part of the surface. Maybe that is another option for the yoke.

i have the pumkin out. i'll check for play at the yoke. how much play suggests i should replace the bearings?

good info on the sleeve and bearing options. thanks

Once you are working on the pumpkin, I am out of your league! I am sure lots of folks on here can answer your question.

There should be no play in the bearings. There will be a small amount of backlash as you turn the yoke back & forth as the gears contact. The original bearings are usually ball bearings & the replacements are rollers. Expensive.

truckernix, we're in the same league, i'm just in over my head.

wrenchlender ret., there is no play in the bearings and a small amount of backlash.

that said i may just leave well enough alone and just change the seal. tomorrow i'll start in on it and the important decisions will be made.

Sounds like you are good to go then. You will have to pull the flange off as the seal is in back of it. There is a thick cork gasket that goes under the flange. If you cant get one a thick bead of RTV will work. When you put the yoke on put it so the cotter pin hole will be between the openings. Tighten the pinion nut very tight & go further to line up the cotter pin holes.

i got it all back together. so far no leaks.

it has roller bearings on for the pinion shaft and they looked just fine so i left well enough alone. i also left the felt seal in place. i could not find a replacement and it was in decent shape.

i had to use all three of my brain cells to get the pumpkin back in place. i constructed a contraption that sat on my jack.

so all is well and she's back on the road.

yes, those are paint cans. i used them to counter ballance the weight of the pumpkin. without them the who shebang would tip off the jack.

That is fun getting something that haevy to line up, isn't it? Congratulations on a successful conclusion.