Southern California Club Xterra

Southern California Club Xterra => SCCX General Discussion => Topic started by: HEVAK on April 29, 2013, 09:30:26 PM

Title: Loose Drivetrain
Post by: HEVAK on April 29, 2013, 09:30:26 PM
So I heard some rattling coming from my front end. I thought it was time for new CV Half Shafts until I jacked the truck saw this...

What's missing in this picture??
(http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/gg237/kaveh34/569F6AA1-1353-4855-B691-08F294646069-11335-00000DC367C431E5_zps2b35a516.jpg)

The four bolts that were holding the drivetrain to the transmission were so loose that one of them was missing and the other three spun freely.

Check your bolts people!!
Title: Re: Loose Drivetrain
Post by: dan826 on April 29, 2013, 09:46:04 PM
This seems very common. When I did the Titan Swap they were all loosened and I was able to remove them by hand. Last year, Carl (suddingusnavy) had a few of the bolts come out while on a trail in Big Bear with the remaining bolt ripping out of the flange and the spinning shaft scratching up the outside of the transmission housing on his frontier. I really recommend people check these bolts and if possible take them out and retighten with some blue loctite.
Title: Re: Loose Drivetrain
Post by: SoCalXTerry on April 30, 2013, 04:52:34 AM

Have you had work done there or is that from the factory?   
Title: Re: Loose Drivetrain
Post by: HEVAK on April 30, 2013, 08:49:05 AM
That's from the factory
Title: Re: Loose Drivetrain
Post by: dan826 on April 30, 2013, 12:41:12 PM
Mine and Carl's were from the factory. Mine was just a few months out from brand new and they had loosened up where I could spin them easily with my fingers. Carl was able to get a new driveshaft under warranty.
Title: Re: Loose Drivetrain
Post by: HEVAK on April 30, 2013, 05:01:00 PM
Yeah, I got lucky. I think...unless it caused some damage that'll show up later.

A new bolt, some locktite, and a little elbow grease (thanks Dana), and all is well.
Title: Re: Loose Drivetrain
Post by: chrishaynesusa on April 30, 2013, 05:33:47 PM
There is a product made called torque stripe.

It is like a wax after it dries and will break or fall off if the nuts move.


(http://www.opcompany.com/images/torqseal.GIF)
this will allow you to tell at a glance if the bolts/nuts back off at all.
we use this in the military.

Comes in different colors too

(http://www.speedcomfly.com/sito-ecommerce/bmz_cache/a/a4cef46d3224f072812e418e3a8a7591.image.247x250.jpg)



Title: Re: Loose Drivetrain
Post by: SoCalXTerry on April 30, 2013, 05:56:11 PM
Thanks Chris
Title: Re: Loose Drivetrain
Post by: dan826 on May 01, 2013, 07:52:32 PM
There is a product made called torque stripe.

It is like a wax after it dries and will break or fall off if the nuts move.

Comes in different colors too

Thanks Chris. I might get some of that. I'm always paranoid stuff is gonna fall apart and am checking all the important bolts before any big trip.  I think this will give me more peace of mind.
Title: Re: Loose Drivetrain
Post by: dan826 on May 01, 2013, 07:53:27 PM
Yeah, I got lucky. I think...unless it caused some damage that'll show up later.

A new bolt, some locktite, and a little elbow grease (thanks Dana), and all is well.

I doubt there would be any damage. You still had more than one bolt on so it wouldn't have spun around off-center.
Title: Re: Loose Drivetrain
Post by: SoCalXTerry on May 02, 2013, 11:08:17 AM
Yeah, I got lucky. I think...unless it caused some damage that'll show up later.

A new bolt, some locktite, and a little elbow grease (thanks Dana), and all is well.

A new bolt, some locktite, and a little elbow grease (thanks Dana), and a torque wrench, and all is well.

As I get older if becomes more and more difficult to tell what 60 lbs torque feels like.

http://www.thenewx.org/forum/view.php?pg=how-to_torque_specs (http://www.thenewx.org/forum/view.php?pg=how-to_torque_specs)
Title: Re: Loose Drivetrain
Post by: HEVAK on May 02, 2013, 11:24:05 AM
Oh Oh  :o

I'll keep an eye on it, cuz we didn't use a torque wrench.
Title: Re: Loose Drivetrain
Post by: dan826 on May 02, 2013, 10:34:16 PM
Oh Oh  :o

I'll keep an eye on it, cuz we didn't use a torque wrench.

It's a difficult place to use a torque-wrench, I couldn't get a socket to fit so had to use an open-ended wrench. What I did is I used a torque wrench on another bolt to get the feel for how much force it was. You have to make sure you hold it at about the same distance though. Another trick I sometimes use is useing one of those luggage scales (the ones with a hook an either a digital readout or a spring dial). If you hook it up to any old wrench about a foot away from the end, then it works perfect, if not you have to do some math.

Title: Re: Loose Drivetrain
Post by: HEVAK on May 03, 2013, 06:31:45 AM
Thanks Dan!! We had to use an open ended wrench as well. The skid plates didn't help the access either.

I'll keep an eye on it.
Title: Re: Loose Drivetrain
Post by: SuperSlideStyle on May 03, 2013, 01:32:39 PM
I would definitely recommend using either the green (light) or the blue (med) Locktite on all drivetrain parts.  Glad you caught it early.
Title: Re: Loose Drivetrain
Post by: HEVAK on May 03, 2013, 03:05:27 PM
Thanks, so am I. Phew!

We used BLUE ;D
Title: Re: Loose Drivetrain
Post by: s14slide on May 06, 2013, 03:01:23 PM
There is a product made called torque stripe.

It is like a wax after it dries and will break or fall off if the nuts move.


(http://www.opcompany.com/images/torqseal.GIF)
this will allow you to tell at a glance if the bolts/nuts back off at all.
we use this in the military.

Comes in different colors too

(http://www.speedcomfly.com/sito-ecommerce/bmz_cache/a/a4cef46d3224f072812e418e3a8a7591.image.247x250.jpg)






In the Aviation industry, we call that stuff "bird crap". 
Title: Re: Loose Drivetrain
Post by: dan826 on May 06, 2013, 05:00:50 PM
I would definitely recommend using either the green (light) or the blue (med) Locktite on all drivetrain parts.  Glad you caught it early.

For the most part green is not what you want. Although the meaning of the colors sometimes varies, "green" usually is a high-strength wicking-type product for press-fit type applications (like to keep a bearing race from sliding around it's housing). It's not really meant for application on threads. Purple, blue, and red are the traditional light, medium, and permanent colors for most thread-locking brands.

Blue is what you should use for almost everything. Red is stronger but in most circumstances unnecessary and a lot more of  a hassle to deal with. Blue has a break-away torque strength of  arround 100-110 foot pounds. Under most circumstances, you only need a break-away torque of arround 30% of the bolt's torque spec, that means that blue should be able to handle bolts up to 350 foot pounds, which should cover pretty much most of the bolts on our trucks, while keeping it easy to remove and re-use. Keep in mind, the point is not to super-glue the bolt, but rather to protect it from small vibrations that can work it loose over time. So just because blue is easy to unscrew, does not mean it doesn't do an excellent job of keeping your bolts locked in at the correct torque spec.

Be aware that not all colored thread-locker products are the same. There are many different variations for different applications. The most important of which is temperature resistance. Normal blue and red loctite are good up to 300-360 farenheit. There are high-temp versions of both blue and red loctite that are resistant to 650 farenheit. So if you are using it somewhere where temperature might be an issue then keep that in mind.