Dana 50 wheel bearing replacement, how in-depth should I get

HS108

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Big order came in, all new wheel bearings, seals, and ball joints. I went with Mevotech supremes, but I think I might return them and go with XRF brand, read a lot of good reviews on the XRF ones, vs many mixed on mevotech and moog. Plus I already have XRF uppers.
 

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mblaney

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My truck rides way better on the D60. The spring stack on the 50 is crazy stiff because of the pivot point. For example, it would be insane to use d50 springs on a d60. I don't understand any reason to have the ttb at all... ok, maybe better articulation or bragging "independent suspension" but ***, not on this truck!
 

HS108

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Ya I agree, but how far down the worm hole do you go? Do I D60 swap, should I then get the RSK for the D60, well now I can run bigger tires, do I? you see how my brain works lol

Ive read your how to many of times lol
 

mblaney

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If keeping the 50, do the pivot bushings.
If switching to d60, I prefer a stock height - which is about 4" higher than a stock f250. Jacking a truck and putting oversized boots ruins a truck IMO. Or maybe I am just too practical (old). Nothing cooler than a clean build.
 

HS108

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Made some progress today, got the knuckles and spindles loose. U joints look solid, nice USA made non greaseables, so gonna leave em in.

Watched a video in Dana 50 rebuilds and they just gave the knuckles a few whacks and it dropped out, beat mine for idk 30 mins and didn’t budge, pulled out the new pickle fork I bought for this job and 5 hits later it was on the ground lol

Lesson learned, just because someone puts it on the internet, doesn’t mean they know what they are doing lol :)

Ordered some new dust shields, gonna just bring the knuckles to a shop and have the ball joints pressed out and new in, save me time. Thinking about painting them as well, nothing crazy just a little rattle can job.

Then I’ll tackle the pivot bushings, installing the new races in the hub, and start to button it all back up.

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HS108

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I went from being a Hack, to spray painting parts black lol

Made a lot of progress, new Ball joints are in, 1 of 2 pivot bushings are in, hopefully get some more wrapped up tomorrow.
 

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HS108

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Thanks,

My next project tomorrow besides the rear pivot bushing, is installing the race and bearings, my question is, how full do I fill this area with grease in the hub, a lot of the videos skip over this part
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Nero

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Thats always up for debate.
I personally put a little in there just to film it over, like maybe 1/4 thick. Some people will say its a waste. I like to be safe than sorry.
Its definitely more important that the bearings are packed well.
 

asmith

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I do the same as Nero. put a layer of grease in there just to be safe, but the most important part is the bearings, Makes sure they are packed well and I always throw a layer on the race as well.
 

The_Josh_Bear

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Thats always up for debate.
I personally put a little in there just to film it over, like maybe 1/4 thick. Some people will say its a waste. I like to be safe than sorry.
Its definitely more important that the bearings are packed well.

I do the same as Nero. put a layer of grease in there just to be safe, but the most important part is the bearings, Makes sure they are packed well and I always throw a layer on the race as well.
That may work for you boys... but I prefer to use Kroger peanut butter. Don't pay the extra $2 for Jiff! Ain't worth it. Make sure to use the smooth variety! The crunchy bits are hell on those wheel bearings. ;Poke
 

MtnHaul

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It's hard to get too much grease in there. I recently replaced all the wheel bearings and races on my D60 and I gooped a lot of grease on the spindles, bearings, and inside of the hubs. But you didn't ask the conversation starter of "What kind of grease?" I'm sure everyone has their personal favorite. I went with Paragon 3000 but the previous 70k had cheap Mastercraft grease from O'Reilly.
 

Nero

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For years I used CFC graphite based disc brake grease for my front. CFC recently discontinued that line. So now I'm using a lithium based wheel bearing grease from Valvoline.
 
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