vibrations? or should i say shaking

[unccpathfinder]

ok reworked the wheelbearings today after suspecting them of being loose they were...that removed about 75-80% of my shakes/vibrations but i still have some...its around 50 mph that the wheel will kind of bounce back and forth (i think this is mostly a wheel/tire being out of balance)

 

?'s:

 

Will worn out ball joints cause vibrations/shakes i noticed that both of my uppers have boots torn and no grease and look pretty bad (will be replacing this coming weekend along with lowers)?

 

 

CV's are both good and tight

braking doesnt have an effect on this so im pretty sure its not the rotors being warped

know the tires/rims arent completly balanced

i dont have any slop in the steerings (so i think that takes care of tie rods and that stuff)

 

what else could cause this shake/vibration?

[RedPath88]

First get the wheels balanced...

 

Then, are the shocks in good shape?

[Simon]

If the ball joints are worn, they can cause that type of vibration. Though, typically, if the lowers are worn, you'll get more of a slow sway, and the truck won't track straight.

 

But, as Red said, get the wheels balanced properly, as that could quite easily be your issue. Typically, it's the most common cause.

[unccpathfinder]

yea... i have a feeling a majority of this is coming from the lack of balancing...from 0-55 or so theres hardly any and then 75 is still pretty bad most coming from the back... think there might be a warped drum (not a lot but enough that i can feel it during braking)

 

so this weekend i will try to get them balanced and swap out the ball joints (have them laying in the garage floor) and if that takes care of it i'll be happy...if not i will swap the wheels off of the 87 and if it goes away i know theres a bent/warped rim...

[Mr. Pickles]

Good plan. Balance and replace the jacked up BJ's. Those upper ball joints are pretty easy to replace, really, especially since you're tossing the old ones. That plus new bushings and general maintenance brought my sloppy wobbly steering back to nearly new. Good luck!

[unccpathfinder]

sounds good...

 

yea im gonna do all 4 balls ironicially enough the 1's i have in the garage are the 1's i helped wheelman install on his about 2 weeks B4 it was totaled so i have the right tools and know the tricks to get it done without unhooking anything except the balls and the order that will make it all happen...

[Jdpathy]

Let me know how you get the lowers out cause they were a pain for me. :secret:

[Mr. Pickles]

Let me know how you get the lowers out cause they were a pain for me. :secret:

What he said. /\ I've had lowers sitting around for a year and a half cause I got lazy while replacing the UCA's and didn't go further. Please post up.

[unccpathfinder]

IIRC the way i did wheelmans was on a learning curve...but if u bust both the upper and lower loose from u can manipulate the spindle without disconnecting anything else and get them in place and i think u have to do the lower 1st then the upper...but it might be the other way around... i will confirm this weekend (hopefully...the gf graduates and commissions on sat so i get to do all of that fun stuff)...

[unccpathfinder]

ok did the ball joints undo the top then the lower...and back together in the opposite order...had some issues but they got resolved due to my extra parts bin...

 

drove sweet yest afternoon and this morning with some shake (tires and what not b/c i didnt get that balanced)

 

but tonight was a different story vibrated worse than ever before and once i got home the RH side hub was scortching hot and the driver side was normal

 

i have a feeling since i only repacked my wheelbearings instead of replacing (they were prob bad after the looseness in the wheels) i think that 1 is starting to go completly...

 

i've only got 3 more days of work (420 miles) do u guys think they will hold up till then so i can replace them...im going to try to catch a ride with a guy from work that makes the same commute but he ususally doesnt let people ride with him...

[mws]

Have you ever seen what happens when a wheel bearing completely fails?

 

Usually just a lot of noise, but I have also seen a situation where it lead to a spindle failure on my colleagues cougar. Fortunately, it happened at low speed so there were no injuries. But....

 

If it were me, I wouldn't drive it. "Scorching hot" is a pretty strong message - about the loudest message the hub can send you short of complete mechanical failure. I would choose to listen.

 

Rent a car. It would be cheaper than having it fail on the way and leading you to take out half a dozen innocent bystanders.....

[Jdpathy]

ok did the ball joints undo the top then the lower...and back together in the opposite order...had some issues but they got resolved due to my extra parts bin...

 

drove sweet yest afternoon and this morning with some shake (tires and what not b/c i didnt get that balanced)

 

but tonight was a different story vibrated worse than ever before and once i got home the RH side hub was scortching hot and the driver side was normal

 

i have a feeling since i only repacked my wheelbearings instead of replacing (they were prob bad after the looseness in the wheels) i think that 1 is starting to go completly...

 

i've only got 3 more days of work (420 miles) do u guys think they will hold up till then so i can replace them...im going to try to catch a ride with a guy from work that makes the same commute but he ususally doesnt let people ride with him...

Let me get this straight. You just popped the Upper BJ out of the spindle and then popped the lower and pulled them loose then changed them??!!!!!!

[88pathoffroad]

I wouldn't drive on it if it's gonna die on you. That'll screw all kinds of things up.

[unccpathfinder]

Let me get this straight. You just popped the Upper BJ out of the spindle and then popped the lower and pulled them loose then changed them??!!!!!!

 

and the hubs...

 

yea i was thinking about renting a car...b/c i was guessing in a complete failure i would have a roll over...

[unccpathfinder]

babied her to and from work today...going 50 in a 60 and 55 in a 65...the bearings didnt get near as hot but i jacked it up when i got home and the RH side only goes for like 3/4 a turn and makes nice scrubbing/squeeling noises (they were 115F not near the other night i could actually hold my hand on it still but the driver side was only 90F so theres def evidence that i have an issue)

 

and for @!*%s and giggles i jacked up the back b/c i have a vibration back tehre as well and the RH side bearings sound/feel nasty loose

 

from my experiences with wheelman and my 87 truck i cannot find outter bearings that will slip over the spindles...we have napa, advance auto, and autozone here does any1 have a part number that fits

 

(a side note i wont be driving her anymore this week a guy from work was nice enough to drive up 14 exits and pick me up and drop me back off for the remainder of the week (tomorrow and thurs)