Transmission install grease?

[sethkestenbaum]

Les Andrew's book says use 8 pumps of chassis grease in a newly installed transmission's Universal Joint connection. I've also been told to completely pack the Universal Joint with bearing grease. WHICH GREASE IS RIGHT? HOW MUCH? Doesn't the Universal Joint in the transmission eventually get lubed with chassis grease?

[Patrick L.]

It depends on how its being done.
If the clamshell is apart or joint being replaced then its easy to just pack the joint upon assembly.
If everything is assembled then greasing thru the fitting is fine. Remove the speedo drive and fill until grease starts to fill drive cavity.
If the transmission has original type bearings then oil will pass thru the rear bearing mixing with the grease and lube the joint.
If the transmission has a newer sealed rear bearing then the u-joint should be greased with a 'soft' grease such as a mix of grease/oil or John Deere corn head grease, etc.

[Mitch//pa]

use a good quality hi temp wheel bearing grease....everyone has a preference on brand and color but they all do the same thing
remove the speedometer turtle and pump it till it starts coming out of the cavity...
i have found an empty u joint housing will take approx a full 14.5 oz tube...
this is where a air greaser comes in handy....
Carl G and i have the same one made by lincoln

[Brentwood Bob]

This shade tree guy, with no air pump, liberally packs the assembled ujoint with gloved, or ungloved hands, until no more will stick, then assembles.
Top off with a hand pump after assembly.
Expect some will fall off so wear some safety glasses.
Bob

[redmodelt]

I for one woulds rather lie on my back under the car and fill with grease after it's installed then to fight the greasy U-joint into place with grease getting every where. I use a hand pump type grease gun.

[Pilotdave]

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I can vouch for the u-joint's appetite for grease! I recently installed a new-to-my-car u-joint. I pulled one of the speedo drive bolts and commenced to pump grease into the u-joint with my air powered grease gun. I swear that it took nearly and entire tube of grease before grease began to ooze out the bolt hole. FWIW I used regular old implement grease...

[Brentwood Bob]

Here is a past thread: repack u joints.

https://www.fordbarn.com/forum/showth...0913&showall=1

This discussion has been covered.
Bob

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

My Lord, the ONLY thing in a "U" joint that needs lubricant is the 4 little sleeves/cups, that slip onto the 4 machined down ends of the "U" joint CROSS!! GREASE WON'T work into that extremely close fitting clearance! BESIDES that, the sleeves just move a minute amount of degrees, back & forth on the CROSS. The GREASE just gets "WHIRRED" out in the BIG cavity, BUT it probably would prevent RUST, if you ran your car into the RIVER.
The grease fitting was designed JUST for where the torque tube bell moves up & down few degrees.
"MAYBE" the filling the whole innards with grease was contrived by a Grease Company, to BOOST GREASE SALES??
A friend who has FOREVER been a proponent of the grease "THING", just BROKE his U_JOINT, it DIDN'T wear out cross or cups, just BROKE the CAGE, go figger?? A new "U" joint, installed with just 4 squirts of motor oil, would probably last for 37 1/2 years!
Grease is meant to be used, SPARINGLY, in the proper places. I've seen some that stuff the WHOLE front hubs FULL, with wheel bearing grease, "Maybe" they were going to see if they could launch their car into the RIVER, ALSO! That practice would be OK for a BOAT trailer, or an AMPHICAR which uses its' FRONT WHEELS, for RUDDERS.
Bill W.

[RonC]

Ford specifies in the services bulletins for the AA trucks to pre pack the joint with 8 ounces of grease (about half a tube).

Ford specified to use “universal joint” grease which was 600w oil thicken up with sodium tallow soap. Ford also stated that the universal grease was not as thick as wheel bearing grease.

The specification I found for Universal Grease in the November 1932 Ford Service Bulletin has a ASTM Worked Penetration of 310-330 which equates to NGLI 1 “tomato paste” grease. The multi purpose grease used in wheel bearings is thicker, NLGI grade 2 grease.

Here's a chart of grease grades: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NLGI_Grade

A lot of people use the John Deere "Corn head Grease" for the universal joint which is an NLGI grade is 0.

Here's a link for buying corn head grease:
http://www.greenpartstore.com/John-D...-AN102562.html

[sethkestenbaum]

Wow, I read the posts here and the ones that Bob linked to as well.... I now have no idea what is correct and have concerns that the high temp bearing grease I packed it with will do nothing and burn out.

[Mike V. Florida]

Originally Posted by sethkestenbaum

Wow, I read the posts here and the ones that Bob linked to as well.... I now have no idea what is correct and have concerns that the high temp bearing grease I packed it with will do nothing and burn out.

Will anyone that has had a U-joint fail due to lack of lubrication or wrong grease let Seth know!

(I don't expect a single response)

[Patrick L.]

Originally Posted by sethkestenbaum

Wow, I read the posts here and the ones that Bob linked to as well.... I now have no idea what is correct and have concerns that the high temp bearing grease I packed it with will do nothing and burn out.

Yep, your probably right ! So how about just putting the car up for sale and let me buy it.

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

Originally Posted by sethkestenbaum

Wow, I read the posts here and the ones that Bob linked to as well.... I now have no idea what is correct and have concerns that the high temp bearing grease I packed it with will do nothing and burn out.

DIDN'T mean to worry you, Seth,
Your grease WON'T harm anything & U-Joints don't ever just "BURN OUT"!
I "thought" about drilling a 1/8" hole in Vermins' rear housing & squirting enough 600W in it, to form a "puddle", for the U Joint cups/sleeves to "DIP" into, when parked.
Bill W.

[Barry B./ Ma.]

I just give the Ujoint a few shots of grease with the hand pump when i lube the chassis. I don't think Ford overlubed the housing for every car, that would be a lot of grease.

[Tom Wesenberg]

Originally Posted by Mike V. Florida

Will anyone that has had a U-joint fail due to lack of lubrication or wrong grease let Seth know!

(I don't expect a single response)

Holy knock knock Batman! What's making all that nosie?

Somebody didn't think grease was important.

[Mitch//pa]

Seth filling the cavity with 14.5 oz's of WB grease will not form a hollow cavity.. from the HEAT of the powertrain it will loosen up and contact the joint....
dont be confused just carry on..

[harleytoprock]

Originally Posted by Mitch//pa

Seth filling the cavity with 14.5 oz's of WB grease will not form a hollow cavity.. from the HEAT of the powertrain it will loosen up and contact the joint....
dont be confused just carry on..

How do you think the grease will enter the u-joint bearings? It would take a lot pressure to force grease into the couple thou clearance in the bearings. Also high temp WB grease will not liquify at the low temps of the u-joint area. You have a better shot with "corn head grease". Don't forget what the centrifugal force will do to the grease when the joint is spinning at 2000 rpm. I'm with Bill with the 600W idea.

[Patrick L.]

Its always seemed to me that some don't read all the posts.

[Tom Wesenberg]

I filled mine and a few others with Mystik JT-6 High Temp red grease 15 years ago, and all are doing fine. Grease will migrate some, plus the cross in the U-joints moves some and it drags the grease along with the movement. Each time the housing is greased, the grease gets to the bell part and then to the inside and adds to the grease already there. Have no fear...........it works.

[Mitch//pa]

Originally Posted by harleytoprock

How do you think the grease will enter the u-joint bearings? It would take a lot pressure to force grease into the couple thou clearance in the bearings. Also high temp WB grease will not liquify at the low temps of the u-joint area. You have a better shot with "corn head grease". Don't forget what the centrifugal force will do to the grease when the joint is spinning at 2000 rpm. I'm with Bill with the 600W idea.

YEA what tom said

[Brentwood Bob]

Seth, sometimes we give out more information than you asked for, however, Grease is good, no grease is bad. I would venture to say that the only time the ujoint is exposed is when the rear end is pulled, or the transmission. So you should add grease now as insurance, and one less thing to fret over.
Bob

[Mike V. Florida]

Originally Posted by Tom Wesenberg

Holy knock knock Batman! What's making all that nosie?

Somebody didn't think grease was important.

Got me! I should have said due to too few pumps, not total lack of pumps.

[sethkestenbaum]

In speaking with a few folks who have shops that rebuild Model As (and/or their engines), the consensus seems to simply be "pack it with bearing grease" and "ignore the Les Andrews 8 pump instructions". I don't have any definitive answer, but figure that this is likely "better than good enough" and wanted to post what I did for those who were following. I also plan to pull the rear end of the car in the next two years. When I do, I will check for wear/tear and see if this method is the right one.