Sunday, April 2, 2017

Springs Everywhere!

Yes, spring has sprung! The yard is already demanding attention and the grass is so green it almost feels like Virginia. Just the time to get started cleaning up the place and getting it ship shape for the outside season.

The camper had been covered with a custom tarp all winter to keep the snow from infiltrating the vents and A/C. When I removed it I discovered a pretty bad six inch tear at a corner where a large icicle had formed one week. I did not notice it when I broke the offending ice off, but it's going to have to be sewn.

When Karren and I got back from a dump run we were about to load up some old fence when we smelled burning oil. The right rear wheel was smoking! Into the garage the truck went pronto, and I began to look up repairs on the internet. after deciding to put off until tomorrow what I could do today, we ended up taking a trip to get haircuts and had a nice dinner at a local eatery.

Fast forward to today. I went out to the garage rather late in the day to despair over yet another unanticipated truck repair. One thing led to another and the right rear brake assembly is now in pieces and I have determined that I need rear axle hub seals. I have yet to remove the hub to verify but all the signs point to new seals. Here's a few pics;


The above is the top of the parking brake apparatus. That's right, inside the disc brake rotor there is a drum brake that acts independently for parking brakes. Note the spring!


Another shutoff the same including more of the hub.


This is the inside of the rotor. Note the gooey stuff on the lower half. That is gear oil from the axle. It was all over everything inside and outside the rotor. I have cleaned much of it off already.


This is the rear of the hub/brake assembly and it shows how oil has been collecting there and attracting dirt.

I now have to wait until I can get parts for both sides (always do both sides when brakes or tires are involved) and I need a couple of special tools to get the hub off the axle housing. By the time I'm done working on this something else will break.

By the way, we are planning to make a cross-country trip with the camper to Virginia in late May. Stand by for a trip report!

1 comment:

  1. Better to have find this now then on the road. Break downs happen though.

    ReplyDelete