Just wanted to let ya'll know that i just finished working on my rear driveshaft for the first time, i have never done this before. 87 Samurai jx

It wasn't that hard, i would recommend having a bench to work on (i did it in my carport on the ground and my back is killing me).  Also buying the pliers for the rings that lock the u-joints in place makes a big difference, make sure to buy the greasable u-joints and a grease gun as i noticed the old u-joint that was located close to my rear diff was in alot worse shape than the one closest to the t-case.

Btw my bolts that connect the driveshaft to the t-case and diff are 12 mm, and it helps if you use an extension.

Hope this helps out, i know this isn't a huge project but if anyone has any questions feel free to ask.

Did you take any pictures?

Here are some pics.

The old u joints don't look bad but there was alot of play so they must have been wore out.

I also put a pic of the Snap ring pliers, these are the cheap ones and they tend to bend a little, it would be worth the extra money to get a heavier duty pair.

just so you know the u joints with the Zerk fittings on them have to be hollow so that the grease will go through them, Therefor they are weaker and most likely American made so they will come loose and destroy your drive line , and also the snap rings can also be put in wrong, there is a sharp edge on one side of them, that sharp edge needs to be on the out side edge so that when the u joint pushes against it the snap ring will not pop out.  just FYI.

just so you know the u joints with the Zerk fittings on them have to be hollow so that the grease will go through them, Therefor they are weaker and most likely American made so they will come loose and destroy your drive line , and also the snap rings can also be put in wrong, there is a sharp edge on one side of them, that sharp edge needs to be on the out side edge so that when the u joint pushes against it the snap ring will not pop out.  just FYI.

Well, first of all the ones that i took out were all hollow exactly like the ones i put in and they hadn't come loose they just had play in them (im not sure if that's what you meant) and BTW these were the only ones the auto parts store carried, besides the ones that they could special order for $18.99 each.  Is there some specific brand that i am soppused to get?  And as far as the snap rings, i did not notice any difference in either side being sharper than the other, i will inspect the old snap rings that i took off of the old u joints to see if there is a difference.  When i installed the rings i made sure they set in deep into the side walls.

Thanks for the info, please respond back with any helpful info, on brands or where i can buy the solid u joints.

Jesse

Trail tough has the originals now for like nineteen Dollars each, they used to be fifty two each, I used to get the Mitsubishi u-joints off of them for twenty each and never had a problem with them at all, but the ones that had USA on them would break or open up the holes on the drive shaft and I would have to buy a new drive line and two u-joints (did that twice) and they are getting hard to find around here, thinking about have the front shafts cut down shorter to fit the rear if that is cheaper than having a new shaft built, the lifted samurai's are hard on the rear drive lines and I am short one now on one of mine. Hope this helps.

I've run both types of u joints in my Tracker, if you can fine a set of OME ones great, they do seem to be better, but that being said, I replaced mine with a det from Napa and they've held up fine. They are greaseable, and I've done it regularly.

|removethispart|@ mrfuelish 

After doing research about the u joints i have found that you are correct about the Japeneese OEM's.

When i notice mine start to get loose i will be ordering these from TT.

Thanks for your help.

TWO thumbs up.

Good job on the ujoints, it's easy to screw these up if your not careful.

Good job on the ujoints, it's easy to screw these up if your not careful.

Thanks, lol, its funny you say that:

When i was installing the new u joints into there place, i believe one of the pins inside the u joint cap fell to the bottom so when i tried to put the lock rings in, the one side went in but the other side would not, so i had to carefully knock the caps back out and when i did one of them fell to the ground and 75% of the pins fell on the out, fortunately i was on my driveway and was able to recover all of the pins and carefully put them ALL back in the cap and then reinstall the u-joints in the slip yoke, pheww.... i thought i screwed up when it happened, but now i can laugh about it.

I will agree that OEM joints are likely stronger and probably last longer than any aftermarket ujoint you can buy.  But I have ran the $10 ujoints on both DDs and off roaders and none have broke and I haven't had to replace any of them from them wearing out.

I will agree that OEM joints are likely stronger and probably last longer than any aftermarket ujoint you can buy.  But I have ran the $10 ujoints on both DDs and off roaders and none have broke and I haven't had to replace any of them from them wearing out.

Cool, i'll probably just run with these until i notice anything.  When i do need to replace them i will def spend the $20 per u joint and get the ones from Trail Tough.

What you do is vacuum pack a spare set of u-joints to keep them dry and have the tools to replace them on the trail, then put everything in your tool/emergency bag.  As long as you have spares u-joints ready to go you hardly ever break them. 

What you do is vacuum pack a spare set of u-joints to keep them dry and have the tools to replace them on the trail, then put everything in your tool/emergency bag.  As long as you have spares u-joints ready to go you hardly ever break them. 

That is a great idea, im gonna buy a set of fuses and through them in my truck as well.