Servicable U Joint Problem
 

So I'm about to replace the servicable U joints that I installed ONLY 6 MONTHS AGO (yup they're already failing), and I just remembered a problem I had with the neapco u joint recommended in the link below. The problem I had was that the clips were all too small! I had to use the original clips that came with the factory u joints. I can reuse them again I guess, but if I bend one or lose one I'm screwed. Anyone else have this problem? Any recommendations?

Meant to post these links

Link to the u joint recommended: Advance Auto Parts: Universal Joint by Neapco - Part 1-0005

Link to the rebuild "How To": https://landroverforums.com/forum/ge...rebuild-29302/

call lucky8.com ask for the lr ujoints for it they are 16 bucks each maybe? same part num as the defender 90 joints.

I think there was a bad batch at some point as I had several like that bought all at once. Went back to Advance and swapped them out for the correct snap rings.

I've never had one fail/wear out anywhere near that soon.
Did you grease it properly before installing and again after?
The grease that comes in u-joints is only to hold the needle bearings in place and to prevent rust.

Lucky8 has the good quality GKN / Hardy Spicer TVC100010
Made in U.K. - $18

indeed they do... and very friendly. i called up on a whim from work from my cell and ended up ordering 3 ujoints form them after finding out the local landrover dealer wanted $124.00 EACH. ended up returning them only because I actually ended up needing to replace the entire shaft (found it brand new on ebay $350), but they were very good quality from what i saw on brief inspection. they felt solid, there were few external deviations in shape/form, the needles looked very uniform and they just "felt" more solid then the ones i looked at at autozone.

Don't buy u-joints at Autozone, they are made in China.

Yea I didn't expect for them to fail either, but there's no mistaking that "whine" the bearings start to make when they're going bad! So if the snap ring problem has been fixed with the neapco u joints, is there a point to ordering from lucky 8, paying more money for them, and having to wait on them to be shipped, when advanced is right down the road?

And yes I greased them at every oil change. I think I may have missed one, so if that's the reason they went I'll take the blame....but I wouldn't think so.

your stock ones lasted 70000 without being greased at all, missing the new ones once or twice in the last 6-months is not the cause.

stock ones are sealed and are greased at the factory. thats why they last that long. you can rebuild the driveshaft with sealed ones and then not have to worry about greasing it again and then just rebuild it again in another 50,000 or so miles. but its the peace of mind being able to grease it at every oil change and not have to worry about it exploding that makes the greasable joints worth while.

I used the Precision ones. I am always surprised that when I grease them at 5000km interval they are always empty ?? Is my grease too thin ?? I use all-purpose grease.

I reused the original snaprings instead of the cheapy rings that came with the new joints.

Did you also grease it correctly when you rebuilt it? Or just did it at your next oil change.
When you did grease it did you get new grease coming from around all 4 seals on the u-joint?

Technically you're supposed to grease them before assembly, though I don't know how it affects the service life if you just do it after installation. I've done it both ways, depending on my mood and haven't seen a difference.

Missing a couple of maintenance greasings shouldn't cause failure so soon, though it will reduce the overall life. It's highly dependent on the environment they live in though.

As far as what brand you use, that's totally up to what you're comfortable with. But I've been using Neapco/PDQ for years without any issues.
The PDQ u-joints do have a warranty.

On the other hand, it could have been a defective u-joint out of the box. Any new part can turn out to be defective.
I once spent many hours trying to diagnose crappy running on my '62 when I swapped out the distributor, plugs and wires, thinking I'd screwed something up. Turned out 3 of the 4 brand new Champion plugs were bad. I still use Champion sometimes.

A good quality EP NGLI #2 is the correct grease.
I use Castrol Pyroplex Blue, but there are a lot of good greases out there.

I found that the grease that the factory packed in my new bearings had hardened to something like wax, I had to clean the old grease out of the X before I could get new grease pumped through.