Half Shafts anyone?

[m5bb]

First, has anyone rebuilt a half shaft?
Can new boots be installed?
BMW shows a boot kit?

Reman# seems to be 33211105438.
Isn't showing up as available?

Gary

 

[kasbatts]

Yes, you can "re Boot" them, however if the CV joint it's shelf is stuffed, there is nothing you can do, new one's will be needed

 

[m5bb]

Yes, you can "re Boot" them, however if the CV joint it's shelf is stuffed, there is nothing you can do, new one's will be needed

How do you know "it's shelf is stuffed"? Is that a New Zealand phrase?

Two of the 4 boots are split or open.
Do the shafts come apart so you can install new boots?
Never done this job before?
Same grease as a wheel bearing?

 

[aalto]

If there is very little grease in the joint and what remains is full of debris and grit then it is probably better to replace. This is typically the case if the joint has been split open for a long time.

If the splits are fairly recent and there is still a bunch of clean-ish grease in there you should be OK. The grease itself is a special CV grease that's kind of nasty. Be sure to wear gloves if you decide to re-pack the thing yourself.

The half shaft needs to be removed from the car, a circlip removed, and the new boot slid on before re-assembly of the half shaft. My experience is that it is a dirty and sometimes aggravating job (getting the circlip out can be a pain). If you have re-manufactured half-shafts available to you at a decent price then it is probably easier to just replace the whole thing (your old half-shaft will become a "core" for a rebuild).

 

[echappe]

I did this just a year ago. The first clue thats something is not right is when the rubber boot itself starts deteiorating and slinging grease and crud up onto the bottom of the car exactly lining up a spray pattern with the boot. If the process has just started the spray pattern is fresher more moist grease. If it has been going on for a while it dries up and becomes dry crud. Some where in this process where the grease has all gone south is when the damage to the bearings and channels occurrs. At this point they are removed and disassembled, a particularly dirty job though not that difficult if you have proper tools and workbench. I have seen that if it is to be regreased and re-installed that the bearings and channels be labeled an parts returned to the exact places they were removed from. A good SafetyKleen parts bath comes in really handy here. I have a freind with a diesel shop here in St. Augustine who helps me out from time to time. What you look for that is the disqualifying factor for reuse is blueing and pitting on the balls and grooving in the races. That will cause grinding noises when put back together. This is when you look for new ones.
There is an OEM manufacturer that still makes them for mobile traditions and prices can vary according to source. The boot kits are available from a variety of sources.
Good Luck

 

[Sven]

I rebuilt mine. It is definitely doable. Very messy. Have lots of paper towels around. The trickiest part is disassembling (and re-assembing) the two rings with the ball bearings. There is a certain technique which you need to figure out, as I cannot remember nor describe it - a bit of a puzzle. I elected to take them completely apart so I could get all the old grease out.

have fun.

 

[84E24]

Rebuild half shafts

I picked up a complete rear sub frame a couple years ago and completely rebuilt.


When you take the half shafts apart there are several ball bearings that ride inside cages. The dirt will cause flats on the ball bearings whinch cause issues. I cleaned, and polished the cages and mating surfaces. Then replaced with new boots.

When I finished the rebuild I completely changed out the rear. I have my orginal half shafts that are in good shape if you don't want to rebuild yours. Email me to discuss.


Steve

 

[rsporsche]

Gary,

i along with several other people on the forum will tell you that whatever you buy from Steve will arrive perfectly packaged and exactly as he described.

scott

 

[Stevehose]

+1

Gary,

i along with several other people on the forum will tell you that whatever you buy from Steve will arrive perfectly packaged and exactly as he described.

scott

 

[kasbatts]

Doh! Shelf, self, I new what I meant

 

[m5bb]

Great info guys and thanks for the offer of a set Steve. I'll save that thought.

BTW a quick look did not find any half shafts in the US. New or rebuilt.

I work way ahead on projects as far as parts go.
I am waiting on a few to rebuild the front end.
While on the lift I noticed that one boot is open and another about to open.
I think I am going to order boot kits and try to rebuild them.
They are not making noise so far.
I'm not afraid to get dirty so should be fun.
I did find a video on you tube that talks about removing the ball bearings and some how marking the order out, so they can go back in the same hole in the cage.

 

[Peter Coomaraswamy]

my 2 cents

I did this a while back, and as described by many below, a rather messy job. That being said, and lots of paper towels, and a large bin for soaking parts, just start disassembling them. (one side at a time) The CV joints are the same inside though one collar may be a different size. I took out all the balls and cleaned everything in thinner. More than marking the balls and exact position of everything I was more interested in scoring of the surfaces or discoloring, which would indicate a need to replace. Since everything looked good, I got the youtube video up and put them back together with the grease that came with the boot kit. I worked them allot by hand and re-installed and so far it is quiet and seems to work well. The C clips can be tricky, but with the right tool not a problem. Also, don't be afraid if you have to persuade the joints off with a hammer (cautiously) but mine felt like they were welded on so there was some banging (a heat gun might have worked- keep away from the thinner). Once they are all together it looks great and should work perfectly.

 

[JMinPDX]

Thanks for the good information. I noticed one of the boots torn on my car and have been planning to replace it before the upcomming driving season and drive to the Vintage in NC. I have the boot /grease kit and I went as far as to buy an extra half shaft on ebay incase I need a backup.

 

[2ma2]

Did mine last month, watched youtube video some dude posted on another BMW model and decided it was worth a try. Turned out to be pretty easy.
Cost of boot kit is so small compared to shaft replacement. I have pics i can send you if you like (dont know how to post them here) One tip I can pass on is use a little grease when reassembling the races and then squeeze in the rest before the boots are locked down. it is easier to see whats going on without all the grease on the joint. Also I used tile nipping pliers i had in my toolbox to tighten the clamps so you don't really need a special tool. I read somewhere you should mark all the parts so they can be reassembled in the same position to maintain balance but I didnt bother and so far so good.
Good luck

 

[Sparky]

CV joint grease

Make sure you use CV specific grease. It contains molybdenum disulfide for high pressure lubrication and heat stability. CV grease is black while regular bearing grease may have color and be somewhat transparent.

I packed my first CV joint 40 years ago (72 tii) and I've found synthetic molybdenum CV grease is far superior to regular molybdenum CV grease. I had a VW Vanagon CV joint (Lobro just like BMWs) that had significant wear spots after 100k miles with conventional CV grease. I repacked them with synthetic molbdenum grease and it has now run another 200k miles with no additional wear evident at their recent service. I'm sure it would have failed if I had been using regular CV grease. My preference has been Valvoline Semi-synthetic DuroBlend but I now use their fully synthetic SynPower grease for CV joints.

 

[m5bb]

Great tips guys.

Thanks.

 

[John Buchtenkirch]

Thru the years I’ve probably replaced at least 50 C.V. joint boots, washed the old grease out with solvent and repacked them with the correct grease and can only remember having trouble with one joint ! Now most of the parts stores don’t even carry the boots anymore, most shops just install complete new Chinese axle assemblies….. shame on them.
Some old school mechanics would flip the CV joints from side to opposite site, the idea being the opposite side of the slots (that only wore when backing up) then would get the wear. Anyone have any thoughts on that :confused:, it’s easy enough to do if the axles are the same length ? ~ John Buchtenkirch