Replacement U Joint Orientation

I've got a bad U joint at the axle end of my driveshaft. I have a 2wd so the factory U joints are sealed. From what I've seen, many of the replacement joints have zerks on them. Some places sell the sealed joints too, but I figured I'd go with greasable ones. Most of the greasable ones have zerks on the spider. I've only found one or two that has the zerk on one of the end caps.

Assuming I replace them with the type that has the zerk on the cross like shown below, is there a rule of thumb as to which way to position the spider in relation to the driveshaft? Does the zerk face the driveshaft or the yoke? Am I going to need to have the driveshaft rebalanced after doing this? I plan on replacing all 3 joints at the same time so I don't have to do this again in a few months.

 

I decided to have a driveshaft shop do the work. Found a shop that is a dealer for Spicer and dropped my driveshaft off this morning for him to replace all three U joints with greasable ones and check the balance.

For anyone who needs to replace their U joints:
From what I've gathered the +05 driveshafts use Spicer 1330 series joints, p/n 5-213x (greasable). Tom Woods also sells his own "Gold Seal" U joints which have a really good warranty and should be comparable in quality to Spicer joints. I was considering buying the Tom Woods joints but needed to get this done quick so I opted for the Spicers at the local shop. I can say the folks at Tom Woods were very helpful in answering my questions even though I did not end up buying their product. http://www.4xshaft.com/

 

Nice man, thanks for the info

 

Doesn't matter which way they go. Just mark the yokes and ends, so you can keep it lined up. Get one 180 degrees out, and it will vibrate.

 

Got it back this afternoon, installed, test drove and so far so good. The guy didn't do the balance as he said it didn't need it. Somewhere along the way I had read or heard that even just replacing one of the joints could lead to it needing to be rebalanced. Can't remember where though.