PennSilverTaco's "Perfect 5-Lug Regular Cab" Build, Aspergers, and General BS MegaThread!

No way to tell without inspecting them.

Usually they squeak first, then you may notice a clunk when you transition between coast and accelerate perhaps accompanied by a harsher engagement when shifting between drive and reverse and maybe a "hitch" sensation or vibration when driving.

The symptoms intensify with more miles...

And finally... your drive shaft blows out from under the truck - things can get expensive fast then because frequently parts break when it lets go.

The worst case is when the front u joint breaks at speed: first, the driveshaft beats around under the truck breaking expensive things and then it digs into the road quickly lifting the rear wheels 3 or 4 feet off the ground.

Either the driveshaft will fold up under the rear axle or the rear axle yoke will break - or both - as this happens quite quickly it is very exciting for the driver.

Spoiler

Since you just noticed the noise you probably aren't that far into it yet.

 

Been there done that

 

I agree with the spoiler.

I try to limit the possibility of panic and worst case scenarios when it come to Charlie.
He tends to get worried a bit easier than some of us.
And it’s no fault of his own.

But I agree, when they fail. It can be catastrophic.

 

I’ve seen it happen more than once on a drag strip.
But not personally on the street. I know it happens, I just never got there in time to see it.

 

Its a little more dramatic than what he says...or maybe it was because it happened to me vs seeing it happen

 

Exciting wasn't it?

I had one cut loose on an old Wagoneer, there was a colossal bang and the rear went up then fell off to the drivers side, suddenly I had made an unplanned 1/4 turn towards the ditch at 40 mph.

The driveshaft flew at windshield level at a friend who was driving behind me - I watched him in the rear view mirror make an amazing dodge maneuver as it went flying past him.

The rear yoke didn't break, the shaft twisted off leaving the yoke attached to the rear axle. The shaft was actually smoking where the metal twisted off when we picked it up.

I engaged the 4x4 and drove it home on the front axle.

 

Yeah it was crazy...i know mine flew off like a rocket with sparks maybe 10ft in air high and 2 car lengths ahead of me as rear of my truck catapaulted in the air. Smashed my bed up, big dent in gas tank, and fuel door smashed up, driveline was folded up to the axle.

 

The mask that the 19y/o crazy girl wanted to put on Charlie

 

Charlie don't let the ujoints get too bad, on my TuRD Sport one left the chat while doing 50mph and it got expensive real quick.

Go with Spicer brand (oem)

 

More like she wanted me to put it on her, except an actual ball gag and not a mask...

 

Lol, Did she quit messaging you?

 

A gag on a woman isn't necessarily a bad thing sometimes... Just sayin'...

 

I blocked her on all social media after telling her that I would call the cops if she uses that call spoofing app to contact me from random numbers ever again, and that seems to have gotten the message across.

 

I would definitely agree!

 

She wanted me to zip tie her to a chair, too...

 

What? I've said it before and I will say it again; I have no problem with kinky. It's crazy that I won't screw around with, literally or figuratively...

 

I saw a Jurassic Park replica Explorer at the Carlisle Ford Nationals last June, and now I really like these trucks. However, for every dozen or so 1st Gen S-10 Blazers that I see at the Carlisle Truck Nationals, I am lucky if I see one 1991-1994 Ford Explorer; 1983-1987 (pre-4.3L models) aren't as common anymore, but roughly 1988-1994ish S-10 Blazers still seem to enjoy a remarkable survival rate.

The "Cash for Clunkers" program in 2009 decimated a significant amount of surviving 1st Gen Explorers, as well as 2nd Gen (1995-2001) Explorers. The 2nd Gens are still fairly common around here, and most of them are in halfway decent condition. The 1991-1994 models though, they're virtually nonexistent. The 4-door models are far more common than the 2-door models, and the cream of the crop in my opinion would be a 2-door Eddie Bauer with a 5-speed manual; I have never seen such an Explorer, but it was possible to get a 2-door or 4-door with 5 speeds and 3 pedals from 1991 all the way through 1994. Following the 1995 redesign, it was only possible to get the XLT and later the bottom-rung XLS in stick shift form. That brings us to one of todya's discussions...