packing a diff with grease?

[west747]

2000 4.0 into a 1994 GC?

frist let me say that my rig is for OFFROAD ONLY. has anybody ever heard of using grease instaed of gear oil in their differentials? reason i am asking is that one of my dana 44 shaft is worn( caused by a bad seal which has since been replaced) and i dont have money for a new shaft.

question- can i use grease in my front diff? it will never see any speed above 10-15k...basiclly just 4 low speeds. i also have hubs now so the carrier, ds and axles wont spin.

does anybody know if filling the pig full of grease will work? seems like a good idea to me as where there is grease there is no water.

any ideas or comments on this subject would be greatly appreciated. thanks YaLL!

 

[west747]

anybody have any ideas or comments on this?? am i crazy??

 

[Snitty]

you have hubs.... the axle will not spin in 2wd... but will spin in 4wd... the three concerns i would have with grease are...

changing... i'm sure at some point, it would be beneficial to change the grease... that seems as though it would be a pain...

lubricating the entire assembly.... oil can be flung, and that is how the entire rotating assembly is lubricated... but as for grease, it may not fling as well... though i'm sure with heat, it will thin up and could do so... but, when cold... i think it would just sit stagnant and the carrier will actually just ride through it, flinging up what it catches, and leaving the rest..

you say "where there is grease, there is no water"... well.. water CAN get in, and likely WILL get in if you intend on those axles going underwater... the water will not mix with the grease, it will likely sit on top, AS water... and if for some reason, taht water can get under some grease (lots of stuff moving in there).. it can do some work on that metal

it MIGHT work... i can't say either way... but those are my concerns

 

[redrooster]

The real problem is oil leaking, correct?
I have fixed Dana 60 shafts like yours before. The seal wears a groove in the shaft over time and then it leaks. There are two things you can do:
1. use adifferent width seal, or don't tap the seal all the way in. That way it doesn't ride over the worn area.
2. take the shaft to a local machine shop and have them weld up the groove and then machine it back down.

Now, I know the next comment is going to be "it will explode cause you weakened the metal by heating it up." No it won't. Just tell them to weld a 1/4" at a time and then wurn it over and weld the other side. It will be ok.
I did a 60 shaft like that for a truck that was running 42's and it has been in there for 3 years.

 

[TwistedCU]

I know alot of old timers would put the grease gun in the fill hole of a rear axle. One time I was doing an oil change and lubing the underneath of a Toyota Pickup I had and I took the fill plug out of the rear. When I went to the garage to ask my step dad if he had any gear oil, he just came out and started pumping grease into my diff. :shock:

Well that was 3 years before I sold the thing, and I just kept using it that whole period. I ran it hard on and off road and never knew a difference.