Series 3 Propshaft UJs don't take grease

When I rebuilt my Series 3 I fitted two brand new Bailey Morris propshafts. I pumped all the UJs with grease using a compressed air powered grease gun before fitting

When I try to grease them with a hand pumped gun, the grease all seems to leak out from around the end of the grease gun fitting.

I have tried a few different fittings, and checked that the ball valves in the grease nipples are free to move. Why should it be so difficult to pump any grease into them?

Thanks for any replies.

there was a thread about greasing ujs a little while ago,

Maybe take the prop off and clean the uj up.

Cheers

I find that if the grease gun end is not exactly in line with the grease nipple, grease will tend to bleed out sideways instead of into the item being greased.

I had the same problem. I have now bought a new end for the grease gun and no problems now. If in doubt take the nipple off and check it is clear then try and pump some grease through it.

Norrie.

wot he sed ^^^^^^^^. take the nipple off and check it is clear then try and pump some grease through it.

What thread size are the grease nipples on the Series prop shaft? I have seen some long grease nipples for sale which look far easier to access.

Also, apparently modern vehicle UJs are greased when new and sealed for life. These could be worth fitting if they make them in the right size.

What’s the life expectancy (MTBF) of a UJ?

I don't know where to get that information.

As my series is used so infrequently, sealed UJs seem like a sensible idea as it is onel less bit of maintenance.

The sealed for life UJ I fitted to the 110 as a quick fix to get me going again lasted about 10 weeks before it was rumbling! The 110 is high mileage and gets used off road so even proper UJ's only last me about 18months. I would not trust the sealed units again, at least if you regularly grease it you know there is something in there.

Webley1991 said:

What thread size are the grease nipples on the Series prop shaft? I have seen some long grease nipples for sale which look far easier to access.

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Longer ones will (probably) catch the yokes and snap off?

I am told that most modern vehicles with drive shafts have sealed UJs. Surely they can't all be wearing out within a few months.

Flossie said:

Longer ones will (probably) catch the yokes and snap off?

Click to expand...

I also thought this when I looked as the shaft over the weekend.

The casting of one of the yokes makes it very awkward to get the grease gun fitting on. If I ever rebuild the shaft I will make sure to grind a little off the side of that one.

Grinding the edge off the yolk will cause an imbalance on shaft, these things must be balanced otherwise the thing will just shake itself to pieces, not nice at 70mph

The holes for the UJ cups are not perfectly aligned to start with. There seems to be more metal on one side than the other.

Would any imbalance caused by this have been corrected by balancing the shaft when it was made?

They should have allowed for this. Its less important with the UJs becuse they are at the ends near the bearings but they are balanced, you should see balance marks or little bits welded on. You can balance them with 2 jubilee clips but its a right faff.

I knew about the squares welded on for balancing.

The reason I bought two new shafts from a known maker was so that they would hopefully be balanced.

Webley1991 said:

I knew about the squares welded on for balancing.

The reason I bought two new shafts from a known maker was so that they would hopefully be balanced.

Click to expand...

Then why risk grinding a bit off of one side?

Cheers

It's just something that crossed my mind if I ever needed to rebuild it. That particular UJ is a real pain to get the grease gun onto.

Webley1991 said:

What thread size are the grease nipples on the Series prop shaft? I have seen some long grease nipples for sale which look far easier to access.

Also, apparently modern vehicle UJs are greased when new and sealed for life. These could be worth fitting if they make them in the right size.

Click to expand...

sealed for life is the norm and has been for a while,they have a long life if fitted correctly

What do you mean by "fitted correctly"?

Fitted in a clean environment without contamination?

How long is a life?

until it fails?