Do stock drive shafts need grease?

[OnTheTrail]

Running the truck last night I noticed a very slight squeak. Narrowed it down to the front CV joint on the front drive shaft. Do you all grease these? I'm assuming so but they're exposed and not sure if grease will hold dirt in there.

Thanks in advance....

 

[high plains drifter]

I'm not sure what is recommended by the experts here on RCC but I've used graphite ( dry lube) on both plastic and metal driveshafts with good results. You can find it at most auto parts stores as well as walmart, home depot, etc.

 

[magic_yeti]

check if you have the same grinding on the trans output - it's common. Not an issue at all it goes...
I use teflon spray (kind of dry fluid) if nessary on out side parts. Never use grease, it will be like sandpaper after a short while.

 

[OnTheTrail]

I have graphite spray for locks. Would that work as well on the shaft ends?

 

[OnTheTrail]

check if you have the same grinding on the trans output - it's common. Not an issue at all it goes...
I use teflon spray (kind of dry fluid) if nessary on out side parts. Never use grease, it will be like sandpaper after a short while.

It's not a grinding sound at all. Just a very slight squeak. Only under load.

 

[Gramps]

I use Purple Extreme on all the external moving parts on my RC's it goes on wet but dries so as not to attract dirt. I put it in a small dispenser bottle to make it easier to handle. Seems expensive but I've been using the same bottle for at least 5 years.

 

[magic_yeti]

It's not a grinding sound at all. Just a very slight squeak. Only under load.

On mine it was less a grinding noise, more a squeak as you descripe it. If under load or not i don't remember.



Could also be a bearing or a gear maybe, but just some gess.
Teflon or graphite if it's dry it should work.

 

[OnTheTrail]

Thanks all. Instead of the lock graphite spray (which is really messy till it dries) I blew the CVs out with compressed air and then cleaned/lubed with some Hornady OneShot firearm cleaner/dry lube I had in the shop. Shouldn't hurt the metal or plastic parts. If I have an issue, I'll repost here.

 

[AnimalHippie]

I use dry spray white lithium grease on mine. Seems to last awhile. Doesn't attract much dirt and dust.

 

[Timmahh]

Personally I have never greased my drive shafts. Infact, I often shoot them with brake cleaner to clean off all oil residues before I put them together. If anything I may spray just a little silicon lube or wd40 just in the u joints/cvd joints only, and then just enough to say they are damp.

Otherwise, Grease and lubricants is a Dirt/Sand Collector, therefore have little to no use in an area open to the elements. lol.
My area is fairly sand-laden. So grease only holds the sand around and it is like sandpaper, no figure. lol

I try to keep the driveshafts bone dry, if they are plastic/plastic shafts, take them out after every run or two and clean them well. If they are plastic/metal, just clean the plastics every run or too. If they are metal, keep a can of Brake Cleaner around to spray any crap out of them and dry them out well.

Jm2c

 

[bexline]

Did that solve your problem? I have a squeaking in the front end under load. Sounds like a bearing going out. I was planning on putting stainless bearings in mine anyway so I swapped them all out. No change. It’s worse in reverse. Open to ideas.

 

[nucklehead]

Came across this a few days back

https://youtu.be/f8yW-hyG7dw

Skip to 7:52 if you don’t want to watch him talking about toe out

 

[Axidrain]

Did that solve your problem? I have a squeaking in the front end under load. Sounds like a bearing going out. I was planning on putting stainless bearings in mine anyway so I swapped them all out. No change. It’s worse in reverse. Open to ideas.

I had some squeak on my drive shaft after washing the thing down with water a couple of times. I just took the front shaft out, disassembled it and put some oil on all the joints. There was some rust on the pins that I noticed as well.