By Slider on Saturday, October 06, 2001 - 02:40 pm: Edit

I've been oiling my swivels and the leakage is just out of hand...

Can I pump some grease in there and assure that I got it on and around all the neccessary parts in there?

FYI=95 disco 85K

I really don't want to tear them down at this point until I really need new ones and at that time I'll go with the teflon type.

So can i pump it in there and see it bleed out and be assured the grease is doing it's thing??!

By Slider on Saturday, October 06, 2001 - 04:14 pm: Edit

Anyone have a solution???

By PerroneFord on Saturday, October 06, 2001 - 06:53 pm: Edit

Fix the problem, don't add a band-aid. If your swivel balls are leaking, the seals are probably shot. You're talking less than $50 in parts and a weekend's work. If you need new ones, BUY new ones. I don't know what you mean by the new "TEFLON" type.

If you fill with grease, you may not leak grease out, but you will still let crud, water, etc in.

Fix it.

By jp on Sunday, October 07, 2001 - 02:06 am: Edit

LR now sell EP90 grease in a plastic sachet, only bigger. It is now the recomended solution to this long problem.
JP

By Slider on Sunday, October 07, 2001 - 04:39 am: Edit

EP90??...I still do a disassembly to get the grease in there though, right???

Perrone...The teflon swivels are what everyone calls the "black" ones, I think? Instead of chrome coated, they're teflon and appear black.

By PerroneFord on Sunday, October 07, 2001 - 05:51 am: Edit

Thanks for the explanation. I've not seen those on a Rover yet. When did the start to be fitted? I still stand by my statement that changing over to grease is NOT a solution, well at least not a good one.

I think the the dealers demanded LR do something to reduce their costs doing warranty repair. We know how much these things leak in certain cases, and since the fix is so long, dealers were likely losing money servicing the seals under warranty. Of couse this has nothing to do with making sure your truck runs better.

The extreme viscosity of the grease means that it doesn't flow well when cold, and works less well as a lubricant in very cold weather. If the grease gets contaminated (think water crossing, mud it, etc) then the swivel housing will need to be dismantled, stripped clean, and refilled. With oil, you'd simply open the drain, then refil with clean fluid.

This issue has been discussed plenty in the past, and it always comes out the same. Grease in the swivel housing is a band-aid to a non-expensive problem. It doesn't do anything to help the life of your truck, and could cause harm in the long term.

-P

By Kyle on Sunday, October 07, 2001 - 06:49 am: Edit

All the lte model trucks run the grease. Get two tubes , shoot it in there and forget about it until that too starts running out. I have been running it in my 94 for quite some time.


Kyle

By Axel Haakonsen (Axel) on Sunday, October 07, 2001 - 12:32 pm: Edit

For some of us - whether Perrone is aware of it or not - oil simply is not an option. My 97 came with the new teflon swivel balls from the factory, and they are filled with grease. There also is no drain plug, so I have no coice but to use grease. It really is not a bad solution. So you have to tear it down and repack/regrease everything every couple of years, big deal.

By PerroneFord on Sunday, October 07, 2001 - 07:20 pm: Edit

Axel,

Yes I had heard that they removed the drain plug. Damn silly in my opinon. But whether you use oil or grease is really no matter as long as the parts get lubricated.

As I said before, my primary concern is for those people operating in wet environments. When the seals start to go, water, mud, and sand can work their way past the seals and into the lubricant. If you have 90wt in there, the seals will be leaking and indicating to the owner that maintenance is necessary BEFORE the bearings get chewed up by the contaminants. With grease, you get no such warning.

To each his own.

-P

By Kyle on Monday, October 08, 2001 - 04:18 am: Edit

Well , it aint gonna get any bearing sin there to start with. Yes if you are running around with a swivel ball full of muddy water you can start to develop some CV issues but as I said. I have been running mine for a very long time that way with no issues.If its full of grease it will repell the water anyway...

Kyle

By Jeoffrey Nathan (Jrnathan) on Monday, October 08, 2001 - 06:08 am: Edit

Where is the fill and drain plug for the swivel housing in a 95 Disco?

Thanks,
Jeoffrey

By Al Hang (Alhang) on Monday, October 08, 2001 - 06:44 am: Edit

http://www.people.vcu.edu/~ahang/mine.htm

By Axel Haakonsen (Axel) on Monday, October 08, 2001 - 07:17 am: Edit

"If you have 90wt in there, the seals will be leaking and indicating to the owner that maintenance is necessary BEFORE the bearings get chewed up by the contaminants. "

That is all good and well if you have a swivel ball that can take oil. Like I said, on newer Disco's with the teflon swivel balls, oil is not an option.

By lynden on Monday, October 08, 2001 - 07:34 am: Edit

Okay, if my swivel housing is Metalic then I can run oil, but if it's been replaced it'll be a composite material... is that what we're saying here. My '96 has the metalic housing so I think I'm okay to run oil???

Other question, how to flush out the grease that's in there now. I want to run oil since the truck will be used in cold climate (skiing and such) all winter. Should I just fill w/ oil and drain a month later refilling to flush the grease out?
Thanks,
Lynden

By Jim C. on Monday, October 08, 2001 - 09:00 am: Edit

Teflon swivel balls, where have I been all this time. What's the advantage of teflon swivel balls instead of the metalic ones, ouside of pitting. Is there a worry about the plastic ones degrading over time from wear and tear?

By Axel Haakonsen (Axel) on Monday, October 08, 2001 - 10:57 am: Edit

Lynden:

If you have a drain plug, you can run oil, if you want to. If you have grease in there now, leave it. You won't be able to get it out unless you take the swivels apart.
Also, the new swivels are of course still made out of metal. They just look darker, because they are coated with some kind of teflon material.

By Tom P. on Tuesday, October 09, 2001 - 03:19 pm: Edit

Axel,

Next time you have to do swivel/CV work, you can add the level and drain plugs if you want:
http://www.d-90.com/~daveg/Swivels/main.html

It looks like a lot of work, but it would give you the option to drain what ever fluid you use: grease, 90wt., or a 50:50 blend.

Tom Proctor
96 Disco

By Axel Haakonsen (Axel) on Tuesday, October 09, 2001 - 06:09 pm: Edit

Yes, that is of course an option, too. Don't know if it's worth the hassle, though...