Swivel Ball Corrosion

Ian95rrc

Ian95rrc

Well-known member
Apr 20, 2004
673
3
40
St. Louis, MO
www.prattkreidich.com
In the process of replacing a swivel seal, I discovered that my left swivel is pitted and corroded on the front side. I'm wondering how common is this? I did have some water drain out the swivel and I also found the lower inside of the seal to be badly corroded. It seems that if I leave the current swivel ball in place it will just continue to corrode and lead to the seal failing again. So I plan to replace it, but I'm wondering if I could get this off a salvaged truck in a nice dry place or is it just worth the $300 for a new one.
 
R

RangeRoverHP

Well-known member
Apr 20, 2004
445
0
Philly
That is a common issue. Odds are the swivel seal will leak again (eventually) after the pits and corrosion cuts it up again and the grease slips through the imperfections. The new ones have a non corrosive paint on them to prevent the same situation from happening again.
The swivel is the same as a DI. So if you found one in good shape out of a newer DI, you could swap it in.
 
M

marc olivares

Well-known member
Apr 20, 2004
3,535
0
JB weld those pits up!

seriously, fill the pitted area with JB weld and sand smooth.
i've seen this done several times with amazing results.
and it won't cost you $300!
 
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marc olivares

Well-known member
Apr 20, 2004
3,535
0
they don't call it "Salt" lake city for nothing.......

yes here in SLC they salt the roads as well, and yes the JB weld does hold up.

i've seen it first hand....but then again i probably wouldn't have believed it had i read it on the net either. :)
 
Ian95rrc

Ian95rrc

Well-known member
Apr 20, 2004
673
3
40
St. Louis, MO
www.prattkreidich.com
Yeah, I'm skeptical but I'll give it a whirl on the other side if it has some corrosion. At least then I can really compare how the two hold up over time.

I could be wrong but I would still say STL has a more corrosive environment than SLC, even with out a great salt lake. Just take for instance today, we have 65% humidity and you have 25%.
 
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marc olivares

Well-known member
Apr 20, 2004
3,535
0
you're right about the humidity!

it's that dry air that gives us the most amazing snow on the planet!!!!!
well that and the lake efect doesn't help either.

i see if i can dig up a photo of the swivels on my buddies RRC.

best of luck to ya,
 
9

96discoI

Well-known member
Feb 16, 2008
216
1
NorCal
marc olivares said:
JB weld those pits up!

seriously, fill the pitted area with JB weld and sand smooth.
i've seen this done several times with amazing results.
and it won't cost you $300!
Click to expand...
can you do that while in place?
 
az_max

az_max

1
Apr 22, 2005
7,463
2
96discoI said:
can you do that while in place?
Click to expand...

You can, but it's hard to get it clean enough to jb weld it properly. I'd pull it and have it run through the parts washer before I put jb weld on it.

You can also mig weld it. Filling the pits is similar to what they do with hydraulic cylinder rods when they wear. Weld, grind flat. Polish or rechrome.
 
P

peter sherman

Well-known member
May 10, 2004
3,072
0
Fake Forest, IL
marc olivares said:
JB weld those pits up!

seriously, fill the pitted area with JB weld and sand smooth.
i've seen this done several times with amazing results.
and it won't cost you $300!
Click to expand...

50k on mine holding up very well. plenty of nasty shit here in IL
 
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