88 k2500 cv removal

[carter442]

i am removing my 88 k2500 cv axle on the drivers side. it is a light duty and i was wondering if anyone has any tips or tricks to it. i am currently waiting for a lift to open up at skool and im looking in to how the removal is done and it says to remove the stabilizer bar and the tie rod end is all this neccessary or can i take a short cut? my idea was to unbolt the cv shaft at the diff then from the knucle and then pull it out and if i hav to remove anything remove the shock would this work or is there something else i can do

[BIGphillip79]

Sounds right. remove the bolts at the the diff and the big axle nut. Remove the lower shock mount and push the shock over. Put a jack under the lower ball joint and jack it up until the suspension stops travelling and the truck starts to go up. Pull the cv axle down out off of the diff and pull it out of the hub. Don't be scared to wiggle and bang on it a little if you have to. Leave you steering column unlock so you can turn the wheel if you need to. Make Absolutely sure and be careful not to pull the axle shafts out of the differential.

[purcell747]

I've had to change mine many times in my k1500 on the trail. unbolt it from the axle, take the 35mm nut off, jack the truck up like the others siad until you can get the suspension compressed as much as you can. with the shock off you can wiggle it out with a lil elbow grease. It's not a hard job, usually takes me 30ish minutes to swap one out once the tools are out

[carter442]

we started it today i was amazed how easily all of the bolts have come off it took nothing to get it unbolted even looking for tools and stuff it only took about 30-45 mins to get it unbolted. the biggest problem is i cant get it out. the shock is undone and i unbolted the tie rod i cant get the flange on the axle out to pull it out its getting stuck on the diff then we turned the wheel and its barely getting caught on the side of the diff we only need aboout 1/2 an inch to get it out. so we are unbolting the tie rod end completely then probable taking the stabilizer link off which will probably break. hopefully that will work. im really bummed about it because i wont get to work on it since im leaving for ohio tomorrow so the rest is up to my instructor and class but i will update for future reference

[BIGphillip79]

Don't be to shy to get the pry bar out. You know what they say, "Don't force it, get a bigger hammer."

If you turn the wheel out and let the suspension droop it will give you a little slack. Once the flange is clear of the diff and you got the stub out of the hub, jack the suspension back up to make room for the shaft to come right out. I think the idea about unhooking the tie rod is let you turn the wheel easier. I don't remember it being in the way. I just left the column unlocked.

[carter442]

my class got it today while i was visiting college so on monday i will ask how they got it im guess they took the tie rod off and possibly got the stabilizer bar link off without breaking it

[Xuare]

In the heavy duty IFS the end can be slid out without removing the tie rods, however you need to crank the wheel such that it's going far left. This gives more clearance between the lower A-arm and the tie rod. After that, the CV joints have some built in compression and extension that can be used to try to get the lip of the inner collar outside the differential.

Putting in the new CV shaft is much easier, as it tends to come in a compressed state and gets pulled out to normal dimensions by the collar nuts and the splined shaft retaining nut.

I try to coat the spilnes with fresh (disk brake / high temp) grease, as it'll help the spline s adjust in place and make future removal easier.

[69-350]

purcell, for reference it's a 36mm nut, lol. I don't think I ever have had problems with CVs on my 97, no unbolting shocks or anything else. However, on a NBS GMC 2500HD we did have to remove the shock, but that only took an extra ten minutes. With two people (one on the wrench, one on the brake pedal) it shouldn't take maybe 10-20 minutes to change one.

Xuare, for reference, there's nothing "heavy duty" about IFS, or at least not the OP's. He has (or made it sound like it) the 6 lug "2500" which is infact nothing but a rebadged half ton. Otherwise, in 2500/3500 trucks, I wasn't aware removing a CV was any different that in a half ton truck, nor that in a half ton truck you have to remove any tie-rods or anything else. I didnt have to remove anything on my truck, and never heard of that problem.