Pre-Trip Maintenance

[Parentnoia]

Heard anything bad about Royal Purple? I've heard tons of good, anyone got anything bad?

 

[sewlow]

All positive! One of the best.

 

[SkyHighColorado]

+1 on the RP
its so damn expensive though!!! RP makes good diff oil. I think mobil1 is best bang for buck.

 

[Parentnoia]

Well then next week I'll go get me some RP gear oil and grease. How much gear oil should I buy, or is one bottle usually enough?

EDIT: Another question, when replacing the oil and gasket on my rear diff, should I clean it out with brake cleaner to try to get some of the old oil out? Or will enough of it drain out that added synthetic on top of it will be negligible?

 

[sewlow]

Owner's manual has the fluid capacities, I believe. Don't have mine in front of me right now!
If the rear end is not being completely torn down, don't know if I'd be using any cleaning chemicals in there. Who knows what problems any residue may cause.
Drain it, wipe out what you can, then drag a shop magnet through the bottom of the housing.
Some like to put the gaskets in with a bit of grease or oil to hold it in place. I've put a line of RTV around the cover before.

 

[Parentnoia]

Owner's manual has the fluid capacities, I believe. Don't have mine in front of me right now!
If the rear end is not being completely torn down, don't know if I'd be using any cleaning chemicals in there. Who knows what problems any residue may cause.
Drain it, wipe out what you can, then drag a shop magnet through the bottom of the housing.
Some like to put the gaskets in with a bit of grease or oil to hold it in place. I've put a line of RTV around the cover before.

Well my experience with brake cleaner is residue free, but I understand the precaution.

Also, I have no clue where my owner's manual is and I found out that my Chilton book is for gmt800s, so I'm a bit SOL on the capacity info without googling.

Also, I dont think I have access to a torque wrench now that I think of it.

 

[Sampuppy1]

Well my experience with brake cleaner is residue free, but I understand the precaution.

Also, I have no clue where my owner's manual is and I found out that my Chilton book is for gmt800s, so I'm a bit SOL on the capacity info without googling.

Also, I dont think I have access to a torque wrench now that I think of it.

I worked at a dealership service dept. we used brake cleaner all day for diffs and such with absolutely no issues. Just wipe out the whole thing and stuff rags in the axle tubes so the stuff doesn't puddle up in there. Other than that make sure you use non chlorinated. It's a touch more expensive but it always dries. RP is good stuff. Right up there with AMSOIL.

Go to autozone. They have Haynes manuals for the 400. Haynes IMO is way easier to read from.

I would go to the dealership for info. Give them the last 8 characters of the vin. They can get you the fluid types and amounts for your truck. If they aren't asshats about helping their customers. Make sure you return the favor and pick up some parts while you are there. Yeah you pay a little more but if you make friends with the local parts dept you can get alot of info on your stuff.

A torque wrench isn't always necessary. For drain plugs and diff covers and trans pans the old German way works. Gudentite. When it comes to more precise things with limited tolerances like axle nuts lug nuts pinion nuts bearing caps ball joint castle nuts and the like a decent torque wrench will save you many a headache. I got mine from harbor freight. Paid less than $30. Make sure you store it on 0. If you don't the spring inside will lose tension and it won't be close to accurate. As a testament to harbor freight tools I have a 36" breaker bar that I have hung from the end of and bounced on with no breakage. 1/2 drive. Paid $8. Of course not all their stuff is this great but if cared for and used properly you shouldn't have a problem. And for a weekend warrior and beginner like yourself, good cheap tools are handy. Your wife might flip if you bought the 28" Snap-on ratchet I just did. $250. Lol.

 

[sewlow]

Good stuff ^^^
I just bought a Snap-On ratcheting screwdriver. Over $100.00! But I use it everyday, & the last one lasted 12 years.
I've also bought a complete 3/8 socket set (Princess Auto) for less than that one screwdriver!
Got a Craftsman 1/2" torque wrench & a Milwaukee 1/2" impact off of C/L. $50.00, for the pair.
You can find deals if you shop around a bit.

 

[Sampuppy1]

^^^^^well said

 

[Parentnoia]

Does this look like a good torque wrench?
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/wmr-m202-p/overview/