Rear seal repair. Anything else needed?

albow wrote:

ScottG wrote:
Shudder is also caused by the center support getting old. At that age, yours is bad.
I replaced the whole thing with a 1 piece DS. No shutter.

What's a center support? IS that only with a 2 piece driveshaft?

Yes, only with two piece drive line, also called Carrier Bearing.

albow wrote:

Dave H M wrote:
Lets get it sorted out first.

When is the shudder going on? Is it after the clutch is fully engaged and you are accelerating?

Or is it while the clutch is still slipping as you are letting it out to start moving?

If I remember correctly, it seems like it's after it is engaged and I don't notice it once the first shift is made. I've always attributed it to hearing that the driveshaft is a little misaligned in some vehicles when loaded down. It's noticeable but not scary so. Also, I never smell the clutch and believe me, I know what that smells like from an experience 10 years ago!

OK it is time for a Ford story and then I will go way. ;)

It seems to me that you have a drive line issue exactly like I had in the 99 F250. It would shudder when taking off with a load in the bed or the 5th wheel hooked up when i made a sharp turn leaving a site on an up hill pull. it drove me nutso cus i had visions of the drive shaft snaking around on the pavement after a big noise. I had a two piece drive shaft. After taking the whole enchilada into a reliable shop,they said the joints to include the center support were OK. I finally determined that it was probably a drive shaft alignment issue.

I bagged the truck and started airing up the bags to keep it level or close to it. The problem went away. That is except when I had to hump a load and did not take the time or effort to air up the bags.

I am sticking to that one. :W

albow wrote:

ScottG wrote:
Shudder is also caused by the center support getting old. At that age, yours is bad.
I replaced the whole thing with a 1 piece DS. No shutter.

What's a center support? IS that only with a 2 piece driveshaft?

Yes.
If you have a 2 piece driveshaft, the carrier bearing is likely sacked out. U joints are either good or bad and if they're bad they squeak, each revolution, at first. Then clunk. They are either shot or not, no guessing.
However anything over 100-150k miles on a set of original U joints, they are likely to go at any time.

ScottG wrote:
Shudder is also caused by the center support getting old. At that age, yours is bad.
I replaced the whole thing with a 1 piece DS. No shutter.

What's a center support? IS that only with a 2 piece driveshaft?

Dave H M wrote:
Lets get it sorted out first.

When is the shudder going on? Is it after the clutch is fully engaged and you are accelerating?

Or is it while the clutch is still slipping as you are letting it out to start moving?

If I remember correctly, it seems like it's after it is engaged and I don't notice it once the first shift is made. I've always attributed it to hearing that the driveshaft is a little misaligned in some vehicles when loaded down. It's noticeable but not scary so. Also, I never smell the clutch and believe me, I know what that smells like from an experience 10 years ago!

Shudder is also caused by the center support getting old. At that age, yours is bad.
I replaced the whole thing with a 1 piece DS. No shutter.

I agree, if you're tearing into the drive line anyway, may as well replace the U-joints.

Lets get it sorted out first.

When is the shudder going on? Is it after the clutch is fully engaged and you are accelerating?

Or is it while the clutch is still slipping as you are letting it out to start moving?

albow wrote:
Pretty sure it's not the clutch and since I don't have to remove the tranny for the rear seal, I won't. Sounds like I should change the ujoints though. Thinking about it, I notice a little driveline slack from time to time which is probably the ujoints, right?

Not saying there is anything wrong with the clutch, just driving habits. Your 5er is likely in the 12,000# range same as mine. I will occasionally get clutch chatter pulling the 5er if I engage it too slowly, granted mine is not stock it is a double disk, but any other time smooth as silk.

Normal for that vintage truck, it is spring wrap and a change in drive line anglarity from load squat. Many replaced the 2 peice drive dhaft with a single shaft. I just drove mine with no long term issues, once moving it goes away, the springs wrap relaxes. If it were U-Joints, it would never completly go away.