Many of you out there make New Year's resolutions. Some of you vow to go on that long overdue diet, some of you pledge to get more done around the house, and some of you promise to be nicer to the in-laws. In light of the New Year, we decided to create a resolution of our own here at Diesel Power: To work on our trucks more.
Our New Year's resolution for our '97 Power Stroke was to not overlook necessary repairs. After going straight for the power-adding new injectors, a chip, and an exhaust system-we neglected fixing our leaky front Dana 60's axle seal. For 2009, we've decided to focus on how to keep our Power Stroke on the road and functional, rather than getting more power. We'll begin by showing you how we replaced our worn axle seals in this issue. This is a fix you and a fellow shade-tree mechanic can do in your own driveway with a jack, two jackstands, and some simple handtools. Here's how we did it. DP
 This was the reason for tearing...  This was the reason for tearing into our F-350's frontend. The driver-side axle seal (arrow) was leaking slowly for several months before we addressed the issue. We recommend fixing a problem like this as soon as you find it because grease and oil attract dust and debris like no other, which is never good for any type of rotating assembly. |  We started by taking the manual-locking...  We started by taking the manual-locking hubs off each front wheel. A 3.5mm Allen wrench was required to remove six outer Allen bolts, then we pulled the spiraled hub-retainer ring out through the groove on the inside of the hub with a set of pliers. Then the hub was removed. |  Next, we removed all differential...  Next, we removed all differential bolts using a 9/16-inch socket, drained all the gear lube, and removed the differential cover. After that we put the truck up on jackstands and removed the wheels, plastic hub covers, and brake calipers. |
 Our F-350 spent most of its...  Our F-350 spent most of its life in northern Ohio, so we battled rusty bolts the entire weekend. Soaking everything down with WD-40 made things easier. After we removed the brake caliper, we loosened the brake caliper bracket bolts using a 13/16-inch socket and a breaker bar. |  Then we used a 1/2-inch drive...  Then we used a 1/2-inch drive hub nut socket we bought at Autozone (this is the only specialty tool we needed to purchase to do the job) to loosen the outer bearing adjusting nuts. After that, we pulled the lock-ring, inner adjusting nut, then the wheel hub off the spindle, and were careful that the outer wheel bearing didn't fall to the ground. |  We removed the five nuts that...  We removed the five nuts that held the spindle on with an 11/16-inch socket, then wrapped a magazine around the spindle to protect it while hitting it side to side with a big hammer. |