front axle question

[rkbonds1]

The roar I hear from my tires has suddenly gotten louder a little at a time so I pulled the fill plug from the axles and the rear was a little low but the front...... Well let's just say it looks like wheel bearing grease that has been exposed to water.... just thick and nasty looking. So my questions are 1. The front axle should not be turning when in 2wd correct? 2. How or what would be the best method for cleaning out this nasty mess before it causes problems, and can I do that without removing the internals?

Truck is a 93 4.0

 

[chrwilkins30]

the axle does not move the wheel bearings do.

 

[rkbonds1]

But, the axle and drive shaft would turn if the hub wasn't disengaging right? Still trying to figure out how to clean all the milky grease out of the axle without removing the axle shafts.

 

[Will]

The axle shafts are what transmit the power to the hub. The weight of the truck is supported by the spindle and wheel bearings. Just so we're clear.

If your hub is unlocked, the wheel should not be powering the axle shaft. Jack it up a little and turn the tire while looking through the window at the rear of the axle and see if it's unlocked.

Water in there will settle to the bottom. If you drive it with the hubs locked so the diff turns, it will whip the water and grease together into a white froth and it will be thin. If you do have water, the water can't be removed that easily. I wouldn't even bother trying to suck it out of an axle hole with the shaft out. I would pull the pumpkin. It's a bastard if it's never been done before, but you don't want to ruin your gears. It's an excellent chance to change the axle bearings and set your passengerside shaft up so you can in the future remove it without dropping the pumpkin, plus is time to clean and grease that slip-joint in the right shaft.