Amc model 20

[guidoscj]

Just purchased this jeep,during a wheel seal replacement on r rear realized there had been a previous wheel bearing failure that had screwed up the housing end ware the bearing race seats,i put it back together the way it was just so I could move it, at this point it has not started leaking again.My question is,is this axle worth messing with? is there a fix for this type of failure?I don't want to get a ton of money into something that's not worth fixing but that money tree has just been not producing enough ware I can put some type of high dollar axle under it.I don't like this two piece axle,seems kinda rinkydink to me.What are my options?

 

[caveman]

Your best option for a low buck fix is to get another rear housing, Weld the axle tubes to the center section so they don't spin on you and buy a set of Moser or Superior one piece axles. Moser being the most popular. It still won't be cheap, but it will be as strong as a Dana 44 if you make these improvements.

 

[Lumpy Grits]

There's many reasons why I put a Currie 3/4 T, Ford 9" in the back of my CJ7 about 25 years ago.
LG

 

[Hedgehog]

Or ... for $250 or less you can find a decent Dana 44.

Okay, so, you replaced the rear wheel seal, the pocket was a little screwed up, but the seal is not leaking. Why not run it until is proves it's not going to leak or starts leaking?

 

[Lumpy Grits]

Rear axle seal leakage is a classic sign of a bent/tweaked housing.
LG

 

[Saddle Tramp]

Rear axle seal leakage is a classic sign of a bent/tweaked housing.
LG

Got to go with Lumpy on this; the tubes on the CJ AMC20 are thin and prone to bend when wheeled hard. (A FSJ AMC20 tubes are a lot heavier than the CJ.)

 

[Turbogus]

I purchased my '78 CJ 5 a couple of years ago and had been having some rear axle problems. Shortly after acquiring this CJ axle grease was seeping out of the hub. Upon removing the axles we noticed that the inner wheel bearings were WELDED to the axle, not by heat/friction, but by someone with a welder! A local shop re kitted this axle (narrow AMC20) with a Yukon 1 piece axle kit. 1st try and the bearing free play was too tight - burned up the wheel bearings. 2nd try, too loose - axle backed out of the housing shortly after leaving shop. 3rd try and things went well for about two months and then noticed some seepage at the rear hub again. Sure enough, the free play had increased. This go, a non stock bearing keeper was installed to hold bearing firmly in place -we hoped! The shop chief noticed that there were two half circle ( ) inserts incorporated into this axle that were part of the 'welded' axle, no mention of these in the AMC service manual that I luckily had acquired since getting this Jeep, and another odd thing is correct free play couldn't be obtained without these half circle inserts. We contacts Randy's Ring and Pinion and learned that a spacer was missing for the kit we had purchased from them earlier. We had to pull the dang thing apart AGAIN and with Randy's on the phone for guidance we set the bearing clearance at the long side of tolerance, 0.62
One week later I smelled that old 'hot bearing' odor

I had become so familiar with, pulled the axles again and saw the damn roller bearings formed a 'conga line'. So I made a trip out to Mac's Jeep Parts and we pulled a Dana 44 out of an old Jeep Scrambler, installed a Lock Right differential and new bearings throughout and I've not had any issues since (knock on wood). After turning in the AMC20 for core we noticed that the troubles lied in that the reason the inner wheel bearings were welded to the axle shaft were that the axle tubes had become crooked from the diff~!
I sure hope yours is an easier path!