I made some progress by pushing the knuckle up against the axle and then hitting the knuckle with a rubber mallet. After about an hour it went in enough to get the axle nut on a couple of threads. I kept tapping and turning the axle nut a bit at a time until about half the axle nut is threaded. The problem now is that hitting the knuckle no longer does anything.

The axle nut is probably threaded enough to pull the axle the rest of the way but it feels harder to turn than I would like. Should I pull the axle through with the axle nut or try something else? It seems unlikely that the axle is going in the rest of the way without a good amount of force.

 

The nut will be hard to turn,very hard that using a long pipe over a breaker bar is only way to get some leverage.i think it takes around 200 ft pounds of torque on nut..

It should come all the way back in when u tighten it..Did ya get new nuts? It is recommened ,but i have used used ones b4 with no prob.Only cause i couldn't get a new nut,i lost it.

Hope someone with axle experience on the escape will chime in with some info.

 

Shouldn't be that tight! Are you positioning the spring clip with the opening down to insert? I wouldn't try to force it on with the nut, and do use a new nut. I don't know the reason, but Ford insists on a new nut! Hope ya get it solved without too much stress.

 

Shouldn't be that tight! Are you positioning the spring clip with the opening down to insert? I wouldn't try to force it on with the nut, and do use a new nut. I don't know the reason, but Ford insists on a new nut! Hope ya get it solved without too much stress.

I think you're thinking of the inboard side of the axle where it goes into the transaxle. I'm talking about the wheel side where it goes into the hub, I don't think there is a spring clip as far as I know. There is no need for one because that's what the axle nut is for.

I agree it shouldn't be that tight but I don't know, maybe sometimes they're harder to get in.

 

I found in the official Ford service manual it says to use a special tool (204-161) to position the axle in the hub. I assume you use that to pull the axle through. I can't really tell how it works but it must attach to the end of the axle to give you something to pull on.

Honestly I'm not sure even that would help because it's pretty hard to pull through there. I just pressed the axle back out so I could check it and it required a good bit of force to get it out, not something you could do by hand even with something to pull on.

I think the problem with using the axle nut to pull it through itsthat turning the nut is going to turn the axle inside the hub making it even harder to pull through.

I don't know, I'm considering buying a new axle but I don't really have time for that since none of the local stores have it in stock.

Or maybe I'm thinking too much and should just torque that axle nut until the shaft comes all the way through. I don't want to mess up my brand new expensive hub though (which is a huge PITA to change, requiring a new bearing too).

 

I'd bet that if you inspected the splines on the axle, you'd find that one or more have some burrs. They will get a little burred from the axle transferring power to the hub, and that can cause difficulty in disassembly and reassembly.
I'd use a wire brush to make sure there is no rust or other stuff impeding the spline from fitting properly, and then inspect closely for metal that has been worn.
tom

 

I'd bet that if you inspected the splines on the axle, you'd find that one or more have some burrs. They will get a little burred from the axle transferring power to the hub, and that can cause difficulty in disassembly and reassembly.
I'd use a wire brush to make sure there is no rust or other stuff impeding the spline from fitting properly, and then inspect closely for metal that has been worn.
tom

Yeah, I have wired brushed it like crazy. There wasn't any rust but there are shiny areas where the metal was touching. One particular area at the end is pitted but feels smooth (see top right in picture).

Wire brush doesn't seem to do much at this point. Steel wool has no effect on this hardened steel. Might try a file or something but I can't feel any burrs.

Is it generally a good idea to replace a pitted axle or just make it fit?

Click for super huge picture:

 

I spent a bunch of time wire brushing and filing smooth every single smallest odd looking detail I could find and there was no change at all in the fit. I'm usually pretty good at noticing small defects and I just don't see anything.

Searching around I see axles that had obviously mushroomed/bend/burred sections that needed to be filed before they fit and when it finally did fit they still looked much worse than mine do now.

Obviously there is something hanging it up but I just don't know any way to figure out what it is. The splines look perfectly straight and clean. Maybe the axle is bent to such a small degree that I can't see it on a straightedge.

 

I ended up pulling the axle through with the old axle nut. Didn't take much force.

I'm going to drive a bit then recheck the torque on everything.

Anyone know if it's OK to check the torque on the axle nut? I know it should not be loosened, I mean just re-torque it to make sure it hasn't come loose on its own. I question whether or not this is a good idea because after the bearing has been loaded, seated, and driven around then re-torquing might actually make it tighter, too tight.