Case 580 M Front Axle U Joint Replacement

I have to replace the front axle U joints on my Case 580SM that I use on my farm. I have a a couple of questions on doing this repair.

1. If I remove the upper and lower king pins and the tie rod end from the Planetary drive / Hub assembly can the entire assembly be removed from the axle
housing and the axle/Ujoint assembly pulled out of the back of the hub or is there a snap ring or other type of retaining clip inside the planetary drive that
must be removed before the axle/Ujoint assembly can be pulled out ?

2. I removed the 4 bolts holding the upper and lower king pins today to see if there will be a problem getting them out. I was able to rotate the upper king pin
and pry it up slightly so it looks like that one will come out fairly easy. I was not able to rotate or pry the lower king pin out of the bore although I didnt
use a lot of force yet. What is the best way to get a stuck king pin loose ? Is it OK to use some heat or is it too close to the bearings ? I thought about
cutting a small notch at the joint between the king pin flange and the housing with a 1/16 disk on a mini grinder so I can drive a small chisel in the notch to
try and break it loose.
Appreciate any other suggestions on getting a stuck king pin loose.

Yes the whole lump will come off in one piece with the shaft, I used to strip the hub down because the oil seal would usually be leaking, there are two seals, the drive shaft and the larger hub seal, there is no easy way of getting the king pins out, having a fully equipped shop we used to weld a large nut on to the centre of the king pin and using some threaded bar and a sleeve with a hydraulic puller to pull the pins, its a poor design, they should have put some thread holes so jacking bolts could be used.
Good luck
AJ

Thanks for the reply - I was able to get it apart today - pulled the planetary cover and removed the axle snap ring and then removed the king pins. Top ones
didnt take too long to get out with hammer and various size chisels to wedge under the flange. Lower ones took quite a bit longer but got them out. Have all the
old ujoints removed and will start reassembly tomorrow.

I have seen pictures that show several shims under the upper king pin flange - I assume that is to adjust clearance between the pins and steering knuckle ???
Mine didnt have any shims on the upper pin flange - there was a larger bevel washer on the top about 1/8 inch thick between the steering knuckle and the upper
axle ear and a smaller - thinner washer on the bottom between the lower axle ear and steering knuckle.

Do I need to worry about setting clearance or just put it back together with the same 2 washers ? I have checked play in the steering knuckles before and when I
raised the front end off the ground and lift on the the tire there is a little bit of movement up and down in the king pins but didn't seem excessive for a
machine with 7000 hours. I have had 2 wheel drive tractors in the past with a lot more play in the king pins.

If you think there is too much play take a shim out, as long as the swivel turns freely it will be ok, I always put back what I took out and never had any problems, when you put oil in the hubs do not over fill them as that can cause them to leak, 85/140 gear oil, the torque for the king pin retaining bolts 101 ft/lbs, rod end 85.
AJ

There were no shims on the top or bottom king pin - just the bevel washers between the top and bottom of the swivel and the axle - so no option to remove shims to
reduce any excess clearance.

There are no shims on mine - I expect they may have been removed in the past to reduce clearance. I have the service manual but there doesn't seem to be any info
on shimming the steering swivel to the axle housing. Mine has the Carraro axle with the 4 bolt king pin flanges. I think some have a different axle with 3 bolt
flange king pins.

The bottom king pin is spherical on the end - I think that is a bushing that presses on the king pin. The upper king pin is straight with a larger diameter that
seats in the axle and a smaller diameter on the end that goes into the steering swivel - I imagine there is a bushing in the steering swivel that mates with the
small diameter end on the upper king pin.

Since there are no shims on the upper king pin I think the only way to tighten if up now would be to replace the spherical bushing un the bottom king pin if it is
worn which would raise the steering swivel up higher against the upper king pin ????

I decided to go ahead and order the replacement upper and lower king pin bushings and belleville washers. Any suggestions on best way to remove the old bushings that are pressed in end of the axle housing ?