CV Boots

[WoodenBirdOfPrey]

So I got this CV quick boot kit at Advance because one of the outer boots was cracked.  Has anybody used one of these kits successfully?  Because all it's doing for me right now is getting me pretty ticked off, I don't see how this could ever reliably seal the CV's. 

Nevermind that a rubber seal is being held together with screws, the problem I'm having now is these junk metal bands that came with it to secure the ends to the joint and shaft.  Neither end wants to pull together tight enough to close up, as soon as I drive this thing the grease will just fling right out of it and i'm back where I started, minus an hour and 25 bucks.  It takes everything I have to stretch the large side of the boot close enough that the ends meet while being over the joint, there's no way I can do that while trying to tighten these steel bands with the cheesy buckle system to lock them.

Can I replace the bands with hose clamps, or is there a reason they have these junk steel bands to hold it together?  What is the trick?  Or did I just buy useless garbage?

Thanks for any help.  We're supposed to be getting a few inches of snow tonight here in PA and I'm hoping to go out and play tomorrow morning before the salt and plow trucks get to the back roads.

[Hawk258]

There are options for CV Boot clamps, I suggest looking at some, but personally I have to ask, how long has the boot been off and have you repacked the joint with grease? any grit and crap will chew up your joint. But if you have kept the boot clear of crap, You maybe better off going to a local shop like Les Swabs (West coast company) and check with them about getting the boots replaced, less hassle and they probably won't charge that much so long as you are willing to install the CV yourself.

[DaemonForce]

Personally I would do this all myself with the clamp tool but my Eagle tends to fall in and out of being a work vehicle and then sort of a project. Depending on which one your Eagle is, you're going to want to take care of this pretty quickly or the weather is going to annoy you to no end. I was lucky that I did this during the summer and after my job no longer needed me. I suggest you take this apparatus to Les Schwab or something for labor if you don't have the tool or the strength to use it. Yes there is a reason these clamps are used but something temporary like a hose clamp isn't going to break it. The real challenge is going to be getting this back in where it belongs.

[WoodenBirdOfPrey]

I wish I would have known ahead of time that the quick boots aren't a good long term solution, I would have just got a reman shaft. I don't know anywhere around here that rebuilds them like you're talking about. I'll just try to rig it up with hose clamps tonight and continue to look for a better long term fix.

[Hawk258]

look for a place that offers alignment and such, They "May" have a way to put boots on, A few phone calls could be enlightening

[carnuck]

Most places list the S10 4x4 axle as a direct swap.

[WoodenBirdOfPrey]

I put the quick boot on for now.  This thing just just the wrong size, no doubt.  Even after I got a hose clamp around the big side, and slowly worked the gap shut as I tightened it, immediately after the clamp it's opened up 1/8" or more.  It's packed with grease pretty good and I slathered some blue rtv on it, that will hopefully seal it up and hold the grease in to get me by for a while. 

[BenM]

There are 3 styles of CV that are used, and you could have certainly gotten a boot for the wrong one. I bet they don't have 3 different styles of boot listed.

I have a full replacement boot and a CV shaft, that was swapped out after I broke a ball joint and it tore the boot, sitting on a shelf for when I have the time; now I'll have to double-check the sizes. I don't want to use it for a core as it's only had a few thousand miles on it. At the time I had a spare core and was in a hurry to get it replaced because of the tear.