OEMTOOLS 24538 Class 7-8 Heavy Duty U-Joint Puller

This is OEMTOOLS part number 24538, a forcing-screw U-joint puller built for Class 7 and Class 8 driveline work. It clamps around the yoke and pushes the bearing cups straight out of the yoke ears, which is the only way to get a rusted-in cup out without beating on the yoke with a hammer and a socket. It handles bearing cup outside diameters from 1.5 in to 2.2 in, which covers the common heavy-truck series joints you find under tractors, dump bodies, and heavy equipment drivelines.

On the bench or under the truck, the sequence is the same: pull the snap rings or remove the bearing strap bolts, set the puller body over the yoke so the pressing screw lines up on the cup you want out, and run the screw down. Drive it with a 1 in impact wrench or smaller, or a hand ratchet - it is not built for a big high-torque pneumatic gun. Once the first cup walks out, flip the tool and repeat on the opposite cup, then lift the cross out.

The problem this solves is bent and elongated yoke ears. When a cup is seized from rust or from a joint that ran dry and welded itself in, hammering will move the cup, but it also peens the ear and opens up the bore. A yoke with a stretched bore never holds a new joint tight and comes back as a driveline vibration complaint. The forcing screw applies steady, straight-line pressure and keeps the yoke and the driveshaft tube out of it.

The tool weighs 11.75 lb and measures 8.5 x 3.7 x 13.6 in, with a painted finish. Model number 24538.