It seems that every time I tear into an old axle the shafts are rusted to hell, sometimes with very heavy scale on them. I know that from the manufacturer the shafts are raw. I noticed that most aftermarket shafts are also in raw form, so why not paint them? It seems that a decent coat of paint, or powder coat would prevent the rust problem and keep them in better condition. I know that when bolts get rusty then tend to break, so would the same principle apply to shafts? I cant see rust creating a major problem as far as strength, but if bad enough may cause small weak points?

Here are my 60 shafts that I just did in massey furgeson red :smokin: . I figured it cant hurt. If nothing else, it will make the broken peices esier to find :laughing:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a232/coolmudrunner/IMAG0094.jpg

thats funny, seems to make sense though

rust creates stress risers so it is a good idea to paint them....

as long as it doesnt mess up a seal i dont see a problem.

I think it is a great idea but there are two problems I see. The paint may not be oil resistant and my peel when exposed to petroleum for a period of time, which will cause seals to leak, and the axle seals may be cut or torn with the paint so, the seal surfaces should be cleaned. The rust may cause stress risers, but I would paint them only if they were spares. my .02 cents worth.

yes rust will indeed kill a shaft, my 9" recently got a broken shaft from it sitting for 2 long with water in the housing then when i went to run it, it snapped. i also painted my 14b shafts ford red to prevent this just incase

Use a fish oil paint (the stuff used inside of engines) if you're worried about the paint.