Flattened Splines on 14b

[brian052484]

So I didn't exactly break an axle shaft in the way that you'd think... but it's broken nonetheless. What caused this?

[Grumpy_old_fart]

bent housing.

[shortsub]

are you running a welded diff? I am thinking possible bent tubes .

My 14 bolt is all kinds of bent , ill have to check and see if my splines are flat .... we could be the flat splined 14 bolt friends .

[brian052484]

lol. maybe we could start an exclusive club?


Yes sir it's welded up.

[shortsub]

yea , you have to be pretty special to be in this club ...
Is anything visibly bent? do you have a traction bar? tubes welded? im just trying to think of anything that could do some tweaking

[brian052484]

I haven't looked at it closely to see if it's bent yet. It's not blatantly obvious, but it's still possible. I don't have a traction bar... just some shock tabs welded on top. Does a traction bar often lead to bent axle tubes? This was going to be one of my up-coming projects!

[shortsub]

the only thing with a traction bar is you must weld the tubes up ... a 14 bolt will spin the tubes once you make one side stationary .

no necessarily bend stuff ... just spin

so what made you think you broke? is everything functioning properly? do those shafts go in and out the carrier ok?

[brian052484]

Originally Posted by shortsub

the only thing with a traction bar is you must weld the tubes up ... a 14 bolt will spin the tubes once you make one side stationary .

Gotcha. That makes sense.


I was climbing this wall, and as soon as I started to climb there was a pop (I thought it was a front U-Joint, as always). But when I rolled backwards the left rear axle "popped" as it rolled and looked like it was sorta ratcheting. I figured I broke a shaft. I kept wheeling the rest of the day in 3 wheel drive, had no problems following our group of smaller vehicles.

I'll probly put it back together and wheel our next trip to krocks in 3 wheel drive. I doubt I'll be able to find another van axle, and i might as well replace the whole axle if the tube is bent.

[cegusman]

Bent tube, had the same thing happen on one of my bent 14 bolts

[86k30]

x10 bent housing. Got a buddy that lost a front 60 to the bends just a couple weeks ago. took us awhile to figure out why the lockright didn't act right.

[mudskipper4x4]

Hey Brian, theres a chevy van with a 14bff out at the waco pnp. Saw it out there today. Let me know if you need some help, I have all day next friday off if you need an extra hand or two.-Will

[brian052484]

Cool... thanks Will! If I'm gonna go pull a new axle, I think I might just get one out of a truck that way the spring perches are already at the right width. Remember seeing any out there under a truck?

[brian052484]

Originally Posted by Grumpy_old_fart

bent housing.

Dang grumpy you are always the first to answer my questions, and correct every time. You are the man!

[GMCTruxrule]

Can I kiss your ass some more Grumpy????? ^^^^^^

[nvrenuf]

mancrush

[shortsub]

im confused ... why did the wheel stop pulling ? what actually broke ??


i tore my 14bolt apart after a boom to find this ... both shafts and a busted side gear from the carrier ..

[mudskipper4x4]

Originally Posted by brian052484

Cool... thanks Will! If I'm gonna go pull a new axle, I think I might just get one out of a truck that way the spring perches are already at the right width. Remember seeing any out there under a truck?

Yep, there are a couple of full floaters under trucks out there.

[brian052484]

A buddy of mine has a 14FF out of a 94' truck that I can buy from him and save myself a trip to the junkyard. Of course I'll have to weld on some new perches at the right width... but that's no big deal. MY problem is that my axle is out of a 1978-79 1 ton van. I have 5.13 gears setup in it as well as disk brakes.

My question is... according to the 14B Bible:

"Different years - The year split is '72-88 and 89+. I shall refer to these as "first design" and "second design". Of course, there may be variations. Differences between these years are noted below. Where the difference is known only to apply to certain "types", I shall indicate this. Otherwsie, it is not known whether the differences noted between the years apply to all types or not.

Second design axles have more fins on the center sectionFirst design axles 1984 and earlier use a different pinion straddle bearing than 1985 and later
Second design SRW axles in 1-ton pickup trucks and 3/4 ton Suburbans changed to allow for a slide-off drum (drum can be removed without pressing out the wheel studs). The backside of these hubs is not machined flat to accept a rotor, for example. The hub flange is also further inboard to allow for the thickness of the drum."

I was PLANNING on swapping out the complete pinion setup, disk brake brackets and hubs with rotors attached... but will this really work? Or do I need to find a first gen 14FF?

[Grumpy_old_fart]

Originally Posted by GMCTruxrule

Can I kiss your ass some more Grumpy????? ^^^^^^

ewwwww.... no lips please... just tongue.

[CDA 455]

Originally Posted by Grumpy_old_fart

bent housing.

In what direction would said housing bend?


What kind of force would cause said bending?

[brian052484]

I couldn't answer you... I took mine all apart last night and looked down each side and I can't see anything visibly "bent".

[austin25]

seen this before, a buddy welded his 14 and it stripped the splines the same way, pulled it apart everything looked fine, but we found a crack in the spiders that let it expand just enough to strip the splines on the axle.

[rcurrier44]

Originally Posted by brian052484

Originally Posted by CDA 455

In what direction would said housing bend?


What kind of force would cause said bending?

Looks like she is making a smiley face if those axle shafts are bolted up That's the way most axles bend....

[rcurrier44]

Oh and put a jack under the center like that and lift up. You might be able to get it to move far enough up that you can weld the tubes tight and a truss on the top without ever taking it out from under the truck...

[Grumpy_old_fart]

Originally Posted by CDA 455

In what direction would said housing bend?


What kind of force would cause said bending?

a bent housing can be caused from overloading, jumping, or severe impact.

if bent by load, the housing would bend into a smiley if you look at it from the front or rear.
if bent by impact on movement, the housing may bend differently, with the tires actually pointing out in the front, and may not be readily apparent. on some 14 bolts, the tubes look straight, but the area where the spindle joins the tube buckles.

The 9 inch housing was worse for this as it is steel, and not more than 1/4 inch thick. it has no cast center, its just stamped steel. Thats why we have to truss the 9 inch to make it work. spaghetti is fun...just not durable.