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2" Alloy Rockwell Shafts and Spools?

3K views 30 replies 13 participants last post by  Wolfgang 
#1 ·
#5 ·
Why not just weld up the diff instead of spending so much on a spool? The shafts are cool, and so are the drive caps, but way too much bling for the spool when you could just as easily weld it up.
 
#8 · (Edited)


If that thing is spooled, my guess is that every time he tired to make a sharp turn.....he broke a stock axle. That is a whole-lot-a traction to overcome on the rear of that thing!!!!

I bet he doesn't take that thing into the woods. What do you think the turning radius is? ....200 feet?
 
#9 ·
indeed it is cool to get some high end aftermarket support for you anchor lovers.


couple questions for who ever is gonna call the guy and get more info.

1. what is the alloy ?

2. what do the harden them to ?

3. throught hardended or just surface hardended ?

4. are the ears heat treated ?


i ask these questions because as i built my custom axles i learned that having the right answers to these questions is were the real diffrence is ......just having 2"' shafts does not mean squat.


fyi. for the same cost that i built my 1.71 40 spline shafts i could have built 2.25 46 spline shafts but the issue then becomes ujoint failure. my point is you guys need to weigh the whole package. if those shafts are done right will they just kill your stock joints like a birfield ? anyhow that is cool that somebody is doing that.

fyi. his price on a single rear shaft is pretty low. $200 each. if that was a cone shaft from 300m it would be around 350. just for refrence. my question is why or how is his so inexpensive
 
#10 ·
DriveTime said:
Why not just weld up the diff instead of spending so much on a spool? The shafts are cool, and so are the drive caps, but way too much bling for the spool when you could just as easily weld it up.

because welding a diff works great on a $200 junk yard axle that is easly replaceable. the heat you put into the carrier will distort it. that means the bearings and gears are not running true. when you are spending several thousand on axle shafts you tend to build the rest of the axle with quality parts as well.

example.

my spool is 4130 cro-mo. heat treated and then all bearing and gear surfaces machined after heat treat so there is zero run out and the whole assemble is square and true.


if i was spending 2k on shafts for my rockwell i sure would not want my welded distorted carrier wobbling on my new axle. also the ring gear doesn't like the high and low spots it greates.
 
#11 ·
Good questions Camo,

Here's the e-mail I sent:

Hi guys,

Just found your website, good to see you in the market with these products.

I run a 4x4 technical website that's quite popular with the "hardcore rock-crawling" crowd. It pulls about 1000 hits a day.

I noticed on your page it states "Dana 60 Outers & Pucks

Can you please send me some more details and pics of the units so that I can add them to my Dana60 front axle bible located here (it's often refered to as the bible of 1 ton front axles):

http://www.rightcoastcrawler.com/billaVista/60_front/Dana 60 Front Axle.htm

Please include as much detail as possible - my readers demand a lot of technical details, including the specific ASTM/SAE alloy spec, heat treating process, spline count and pitch, etc.

Thanks

Bill
____________________


we'll see what turns up.
 
#15 ·
Sorry guys, I was just talking about the 16 spline spool. I'd much rather just have a Detroit in the front, welded in the back and keep the stock shafts and spend money elsewhere considering how hard it is to actually break a 2 1/2 ton. From the looks of the truck in the picture he might as well just use the 5 tons instead of all the custom stuff, but then again, where's the fun in all that?
 
#16 ·
he might as well just use the 5 tons instead of all the custom stuff, but then again, where's the fun in all that?
The reason you can't use 5ton stuff in a 2.5ton front is the joints. 5tons are all repeza-type axle joints, not U-joints, and they don't fit in a 2.5ton knuckle, or through the hole in the knuckle. This is what I heard, anyways. And camo - you do know that eveyone who breaks rockwell axles breaks the shafts, right? I've never heard or a broken rockwell joint where the shaft survived. IE - these 2" shafts may indeed be stronger than the U-joint, but that does not by any means mean the joints will start popping "like birfields"... I would guess that these are 4340 alloy. My point is, I'd run these shafts with stock joints - not CTM's. That way the joint will go and not the shaft and that means less weight in trail spares. Besides if you are doing something and break a 1710 Ujoint, you prolly shouldn't have been doing that...

I'll get this stuff on my rear steer axle, whenever I get around to that...
 
#18 ·
Elf, I didn't mean use 5 ton stuff in 2 1/2 ton housings, I mean use the entire 5 ton setup. And I have seen a rezepa joint let go on a logging truck that didn't break the shaft, blew the knuckle off. Haven't seen or heard of any of the bendix or u-joint style joints letting go an leaving the shaft though.
 
#19 ·
IMO, 5 ton axles are where rockcrawlers should draw the line at being "too big". It's a squeeze to fit 2.5tons into a rig, but it can be done. The 5ton center section is just too much, and not worth it, IMO...
 
#20 ·
That's kinda funny to me, a suzuki owner point of view, like saying a blown 350 on NOx is ok but a 502 is just too much! :flipoff2:

IMO, 5 ton axles are where rockcrawlers should draw the line at being "too big". It's a squeeze to fit 2.5tons into a rig, but it can be done. The 5ton center section is just too much, and not worth it, IMO...
 
#22 ·
elf_cruiser said:
well, I'll bet you can fit a 350 btwn your frame rails... Can you fit a 502???
They bolt on to the same motor mounts.........
 
#24 ·
ok Im sure some of you have done the math but for others its like this $327.49 for the drive hubs,384.09 for the spool,thats $2570.00 aprox for the stubs and inner axles $643 aprox for one axle? RIGHT! that better be one FUC%!NG stronng mutha! O well maybe jeeper111 will buy them?
 
#25 ·
5 tons are too big for crawling IMO as well. They are perfect for the type of truck he is building though. I've heard that the newer 5 tons actually come stock with the bottom shaved, but they would still seem to be too big and heavy for crawling.
 
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