Blooming Series half-shafts.

On Tue, 08 Aug 2006 17:55:37 +0100, Alex scribbled the following nonsense:

I have never (touches wood) managed to snap a halfshaft on any of my vehicles, which have included Series, Rangies, Discos and the 101.

Some people have an aggressive driving style that snaps halfshafts (not that I'm suggesting you have this style of driving of course!!) It may be that a previous owner really abused the vehicle, and now it is beginning to show.

Simon Isaacs uttered summat worrerz funny about:

Fit a Salisbury rear axle dude, Thats what I have on Percy, it coped very well with a 4.2 Jag lump and 3 speed Auto that was fitted for two years and many a traffic light moment.

If it's a SWB it will mean a bit of work moving the spring pads but it's not rocket science as long as you fit them right. They are also cheap enough to buy but will mean getting a custom prop made.

Lee D

Landrover half shafts are a lovely material to work with turning on a lathe - if anyone has a pile of broken ones near me in Bromley I'd gladly give you a few drinks for them!

AWEM

Lee wasn't there someone selling high spec ok for competition shafts mentioned on AFL a bit back? Derek

It is rare to snap half axles on SWBs with the original engines but common on lwbs. As others have suggested the answer is to fit a Salisbury rear axle - these are virtually indestructible. The impression I have is that axle quality suffered from the late sixties to the end of the seventies, but I have no hard evidence of this. One contributing factor apart from driving style is excessive free play in the drive train, and another is the fitting of larger than standard tyres (maybe this is why lwbs break axles more often). JD

For the project with the bigger engine I will be moving spring/axle mounts and having custom props anyway anyway, but I have no intention of fitting Salisbury axles. In fact I have just cut up a 4.7:1 Salisbury axle, and have another one coming off a LWB donor vehicle once I get the project under way. It's something to do with it being a major hassle to different diffs to them. That and I find the engineering principle behind using a pre-stressed casing for loading abhorrent. This is not how axles should be built.

Alex

Fit Maxidrive axles - you could put a V8 in it and they'd survive. Dunno where you'd get them in the UK, but this mob can send them over for you:

A local bloke here in Qld makes them, and they're the best thing since crunchy peanut butter. There's uprated drive flanges, diff bits etc all available, although (touch wood) I've never needed any of em.

-Craig.

Interesting, the two 88's I've had that have snapped halfshafts are both late 60's, and both were fitted with 7.50x16 tyres. But i've never snapped a LWB one. As for free play in the drive train, I did have the propshaft come loose on this vehicle a couple of weeks ago, which necessitated crawling underneath and removing it entirely in order to continue my journey.

Alex

Hehe, yes, my driving can be like that, in fact the first halfshaft i ever snapped was as a result of dropping the clutch at a set of traffic lights. Oddly enough this one went with a bang just as I stepped on the clutch to change up to 2nd. Thank goodness for that little yellow knob.

Alex

The snapping is the final straw, it's all the metal fatiguing before that does the damage. I think that its things like overrun after wheelspinning in mud and applying the handbrake whist still moving that does the damage.

AJH

They are absolutely crap quality. That is why the break. No such problem on Daihatsu of the same age, certainly not now because they had bomb proof mechanicals but seriously oxidising chassis and bodies ;-)

Huw

I agree. There is no reason why reliable axles cannot be built with ease of service built-in.

Huw

Sigh... What a waste.

and have another one coming off a LWB donor vehicle

But the proof of the pudding is in the eating as they say and they are purely and simply well up to the job.

Martin.

Or get a decent engineering crowd to make you some out of better material and have them heat treated. I had 2 sets made years ago and haven't broken one yet despite some serious abuse both on and off road.

Alex uttered summat worrerz funny about:

O.K.

"Cake" and "eat it" come to mind though.

I think you've answered your own question.

;-)

Lee D

Which only goes to prove that the original equipment was made from the cheapest material possible and only marginally better than liquorice or marzipan.

Huw

Whereabouts in QLD is that? I'm in Brissie, & I break the odd half shaft in my

88 every now & again.

Karen

MAXI-DRIVE ENGINEERING

4 Ryecroft St, Carrara, Qld, Australia, 4211 Phone: 07 5530 3934 Fax: 07 5530 3932

Thanks EMB, I'll give them a bell in the morning :)

Karen