Looking at this rear locally for my 50 coupe I think it's an 8in, but has the necked down tubes, is this going to be problematic for anything? I've read you can't change axles, I think this already has 5 lug, but not certain
finding the complete brake setup to work with the rear might be a problem...or it might not.... It looks like a 5 lug 8" rear. If you can get a picture of the tag, you could figure out what car the rear is from, which would help with finding the missing brake parts, etc. If the U bolts fit the tubes, then you should be fine with the neck down tubes. Looks to me like they're too big?
yup - 65-66 stang -probably has 2.80 gears - have one waiting to go in my shoebox too - I already looked into brakes and you can buy everything but the backing plates and e brake levers for about $150 in kit form - I didn't look for the other stuff as it came with the rear I got.
He said he was told it came out of a mustang, but has it listed as an 8.8. I figured at the price it's worth it for the 3rd member. I'll see if he can shoot me a pic of the tag. Shouldn't be a problem to change axles if I have to though? Doesn't take a special weaker axle diameter?
Is it about $25? Around here you could find a complete 9” for $100, and not have to worry about finding the right brakes.
The necked down tubes are early Mustang as several already identified. That's also the earlier style center section, that does not have as many ribs as the later versions had. But certainly with all the rep[ro eary Mustang stuff the brake parts should be fairly easy to get. Problem is as others said, the cost vs just finding a different one that is all complete.
Here's the backing plates........... 1965 66 67 68 69 70 OEM FORD MUSTANG FALCON COUGAR TORINO REAR BACKING PLATES V8 | eBay
The 1965 Mustang 8" uses 28 spline axles with the small wheel bearing, the same as the lightweight 9" In fact 1957 9" axles and rear brakes complete will fit it.
I haven't found many around here, and even 9in go for 2-400. I looked at 8.8s but have to cut those as well after dropping 200. Is there a better option that isn't GM/modified 8.8 or 9?
Maverick has always been top choice for shoebox Fords. Also the narrowest 5 lug 8-inch. An 8.8 is stronger with many limited slip, and easier to find, the typical narrowing is to cut the long side and use two short side axles.
I've narrowed the 8.8" and used the short side axle swap. I buy short side axles from an open differential 8.8" for $20 at U pull, and the complete 8.8" posi in 3.73 or 4.10 for $125 with drums, or $145 with disc brakes. They're easy to cut down and weld back after removing about 2 7/8" out of the long tube.
Or find an 8.8 out of an earlier Ranger. Same WMS to WMS as a Maverick. 56.25 if I remember correctly. No need to shorten anything, only move the perches.
The Maverick V8 rear is slightly narrower than the Mustang rear, and the tube does not neck down. Move the perches in 3/4" on each side and it bolts in. Granted they are becoming harder to find, but they are out there. I picked up a couple a few years ago for cheap.
I looked at this option, and seriously considered it. Still considering it. But this came across the marketplace TL and I'm kinda liking it. At least for the foreseeable future.
The neck down tubes are/were a concern, especially if I have to convert to 5 lug, but other than that, shouldn't be an issue right? He said it measures 56.5 plate to plate, isn't that the same as mavericks?
I've found a few, but, for less I've found several disc conversions. Which may be the nudge I need to convert the brakes all around
I really like this, but haven't been able to ascertain the exact years. Is the diff still off center on those? Wouldn't that be an issue?
I wound up spending too much money on custom axles to go from 4 lug to 5 lug on the Maverick 8” I was using. I used brake parts from a ‘90s Ranger. Took a bit of filing on the backing plate holes but worked nicely.
All BS aside, There comes a time when that "cheap" rear end all the sudden gets damned expensive. Ford Maverick is listed at 56.5 but I flat defy the guys who suggest one to run out and find a 5 lug Maverick rear axle without a hassle and a long hunt now. 90/92 Ranger pickup rear axles are 56.6 and a few minutes on The Ranger station will help you figure out how to know what gear ratio a donor rear will have. To me gathering up all the pieces missing off that stripped rear axe that might not be the right width is going to be spendy and not prudent especially if it has a settled for gear ratio rather than a chosen for gear ratio. Your dime but my guess is that a Ranger rear end in good shape with the right gear ratio is going to run less than than backing plates, drums, shoes and springs and hardware for that maybe too wide 8 inch.
The 8.8 Ranger rears all have a 2" pinion offset to the right. If the car is lowered, there will be tunnel interference. Narrowing a later wider Ranger 8.8 by axle swapping gets the pinion closer to center. The biggest issue with the 49-53 Ford platform is the inner fender opening. They are not very wide and changing the WMS to WMS distance is going to affect the choice of wheels and tires greatly. Edit: The optimal WMS to WMS (not axle flange to axle flange) for these cars is 56". The spring perch distance 43-1/8". When moving the spring perches, verify the spring locating pin diameter before welding the perches on. Some of those pins require a 15/16" hole in the perch. Easier to drill them before welding them on. The 8" is good to about 300 HP.
The Maverick rears come in two categories- from 1969 to 72, the 6-cylinder cars were 4 lugs, the V8 cars 5 lugs. The 4 lug rears used a different bearing and backing plate and requires modifications to convert to 5 lugs. The axle register measured 2-3/8". In 73, all Maverick rears were 5 lugs, and the register changed to 2-3/4". You don't have where you are located, but I have a Maverick rear I can give you. It would require a complete overhaul though. The 8.8 would probably be the best choice for you, or a custom 9". The Maverick rear is a hard find nowadays.
After some deliberation, I've decided to explore the 8.8 avenue further, in the end I think the money's the same, but time and effort becomes a factor and as some have mentioned, the juice may not be worth the squeeze on the 8in long term. I hate laying under cars so I don't wanna do it more than I have to.lol
Pretty much everything you need info wise is in this thread. https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/does-anybody-have-a-8-8-rear-width-chart.1201784/
One of the issues with those early Ranger 8.8" rear axles is they aren't quite the same as later 8.8" axles. The early 8.8" in the Rangers have smaller axle shafts that are 28 spline, where the later are very large shafts and 31 splines. Wont matter for a low powered hotrod build, but even if I wont be racing my hotrod I still prefer the big 31 spline axles. And it's tough to find early Ranger axles that are posi also.
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