I got this rear end out of a '57 Ranchero. I have used '57 ford 9" rears in the last 3 cars I have built and have never ran across a pinion flange that looks like this. I'm thinking I should have grabbed the drive shaft too now. Has anyone ever used a setup like this, or can I just swap out the pinion with the more familiar one that the u-joint rest in. This one looks like a round flange would bolt onto it, but like I say I have never ran across this type before. I'd hate to throw away a perfectly good '57 9" rear just because of an oddball Pinion flange
You can change the yolk but youi'll have to buy a new crush sleve ans set the rear up again. You might look under a lincoln for a driveshaft with a CV joint, they use a round mounting flange. As do several 4x4s from the '70s-'80s. Mayhaps one of those will bolt up.
That's not one of those round yokes - it takes U-joint caps that are curved & have a rectangular chunck that goes in those slots so the bolts don't take the torque. I have seen these types of yokes before - can't remember if I ever saw one on a 9" though....
Those funky ujoints were used on Fords in the mid 50s, apparently even as late as 57. Swap out the yoke for a normal one. Like he said, you need to pay attention to bearing preload, and use a new crush sleeve when you install the new yoke. But you don't need to do the whole rearend setup again, just remove the 5 bolts, pull out the pinion retainer and pinion ***y, then take it apart and put it together with the new sleeve, seal, and yoke. Of course inspect the bearings while it's apart, replace if necessary. Then get the big wrenches out and tighten that nut till it takes the required torque to turn the pinion, this page should help, although it's for 65 cars. Use a new o ring when you reinstall the pinion/bearing retainer ***y, and be sure the steel shim goes back in there as it was!
You might try a driveshaft shop. It's possible they have an adapter U joint...one side to fit this yoke and the other a normal joint. worth a try.
I'd change the Yoke -Rudy,Its simpler and quicker now AND later on the road trip, when the weird *** U-joint breaks......
Right you are Kenny, the fact that I have never even seen this on a early 9 inch tells me I would never find another one if was to break. As long as I know the spline is the same as the normal one I'll be changing it for sure. Just want to make sure it's not some ******* rear end all togeather.
Pull the whole yoke ***y out of the rearend after you loosen the yoke nut .(they are pretty tight.) Pull the yoke off the spline and pull the crush sleeve and measure it. Oh ya I might add this will work best if there is no slop in the pinion bearings. Take the crush sleeve and measure it and make one on a lathe out of solid stock. Add a new seal the yoke of your choice and put er back together. Dave
I had the same problem when building my model A roadster the rear end i used came out of a 49-54 ford and had the same yoke i change it to a newer stronger u joint style.finding the yoke was the easy part the local driveshaft shop had that,$45.00.The bad part was setting up the preload i took it to a shop that all they do is rearends and after new bearings,races,crush sleve and seal and labor $350.00 i got it back,If i new it was going to be so much i would have looked for a differnt rear end.i had already welded all my spring mounts and wish bone mounts and bought axel bearings and new brakes wheel cylinders ect..so i have about $600.00 into that rear end.If you need the yoke that bolts to your yoke you have i have it still.Let me know!
i have never seen that flange on any 9 in rear must of been early in the run. it takes whats called a mechanics type u joint i have that on my 52 merc convert. one more thing on that 57 9 in the pinion seal is 1 year only very hard to find and the repros are worst than none at all mike
You can change the flange without disturbing the crush sleeve, contrary to what others might think. Remember, you set the pinion preload without the seal being installed. You then take the flange back off, install the seal and reinstall the flange using a new nut and torquing to 100 ft lbs. You would never get an accurate preload reading with the seal installed. The seal on those early WAA pinion carriers are an orphan and you will pay a premium for it. When I rebuilt my 57 rear I took the opportunity to s**** the obsolete pinion carrier which allowed me to use a standard 4 dollar seal and installed a 1330 pinion yoke. But the most simple solution would be a new seal and the standard style pinion/ujoint yoke of your choice. Just dont retorque it over 125 ft lbs, the crush sleeve needs about 150 ft lbs to crush so play it safe with 100 and some red loc***e if you dont have the new nut. Any standard ford 9 inch flange will slide on, the pinion itself is the same as any other. Also, dont forget to put a little silicone sealer under the nut as lube will try to sneak out along the splines of the pinion. I've seen this BS about having to change the crush sleeve so many times its not funny any more. Like chicken littles.
You Do Not Need To **** With The Crush Sleeve When Changing Pinion Yokes. Think People. Quit Repeating Every Stupid Thing Somebody Else Says.
Thanks for all the info guys. I was just told yesterday buy a friend of mine that it should be possible to change the yoke without messing with the crush sleve. I want to replace the pig in my roadster with this one, I was hoping to just swap out the flange without too much trouble and I'll be ready to Rock and Roll. Thanks again for all the input.
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