Technical Winters quick change - axle tube thickness

I’ve tried searching, but coming up empty. Curious is if anyone knows what the axle tube thickness is for a winters nostalgia V8 quick change? Reason I ask is that I’m trying to simply weld a 7/16” bolt to the axle tube in order to mount my rear brake flex line and I do not know what settings to put my MIG welder at. Figured I’d ask here instead of just guessing. Thankfully all the important bracketry on the rear end has already been TIG welded on by a pro…..

 

Set it wherever you would set it for the thickness of the bolt head.

Clean any coating off of the bolt head first.

 

What gimpy said.
I "think"...the tubes in my Winters is "about" .187" thick.

Mike

 

You could always just forget the welder and have brake flexibles going into each cylinder separately. That way you also avoid having to run a line across the axle which unless it is done very well could present a horrible blot on the beautiful landscape. Sure you've got to run a line across the chassis somewhere ( rear crossmember probably), but that's easy enough. Works for me every time.

Chris

 

Like they say "practice practice practice".
Whenever you aren't sure of your settings do bench tests with materials in the general combination/size of your project, sort of a "testing the waters" learning curve.
Even experienced weldors often do this.

 

Hi @Crotty 32. We use .200 wall material for the tapered steel tubes & bells (as well as for our straight tubes that are used with the ribbed aluminum bells). We'll have to add that info to our catalog online so it isn't so hard for folks to find! Let us know if you need any additional info.

 

Thanks, Chris. The idea of flex hose to each of my rear drums has crossed my mind. I just don’t know how much rubber hose will be visible since I am building a fenderless roadster. This is why am going down the path towards hardline across the axle, but plan on putting the line on the rear of the quick change so it cannot be seen while viewing the vehicle from the back. I know it isn’t ideal and opens up the possibility of rocks etc hitting the line, but I’m going to roll with it.

 

Absolutely! I did many test pieces when it came time to weld my engine mounts to the boxed frame. Got the same thickness metal, made welds in the same orientation as I’d be doing on the frame, and did the cut and etching to inspect my practice pieces. Now that I know the gauge of the axle tube, I can bench test this task too.

 

Many thanks!