At some point in our lives we've all been goofuses & doofuses . Some of us are better at it than others !
You're not a Goofus it might be just a simple mistake! As @Tim_with_a _T said the grease trick should tell the story on the axle length. You might have only missed it by an 1/8 to 1/4 inch of length, but full engagement would be ideal! 60 Special
I appreciate the words of encouragement guys. I did the grease trick and the axle is only going into the spline about 1/2". I marked the short axle bearing at the edge of the bearing bore with the axle as far in as it would go. Then I grabbed the long axle and shoved it in all the way and measured from the bottom of the bearing bore to the "bottom" of the bearing. A little math and it seems the short axle needs about 5/8" more length. Comparing the new short axle with the old short axle, the new one looks to be even about a half inch longer than the original one. And I'm still 1/2-5/8" short. So...another $$$ for an axle. And I need to find out if I have the small bearing or large. Probably small...if I remember right...
My axle came in late this afternoon. Everything's fine except I forgot to measure the hub diameter. So it needed some modification. Luckily, it was big and I could make it small. My little lathe was just barely long enough to hold it. Then it was supper time. So I'll hit it hard tomorrow.
Well, yesterday I pressed the new bearing on (remembering to put the retainer plate on first) and started putting it back together. Guesses on what I forgot? Yep, the little spacer that goes on before the bearing. I had cut the old bearing (which was new) off to get the retainer plate off the old axle (which was also new) and thought: "I need to get that spacer too". But I set it down and went in for supper and a much desired after dinner rum and coke. Next day, I'd forgotten the spacer and pressed the new bearing on not realizing it until I saw this (the pic). SO...( seems I say that a lot, here lately) I cut off ANOTHER brand new bearing, ordered a new one AND made sure I got the spacer off of the "old" axle and put it on the new one so I don't forget again. The spacer is less than 3/8" wide and I cut the new axle a little longer JIC, but I'm still a little worried about the length. The new bearing just arrived but I'm done for the day. I did get the chunk gasketed and tightened down, the "good" axle in and bolted back up and housing and all back in place. The good part about this (silver lining?) was I had the rear axle a little off center, so that gave me the chance to center it up. It wasn't much but I could see it. I also raised the back about an inch too while I was at it. Tomorrow... Well, I'll wait until then. Rodders Reunion is about a month away. Fingers, toes and eyes crossed.
Hmmm, I'm starting to feel a little better about all the little things that happen around my shop that I don't ever tell anyone about. I thought it was just me.
As good as y’all have been to me I feel OK with sharing my goof ups. It is much appreciated and has been helpful in more ways than just technical help. I got the new, new axle****embly installed. The spacer did the trick as far as axle/brake alignment. Now to tie up the loose ends, middles, lefts and rights. “Did he fix it? Will all the work be for naught? Tune in next time. Same Bat Time and same Bat Channel.” (Showing my age here LOL)
You can always sell the short axle to someone else narrowing a rearend.........or make a wall plaque in your shop as a joking reminder of this "adventure" in trouble shooting. The "upside" (if there is one) is that if you had minimal engagement of an axle, it was better to find it now than out on the road somewhere.
Okay, okay here's a good one and a lesson I never forgot. It was a project that came to me fully together with a Clutch pack Posi in it. I had already rebuilt a few 9" centers prior so to do a Posi was a step ahead. There was another Mechanic in the shop that knew his way around, so I had a Coach in house. Blow it apart, load all the new parts in and stuff it back in the housing. I loaded the non-clutch Axle in first and give it a spin and all feels well. I go to the Clutch side, and the Axle won't full load in the housing. I scratched my head a while and removed the first axle to check length and make sure I didn't get them crossed up. Coach comes over and checks me out and says, " You did something that shifted the splines in the clutch disc and they are out of alignment. Ya gotta take it all back apart, and he walked away. Blow it all apart and reset everything. Back together including the axle spin on the non-clutch side. You Gotta Be Kidding Me! Coach comes over and states, Never turn One axle in a Clutch Pack Posi when nothing is holding the splines in place. He snickered a little and walked away. I was a little enraged and took a step towards him when he stopped and turned. I knew better than to make another move. This is a lesson you'll never forget, and you are here to learn, right? He just went back to what he was doing. We latter laughed about it when he told me how he learned the same lesson. But dang, I lost a full days wadges. I've also never forgotten it or working with Peat. What a guy!
Yeah, I had a similar guy. Only in a machine shop. I kept questioning everything (I was new there and my first experiences with CNC.) He finally told me “figure it out. I can’t hold your hand forever.” He was right and aside from being a little embarrassed at myself, I “woke up” and went on to be one of their top machinists. I retired about 4 years ago after 33 years there and another 12 at other shops before. Sadly Chuck passed away shortly after HE retired about 5 years before me. Oh BTW he was a car guy too and built a sharp little T bucket with CNC engraved flames on the front four bars that he made out of stainless.
Yeah well I’ve been waiting 46 years. I hope to drive it on the road for the first time since the late 60s in the next day or two. I’ve taken so much apart it’ll take time. I’ve got license and insurance ready to go. Can we post short videos here? There will be one soon. if not I’ll post a link.
I just remembered, I forgot to post this yesterday. Remember how I said it wouldn't even climb over a 2X6? She did that all on her own! She literally "jumped" up there. I'm so proud of my baby taking her first real steps in decades!
Licence and insurance? Surely Hotrod Law negates the need for those on an around the block test? Applies to other things too, like seats, glass, doors, instruments, fenders etc. If it runs, stops and steers you're good, no? Chris
I imagine most cops would just give me a verbal warning, but I don't know what their boss told them to do this morning. "Write as many tickets as possible, we need the revenue." LOL It's all done. Glass, seat, even seat belts. Brakes, lights, and turn signals. Paint (rust is bad...um-kaaay? LOL) I still need some pin striping done around the scallops. Once I get this all sorted, I'm gonna be driving it a little everyday and a little more and more to get all of the bugs and what not worked out, driveline all broke-in, etc. Hit some local cruise-ins, shows, etc. I got all the underside*****oned up now. Oil in the trans and diff, driveshaft in, exhaust hooked back up, fuel, some wiring. Still have the generator, belts, rad and hoses to do.
The future is looking promising. Wish my 3 window was that far along. I won't go into the setbacks there. This photo is 3 years old. It has made some progress since but
Nice ride! Glad to know you can now move forwardon it. I was thinking early on that it may be trying to drive through the clutch pack, but didn't mention it because I was unsure it was even possible...now I know. Good luck!
Just keep at it. I was on and off. Sometimes 10 years at a time. Here's mine just after I brought it home in April 1979. Yes, it has been that long. I was 20 and only had one of those 110 instamatic cameras, that explains the poor quality pic. I went through several choices for engines, SBC, Pontiac 400 and 351 Cleveland 4V. But it kept telling me it wanted the flathead back. So that's what I did. I could have had 2-3X the HP for what I got in that little 2oo horse flatty. But it sure looks cool.
I got some bugs to work out, but it drives! First time on the road since the late 60s. Thanks again to all for the help and support.
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