This is my Ford 9" - its a narrowed Mustang axle I have just buy this axle , it is appart for inspection Look at the wheel bearings This bearings have not many miles What have happen ? Are all japanese FKC bearings **** ?
If the rearend housing has been narrowed, that is the first thing to check. Make sure the housing is straight and not loading the bearings. Brian
Oki Doki ... Any tip how a can check up the housing at home ? Is it possible to do that ? With a gigantic ruler / straightedge and a set square ?
I have seen cracked bearing race's, when they have been pressed off and on. Crack's will happen, The stressed of driving will finish them off. If the housing is far enought out of wack to break the races,you'll see some heat check on the bearing.
Looking from here it looks like the bearing was damaged when it was pressed on. I see as well a crack in the bearing retainer part of the rear axle. Is that a mark from the cracked bearing? Or a genuine crack? My experience with Japanese bearings in the front end is that they're pretty good quality.
The bearing retainer part have NOT a crack It is a mark from the cracked bearing So i belive that the bearings have been driven cracked Cracked from the mounting or from driving ? The axle is from a car with a mild smallblock and street tires it has not been drag raced
The bearing apparently was cracked when the hydraulic press operator pressed the bearing onto the axle.
First time i've seen this, did you install the axle? And how much effort did it take to get it to set into the bearing house? If the rear was warped during construction the axle would have been a ***** to install. I see that the crack in the bearing house mirrors the crack in the bearing, any indication which was cause and which was effect? Was there looseness in the fasteners holding the retainor plate? How about the splines, any indication that they had 'bottomed' out? The only real way to measure for staightness is to set it up in an alignment jig, a ruler just won't do nor a laser since the alignment must be to the third member bearings. Let us know what you find, as i said i have never seen this before and those are very good bearings.
The complete rearend comes from a guy who is careful with his cars He would never install an axle with a cracked bearing on it But the housing have never been checked after the welding / narrowing I have not mount or put this rearend apart, i have buy it like this The splines at the axles are real fine One is re-splined, the other axle have been change side I going to check up who have a Ford 9" alignment jig here ...
Look at the lock rings, they appear to have been driven onto the axles with a hammer and punch, instead of being pressed on? I see indents on them that I have not seen on pressed rings. Or maybe I am imagining it?
If the housings bent the seals would show leaks along with distortion ,also check brake shoe chipping or uneven wear . I think its human error . I have watched the hamb for a year now and found that 99% of all failures here are novice mistakes this looks like over pressed berrings .c
OK i check how the lock rings was mounted and the brake shoes Take some more pics tomorrow ... 00,21 AM here in Sweden now
Just for your info, a rearend checking fixture is a pair of bushings that bolt into the carrier where the bearings are. They usually have a 1.5" hole in them. Then there is a 1.5" shaft that goes from one end of the housing to the other. Then you will need bushings for the outer bearing ends that the od is machined to the right size for the housing ends and the id matches the 1.5" shaft. Everything should fit without effort.
you would have to beat the **** outta that axle while installing it to crack that bearing like that ... The bearing will take a lot but if the axle slides in the housing and in the center section ok then id look at an installation problem.. was the bearing or bearings pressed on using the center of the bearing? pressing on the outside race is asking for trouble.. if the seals never leaked then id again say they ****ed em up installing the bearings.. Dave edit edit... even if the retaining rings were hammered on with a punch (ive beat m on with a hammer job on the bench vise) the rings only retain the bearings on the center is shouldnt **** up the outer race..
YOU MUST press those bearings on. Beating **** with a hammer only does two things, breaks stuff and get expensive. ie: Kingpins.
That housing has had a lot of welding done on it - chances are that it IS warped. Not the best way to check but certainly enough to identify it without special tools - 1. Install center section 2. Slide the axle into the housing - not all the way - leave it out enough so that the bearing is NOT in the flange 3. Move the axle in all radial directions (up/down/front/back/etc)- note the GAP between the axle and surrounding bearing flange. If it is a consistent gap - the housing is most likely just fine. If the gap is dirrefent - the housing needs straightening. Now keep in mind - the ALIGNMENT JIG is the better way to go, but if you don't have one handy then this method will give you an idea of what you're working with.
From the looks of the mess you've posted it looks like the axles are trying to push there way out of the housing. The bearings have exploded to the outer edges. And the axle retainer has had the bearing pushing on it very hard. Make damn sure that the axles are short enough that they don't bottom out on the pin in the 3rd member. You should be able to seat the axles buy hand not by drawing or beating them into the housing >>>>.
And, when you take the OLD bearings off, be sure to cover that mess with a blanket so when the pieces go flying, you're not hurt.
Some new pics The bearing have no blueing, have not been hot I see nothing wrong in the splines area The bearing lock rings have not been hammered on
[[[check brake shoe chipping or uneven wear ]]] This is new pics at the shoes There is very few miles on this shoes and the complete rearend after it was narrowed
It doesn't look like the tip of the axle has made contact inside the differential. Is the axle straight? Could the axle be twisted? You'll need to set it up between centers on a lathe to check it. I'd have the housing checked with an alignment bar also.
This is a strange one.. like was jsut said .. have someone put the axles in a lathe and check them.. And find a way the check the housing.. Of course the lazy mans way would be to toss a couple bearings on the axles and see how they slide in the housing.. Id think for the bearings to be that ****ed up you would have to hammer the axles in.. If they slide in pretty easy then id say bad bearings or bad ***embly of the bearings on the axle shafts causing outer race damage.. Like i said earlier ive hammered the bearings and retainers on in a pinch.. I had everything supported properly so it wasnt a problem and the car is still running ... You have a lot of things to look for.. Dave ps: let us know what you find out
Looks to me like when it was in avehicle, someone hit a big hole going really fast. That can brake a bearing real fast.
maybe that ! The axle was on a car that was low and sometime ride with the axle aiganst the rubber bumper / snubber = no suspension att all ...
Hitting bumps with no suspension will break bearings, if it came out of a heavy car or truck that occasionaly overloaded it will kill the bearings. Also looking at the end of the axle (see pic below), it looks like it's been rubbing inside the carrier (axle could be too long). I'd put the center section in the housing, then take a measuring tape, insert it into the axle tube, thru the splines till it stops then get the measurement out to where the inside of the axle bearing sits in the axle housing end, and do the same thing on the other side, then measure your axles from the slined end to the inside if the inner bearing race, the axle measurement should be about 1/8th inch shorter (2-4mm shorter) than the other measurement
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