9 Inch Ford Gears Advise

Wondering who makes the best 9" Ford gears these days for a street rod. Looking for something that is reliable and quiet. Also where can I get American made bearings for a 9"? Thanks

 

get the real thing. OEM ford parts.

 

Henry makes the best and by far the quietest imho!

 

I agree ... I would rather have good set of used Ford gears than a new set of anyone else's.

Plenty of good used 9 inch Ford center sections in the junk yard
( at least in my area )

Lots of 2.75. 3.00 and 3.25 ... others are not as plentiful.

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Richmond makes some of the best gears available and are afordable.

 

I used http://www.reiderracing.com/ on my o/t 68 mustang. great service, shipped fast. Bought the whole center section from them for the 9 inch. rated for like 900 hp or something. never had a single problem with the rear end, and the car is set up for the street/track..and its quiet with the detroit soft lock..

 

Unfortunately Richmond gears are pretty much well-known for whining even when set up properly.

I'd use anything but Richmond gears if I wanted a quiet rear end gearset.

 

damn i've been trying to find a 2.75 for while (in my $$ range )......and there's none in the junk yards here.

 

I've had good luck with Yukon gears. And they're pretty cheap.

 

I've had at least 3 sets in 9" Fords and not a one has made the slightest peep... Good quality and pretty much unlimited gear options. Used their bearing/install kit. 3.89 was my sweet spot.

 

Richmonds make noise is just about any rear you put them in, I've heard way too many stories about the noise they make to ever run them again.

Glad you've had better luck with them, my 9" has a set of singing 3.89s in it right now. They've been a good reliable gear set and I bracket raced this car for many years with slicks and a transbrake, but now that I stopped racing and drive it on the street a lot I can hear them whine.

If I ever change the ratio I'll go with Yukon gears. I just had a '71 GM 8.5" 10-bolt built with some 3.42 Yukon gears, with hopes they'll be a lot quieter than Richmonds.

 

Thanks everyone for the reply! Anyone heard of Superior Axle and Gear? Summit sell a 3.70:1 for $242.99. The overview talks about purest 8620 steel forgings and precision machined, heat treated and extra lapping for ideal contact surface, for smoother and quieter operation????

 

From what I understand, the vast majority of gears are made overseas. My gear parts source tells me that all the major gear suppliers such as Richmond, Yukon, Precision, Superior, etc. get their gears from the same sources. So your 9" gears from brand X may have been made next to brand Y gears at the same plant. This is a partial reason why every once in a while a gear company will get a bad rap for a random batch of noisy or galled gears. You can tell they came from the same plant by reading the manufacturer's stamping on the side. That stamping includes the basic gear information as well as the batch number for reference. The gears are made everywhere from Mexico, Brazil, Korea, and India. He usually prefers the Korean gears and selects them from their origin, not the name on the box.

The only company I know of in the US that makes their own gears is Winters BTW.