Differential welding

[wilrob]

I was under the impression they went on top..? I thought for crawling they put them on top not bottom for clearance?

 

[x MadMAX DIESEL]

well i guess it depends on how that pic was taken. i ASSumed it was bent forward as if under the truck but it could be bent up too lol

That pic is taken as it should sit under the truck. It's bent up, and forward too. I flipped it over to weld it outside of the truck. That is a tensial truss to counter act the bend up. It now has tie bars on the back of the lpw cover that run to backside of where the tire is at. That's tensial for the bending forward.

 

[Chevy1925]

I was under the impression they went on top..? I thought for crawling they put them on top not bottom for clearance?

doesnt matter where they go as long as it achieves what your after. the truss on my tracker axle will go on top to support the tubes as well as provide support to the upper link. there will also be a back bone brace that goes across the diff cover. no bottom brace to stay out of the rocks but the rest should be plenty for hitting whoops under throttle and keep the housing straight.

That pic is taken as it should sit under the truck. It's bent up, and forward too. I flipped it over to weld it outside of the truck. That is a tensial truss to counter act the bend up. It now has tie bars on the back of the lpw cover that run to backside of where the tire is at. That's tensial for the bending forward.

aaahhh. if you can span the tensial truss across the diff cover, it will really stop any forward bending (if you wanted to over build)

 

[x MadMAX DIESEL]

doesnt matter where they go as long as it achieves what your after. the truss on my tracker axle will go on top to support the tubes as well as provide support to the upper link. there will also be a back bone brace that goes across the diff cover. no bottom brace to stay out of the rocks but the rest should be plenty for hitting whoops under throttle and keep the housing straight.







aaahhh. if you can span the tensial truss across the diff cover, it will really stop any forward bending (if you wanted to over build)

If i do that it will be with a strap of steel. I don't want to loose any ground clearance more than the bottom center of the diff really.

 

[wilrob]

doesnt matter where they go as long as it achieves what your after. the truss on my tracker axle will go on top to support the tubes as well as provide support to the upper link. there will also be a back bone brace that goes across the diff cover. no bottom brace to stay out of the rocks but the rest should be plenty for hitting whoops under throttle and keep the housing straight.

So you build it opposite of the bend/stress direction sorta?

 

[x MadMAX DIESEL]

So you build it opposite of the bend/stress direction sorta?

Tensial or compression brace will work i think. I'm sure all the guys do compression over the axle so they don't look ground clearance, cause most are off roaders.

Correct if wrong?

 

[SASd]

Guys, thank you very much for this info. Ive got to get my 4 link brackets welded to my axles (and pig to axle tubes) and have been wondering what procedures and supplies to use, so when I take everything to my welder Im at least slightly intelligent about it.

Question: Should you use some sort of bracing to help prevent warpage?



Corbin, the rake I welded with my little flux core machine is still in one piece. Frame on the lawn tractor hasnt re-broke either. :hehe:

What chevy1925 said. After tacking it in place you can weld about 2"-3" at a time, at opposite ends and opposite sides of the truss, until all the welding is done

 

[Chevy1925]

If i do that it will be with a strap of steel. I don't want to loose any ground clearance more than the bottom center of the diff really.

sorry, i think im talking about it wrong in what you are meaning. the bottom truss is in tensile but you have nothing but you dont have much to keep the axles from bending forward now. i was suggesting putting a braces that runs the length of the axle across the diff cover, if that makes sense. that way you take care of both your bending movements

So you build it opposite of the bend/stress direction sorta?

i build them how ever it suits the application lol. the tracker is dual purpose, it will see rock crawling and fast baja/prerunner speeds so i want the ground clearance under the axle for rocks. if it was a straight prerunner and planned on beating on it harder than i will, i would have a bottom truss as well. most rock crawlers run just the top truss and usually a half truss at that for links. bending forward isnt as much of an issue as bending up is from bouncing (unless its back east/throttle down stuff, different out here). then there are guys that just flat change out the axle tube to something twice as thick and do the mini truss for links and beat the hell out of them without issue.

 

[x MadMAX DIESEL]

Ohh I have had these the last year for my forward bending. That damage was done long time before this.

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[Chevy1925]

Ohh I have had these the last year for my forward bending. That damage was done long time before this.

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thats pretty cool design!

 

[x MadMAX DIESEL]

thats pretty cool design!

The only covers worth buying imo. They also have studs that run through press up against the differential carrier straps

 

[wilrob]

The only covers worth buying imo. They also have studs that run through press up against the differential carrier straps

With the cover and the braces it is cheaper than a lot of the finned covers too

 

[TheBac]

this very much depends on what it is you are welding and how long of a weld it will be. if he is a competent welder and you are doing a truss that welds on the majority of the axle tube/housing, it should be done in short length and letting the housing cool before continuing on. it could take a few days of this depending on the truss and how much area of continuous welding. it is best this is done on a jig that will keep the housing from warping but not everyone has that ability/tooling. if you have the chance to find someone that can check its straightness and bend it back straight after adding all the stuff you need, i would take advantage of it.

if the welder takes his time, the housing will move a little but nothing i would be concerned about. if he doesnt, it will need reshaping afterward. again, all depending on how much welding for a truss is need (adding tabs and what not does not count)

Its nothing as involved as a truss. Just four brackets, 2 on either side of the 9.5" pumpkin. Thanks for the advice guys.

If the axle breaks, I'd just upgrade to a 10.5 and call it a day.

 

[SASd]

Its nothing as involved as a truss. Just four brackets, 2 on either side of the 9.5" pumpkin. Thanks for the advice guys.

If the axle breaks, I'd just upgrade to a 10.5 and call it a day.

I assumed for a minute you were also putting together a truss, but if its just brackets/tabs then just tack em and burn them in. No need to try to make it complicated. When you weld the pig to the tubes just follow what i said earlier about the preheat and you will be good

 

[x MadMAX DIESEL]

Okay the weld guru told me if standard mig doesn't work, I can try 309 L wire. If that doesn't work nickel stick welding will do it. So I'll just try the standard mig in the webbing of the diff with a scrap piece and try to knock it off with a hammer: then I have 2 different options if I don't like what I see.


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[Chevy1925]

Its nothing as involved as a truss. Just four brackets, 2 on either side of the 9.5" pumpkin. Thanks for the advice guys.

If the axle breaks, I'd just upgrade to a 10.5 and call it a day.

weld the axle tubes to the center chunk though. one good launch with traction and weak roset welds will cause that sucker to twist up in a heart beat!