CK5
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Can front Dshaft splines be rebuilt
- Thread starter shady
- Start date
In an emergency I have welded and ground to get splines back in shape.
But in short not really.
You can just have the slip yoke replaced. One ton to half ton I am pretty sure the slip yokes are the same
1/2 - 1ton use same front shafts basicly other than length.
if sloppy and worn out time for new.
and if looking there is a ford rear shaft with 1350 c/v and bigger joints on the axle end.
so if you are going new and got the cash and want the big beefy then upgrade .
i have been running stockers on my 60 fronts from the tcase and no problems yet and its been years.
if sloppy and worn out time for new.
and if looking there is a ford rear shaft with 1350 c/v and bigger joints on the axle end.
so if you are going new and got the cash and want the big beefy then upgrade .
i have been running stockers on my 60 fronts from the tcase and no problems yet and its been years.
dont forget its male / female splines so you can only weld the male splines.
and all that work for a spare seems a huge waste. only way i would do it is out in middle of noware with onboard welder and need done to make it home.
and all that work for a spare seems a huge waste. only way i would do it is out in middle of noware with onboard welder and need done to make it home.
Shady, measure up your front and let me know what you need. I've got the stock front from my 72 that is going to be for sale here as soon as my new HAD stuff shows up. If it's the same, put some joints in and go. I'll let'r go cheap for a brother
Friend of mine runs a machine shop that has a side specialty of driveshafts.
Over the years he has rebuilt a few of mine and I have watched him build lots of others.
He chucks the shaft up in a lathe, and cuts the weld out of the tube. Then puts a new spline with a weld cap in the lathe to insure its perfectly aligned, and welds it in while its in the lathe.
Then he installs the new female part, puts the whole thing in his driveshaft balancer and welds on washers until it balanced.
Don't know what he charges now, but its cheaper than a new driveshaft. You might find someone in your area to weld on a new spline.
If you are real good at welding, I'm sure you could buy the new parts and do it yourself, but I wouldn't.
There was a shop opened up a few years ago that only did driveshafts. They got my friend a lot of business fixing their mistakes.
They basically just laid everything out on a steel table, welded and rolled it on the table to see if it was straight.
When you asked about balancing, they would solemnly assure you that all the new parts had been balanced at the factory, so the final result would be balanced.........
Even if that were true, I guess that their welds were perfectly symmetrical.
Over the years he has rebuilt a few of mine and I have watched him build lots of others.
He chucks the shaft up in a lathe, and cuts the weld out of the tube. Then puts a new spline with a weld cap in the lathe to insure its perfectly aligned, and welds it in while its in the lathe.
Then he installs the new female part, puts the whole thing in his driveshaft balancer and welds on washers until it balanced.
Don't know what he charges now, but its cheaper than a new driveshaft. You might find someone in your area to weld on a new spline.
If you are real good at welding, I'm sure you could buy the new parts and do it yourself, but I wouldn't.
There was a shop opened up a few years ago that only did driveshafts. They got my friend a lot of business fixing their mistakes.
They basically just laid everything out on a steel table, welded and rolled it on the table to see if it was straight.
When you asked about balancing, they would solemnly assure you that all the new parts had been balanced at the factory, so the final result would be balanced.........
Even if that were true, I guess that their welds were perfectly symmetrical.
DEMON44
Low-Tech Redneck
Some folks are just so stupid, I don't know how they get out of bed in the morning.
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DEMON44
Low-Tech Redneck
I bet, bad competition is good for business.
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Probably won't find one called that. Like I posted, the only one ever in my town that called its self that was junk and went broke.
My machine shop guy may be out of business. I have not been by there in a while. The last time I stopped by, he was considering building a shed at his house and moving some of the machines there and closing up.
Not because of the driveshaft business, but machine shop business in general was down so much.
Even though he had everything needed to do driveshafts, the lathe, the special balancer, digital scales to weight the washers before tacking them one, it was never a big part of his total business.
It would take most of the entire business of CK5 to make a living doing nothing but driveshafts.
So, you best bet is probably machine shops.
Ask if they have a balancer.
Its really needed.
You can get close without one, or do the old pipe clamp on the shaft trick after its installed, but a spin balancer gives you a balanced shaft every time.
DEMON44
Low-Tech Redneck
There's at least 3 major driveline shops in Calgary. But Calgary is a major industrial hub too. They do more industrial driveshafts than automotive in sure. We've got Drive Systems, Drive Products, Standens. And standens builds springs too.
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We got one right up the road
Mine needs re splined, ill prolly take it in this winter
Mine needs re splined, ill prolly take it in this winter
We got one right up the road
Mine needs re splined, ill prolly take it in this winter
WRONG time to do that .
you need 4x4 in winter driving and thay get backed up with lots of busted drivelines from guys that dont know how to drive in the snow.
better do it asap so you have it when you need it. most shops are 3-4 days out sometimes in my area. lots of work around here for them.
Lookin at a Buick lesbre tommorow. Hopin to find a decent fwd car to drive in the winter to save gas, save the k5 from the salt, and so I can start rippin into the k5 all winter long
79rustyk10
3/4 ton status
Splines can be fixed, but for something like a driveshaft it wouldnt be worth it, and really hard to find someone to cut them.
I used to be BIG into old two cylinder John Deere tractors when I was younger, and if the tractor was used to operate something with the belt pulley (this was on the end of the crank opposite from the flywheel, with the clutch inside of the pulley) alot during its life, the splines would eventually wear out and cause alot of play in this assembly. These cranks are now nearing unobtainium for a few models, so repairing is the only option, and the tractor pulling guys like spending big wads of cash on stuff.
Also, if the flywheel wasnt properly tightened it would wear out the splines on that end of the crankshaft also.
I know theres shops around that can do it, but its big $$$, and hard to find them.
I used to be BIG into old two cylinder John Deere tractors when I was younger, and if the tractor was used to operate something with the belt pulley (this was on the end of the crank opposite from the flywheel, with the clutch inside of the pulley) alot during its life, the splines would eventually wear out and cause alot of play in this assembly. These cranks are now nearing unobtainium for a few models, so repairing is the only option, and the tractor pulling guys like spending big wads of cash on stuff.
Also, if the flywheel wasnt properly tightened it would wear out the splines on that end of the crankshaft also.
I know theres shops around that can do it, but its big $$$, and hard to find them.
This is one reason i find sye kits kinda odd. Think about how few miles my blazer prolly has on the front end as opposed to the rear, and the splines are sloppy as heck. Why would you want that in the rear where it will only go bad faster? Or are splines for rear driveahafts stronger for some reason
Well, I don't have an answer I can prove, but I can tell you this.
My 79 150 had the spline in the rear shaft, as does my 89 250.
I think I replaced the rear spline about twice in 200K on the 79, and so far none on the 89 with about 150K.
The reason for twice on the 150, was because it came from the factory with the spline on the diff end and got lots of mud and water.
With the second replacement, I got smart and had my machine shop guy move it to the top and never had to do it again.
My 250 has it there to start with, because I had to redo the shaft when I put in the NP205.
On both trucks, I have replaced the front driveshaft several times.
I know for a fact that there is no difference on hardness between the two, because my guy uses the same parts to fix front and rear shafts.
So why do they wear out? I have a theory.
First, in most cases a front end suspension goes up and down a lot more than the rear. More loading, so the spline moves a lot more.
Second, and I think this is the most important, the rear spline is under torque at all times.
Back in the day, when GM had the idea that people were too stupid to shift transfer cases and came out with full time 4wd, I almost never saw a bad front shaft.
When someone put in a part time kit, the shafts started wearing out.
When the shaft is under torque, it is held rigid. When there is no load on it, it is free to "hinge" at the spline.
Plus, often it does not rotate for long periods of time, so it flexes at the same place.
So bouncing up and down the road wears it out.
As an example, to check a front spline, you often push up on it, and it flops. Sliding back and forth would not cause slop in that direction, bending up and down does.
