Dana 44 Axle teardown- PICS added ?? about the damage

[mostwanted]

So pretty much everything was shot on my axle from u-joints, bearings, calipers, and maybe 1 spindle. It appears to have a ridge wore into it where a bearing rides. It has been suggested to file down the ridge and check for bearing fitment. Or, Carquest carries the spindle for $100. Could I use the one out of my 10 bolt? Any other ideas or suggestions?

Also, there was very little gear oil in the diff?? Therefor there was a lot of rust mixed with what remained of lubircation. The actual gears only had a few spots of surface rust which rubs off easily. Besides replacing the bearings, I guess I need to remove the diff and just clean it all out?

These axles were sitting in a field and were given to me. So far the 14bolt looks great. I can provide pics in the AM if need be.

 

[dremu]

So pretty much everything was shot on my axle from u-joints, bearings, calipers, and maybe 1 spindle. It appears to have a ridge wore into it where a bearing rides. It has been suggested to file down the ridge and check for bearing fitment. Or, Carquest carries the spindle for $100. Could I use the one out of my 10 bolt? Any other ideas or suggestions?

Also, there was very little gear oil in the diff?? Therefor there was a lot of rust mixed with what remained of lubircation. The actual gears only had a few spots of surface rust which rubs off easily. Besides replacing the bearings, I guess I need to remove the diff and just clean it all out?

These axles were sitting in a field and were given to me. So far the 14bolt looks great. I can provide pics in the AM if need be.

Spindles (and everything out from there) from the 10b will fit the D44.

However, IIRC, there are two sizes, so you'll want to take the spindles, bearings, and hubs/rotors from the 10b and put them on the D44 ... no sense having one size on the left and the other on the right side!

-- A

 

[K5MONSTERCHEV]

So whats the surprise?

 

[atho]

Yeah, did it have a Detroit in it or somethin?

having an old axle laying out in a field, not under a truck, full of water...should not be a surprise. it should be the expected.

 

[mostwanted]

Actually, I was being sarcastic.

Anyways, any recommendations on cleaning out the diff and make'n it useable again? Should I just scrap all the crap out and try to grind away to bare metal or what?

 

[resurrected_jimmy]

I wouldn't bother going all the way to bare metal, wire wheel out to knock off most of the crud you need to get rid of. Varsol or some other parts washer type cleaner will work well for this type of cleaning. I read something about a liquid rust remover in Peterson's 4Wheel & off Road a few months ago that seemed to work well. It takes parts down to bare metal. Downside to it is you have to heat it to 100* F and soak the part for a while. Might be worth a shot if you can figure out how to submerge a D44 housing in it.

 

[goldwing2000]

Naval Jelly works good for removing rust in small areas.

 

[mostwanted]

here's the nasty diff.

 

[mostwanted]

heres what I was talking about on the bearing surfaces. The blue lines indicate a ridge at the edge. Is this normal? It it on both spindles.

 

[mostwanted]

This area is pitted as well

 

[mostwanted]

last but not least, there are some dings where someone was careless. The green lines indicate where I struck the spindle with a brass drift in order to remove it. Should I replace these? I would probley just pull the spindles out of my 10 bolts untill I can get some flat tops for X-over.


I almost forgot to show a pitted spot I noticed on the spider gears.

 

[K5MONSTERCHEV]

Pitted? That spider looks broken?!?!