Front driveshaft angle too much

[joeshmo473]

What: 1980 K5 blazer with 6" lift and 38s and transfer case drop kit
Problem: front drive shaft is at too high and angle
I have never heard of this happening with a 6 inch lift, i know people who have 8 inch lifts and no problem but i think the transfer case drop kit hurt the angle because now the plate that the driveshaft connects to on the transfer case is at a negative angle. i have heard different things such as shim the front axle or take the drop kit out or even lower the engine or take the CV joint out then extend the driveshaft and just have one U joint. has anyone had this problem and if so what do i do?

 

[PsychoticDeadGuy]

i dont understand what you mean...the transfer case drop should work perfect if you installed it right...but also check the angle of the front axle...you could turn it up a few degrees and that should help.

 

[1-ton]

I am not the drive shaft angle expert here (and I am sure someone that is can answer your question better), but I have heard of people dropping their transfer case, which corrected their rear drive shaft operating angle, but then messed up their front drive shaft angle.

 

[mtnman210]

I ran into all kinds of front driveshaft problems when I did my 6in lift. I ended up droping the tcase about 3in, rotated the front end up, used the spacer that came with the kit that went between where the driveshaft bolts to the tcase, and then had to grind the heck out of the cv joint.

 

[RootBreaker]

I am not the drive shaft angle expert here (and I am sure someone that is can answer your question better), but I have heard of people dropping their transfer case, which corrected their rear drive shaft operating angle, but then messed up their front drive shaft angle.

happened to me.. you lower the xfer case.. however the engine is still sitting in stock location... thus making a \ effect... (not that dramatic)..... but was enough to make my front awkward... I just ground down my tabs on the front shaft and it works fine.. even at full droop...


oh yeah... also my truck had a plastic lining on the firewall under the hood that I had to cut out... xfer case drop also made my distributor hit the firewall

 

[JK5]

I had the same problem..

First I carefully ground the stops on the shaft..to help with the angle.
After eating cv's...I moved the front end forward 2".

205/350 combo's are tough on front shaft's...with over 4" of lift.
You could go to HAD...for Driveshaft issues.

 

[TexasDiveInstructor]

Reviving an old thread. I am having this same problem with mine. How do you just move the front shaft forward? I was going to try and shim the front axle to angle the front diff up but am not sure how to properly shim it. Any help is appreciated.

 

[RootBreaker]

well angling the axle really is the only way... or lower your motor too.. but that isnt that easy!!!!!

do you have a driveshaft with a CV on it?
i do so that helps.... that is where the tabs i ground out were

 

[TexasDiveInstructor]

Yes it does. How do I actually angle the drive shaft? I understand I probably need to put some type of shim between the leaf springs and the axle itself. Is this a product I buy? Do I have to manufacture it? With the tabs, I just dont understand how it will work. I also read somewhere where someone moved the whole axle forward a couple inches. I dont understand how that is done either.

 

[Hogback Fabrication]

The right way to do it is to cut the welds out of the inner c's, turn the pinion where you want it then reset the caster and weld everything back up.

Simply putting shims in the front end will likely eliminate most of the caster the front end has and make the truck wander a lot on the road.

 

[TexasDiveInstructor]

Now its starting to make sense. Noob question, what is the inner c's? I have a cutting wheel, cutting torch and a welder. Just not exactly sure what to cut unless you are talking about the bracket on the axle that the leaf spring sits on. I could see one option as cutting the bracket welds, rotating the axle slightly, then re-welding. Is that what you mean?

 

[ezoliver]

Inner C on end of axle needs turned to keep caster for proper steering...

Inner C:

The part where the steering knuckle mounts on the end of the axle tube

 

[Blue85]

Just not exactly sure what to cut unless you are talking about the bracket on the axle that the leaf spring sits on. I could see one option as cutting the bracket welds, rotating the axle slightly, then re-welding. Is that what you mean?

The bracket you are talking about is called the spring perch. You could cut it and reweld for the same effect as installing shims (although it's stronger than shims). The problem with rotating the whole axle is that it also changes the caster. Caster is important to the handling and tracking of the vehicle. So to rotate the differential without rotating the steering parts, you cut the welds on the "Cs" and reweld them in addition to the shims/spring perch changes.