Regearing Axles?

[broncoman6524]

How hard is it to do? is it something i can do in my backyard or should i take it to a shop. After not being able to spin my rear tires while powerbraking after school today to spray this kids car (it started rainin at 8am and didnt stop till 1) ya it was embaressing .

What is required to do it. Is it as simple as drainin the diff, pull the cover, slide the axle shafts out, pull and replace, or is there more.

Thnx BTw this is a 10b goin from 3.08 to 4.10s

 

[Chevy305]

This is a loaded question.
If you haven't dug into an axel before I suggest bringing it to a shop. You can do it in your backyard garage or whatever but it is time consuming and you have to get every adjustment correct on the gears. There are a few special tools needed in order to do the job.

But you can't just regear your rear axel and not your front. I suggest that you upgrade to 3/4ton axels to get the correct gearing and a full floater rear. 3/4ton is pretty much a bolt in as far as axels go and depending on prices it could be cheaper than regearing.

 

[blazinzuk]

I suggest that you upgrade to 3/4ton axels to get the correct gearing and a full floater rear. 3/4ton is pretty much a bolt in as far as axels go and depending on prices it could be cheaper than regearing.

Yah what he said. You need to be pretty mechanically inclined or possibly willing to take the risk if you do it wrong. There are tons of online instructions on how to do this. At the very minimum you need a torque wrench and a dial indicator. Easier to do with some type of bearing puller. The first set of gears I did about 9 years ago I burned up. I have done alot since them but wasn't really confident about it until about the 3rd or 4th set. Its not that hard but you must be patient, if you lack that quality don't even try

 

[broncoman6524]

3/4 ton axles are a 12b rear but whats the front. And i know that i should regear both F and R axles at the same time B/c itl F-up my T-case.

Well i guess it's time to hit the bone yards. How can i tell if they have the right ratio or not? do the put one side in the air and spin it thing?

 

[DirtyJim]

unbolt the diff cover and read the numbers on gear. you may have to spin the wheel to move the gear. divide the small number into the larger one. 41 - 10 = 4.10

 

[Bluekrow]

3/4 ton axles are a 12b rear but whats the front. And i know that i should regear both F and R axles at the same time B/c itl F-up my T-case.

Well i guess it's time to hit the bone yards. How can i tell if they have the right ratio or not? do the put one side in the air and spin it thing?

A 12bolt is not a 3/4 ton axle!!! A 14 bolt full floater and a dana44 are what you need to be looking for with 4.10 or 4.56 ratio. If you get lucky you might come across a dana 60 with the same gear ratio!

 

[DirtyJim]

you could get away with a 14 bolt semi floater, easier to find and bolt straight in

 

[broncoman6524]

i thought that Dana 44s and 10b fronts were the same atleast in strength. If it is then is there some special reason i should switch?

 

[DirtyJim]

the 10 bolt and 14 bolt semi is for the rear. the 14 is out of a 3/4 truck and can with stand a lot more abuse that a 10 bolt. the dana 44 is for the front and can take bigger tires if you dont wheel hard.

 

[mofugly13]

You could go buy new gears and install kit and pay a shop to do it for you, but it's way cheaper to just find a pair of axles with the ratio you want and sap the whole axle over. You can try and find 1/2 ton axles, but since you'll be swapping the axles, might as well try and find a set from a 3/4 ton truck. They will bolt right in. There are some 3/4 ton chevy's with 14B full floater axles in the rear (mostly 2wd IIRC)but most 14 bolts found under 4x4's will be semi floaters. Either way, the 14 bolt is stronger than the 10 bolt.

i thought that Dana 44s and 10b fronts were the same atleast in strength. If it is then is there some special reason i should switch?

Strength wise, they are pretty much equal. But they are interchangeable, so go with whatever you find. If you do change to 3/4 ton running gear, keep in mind you'll have to change to 8-lug wheels, or get some adapters to run your 6-lug wheels on them.

 

[goldwing2000]

Or run two different kinds of wheels.

Also keep in mind that although the Dana 44 and the 10-bolt look almost identical, they are only the same fron the ball joints out. Everything inward from the ball joints (gears, inner axles, case, etc) is different. The 10-bolt is way more common, so that's the route I chose on my front axle swap.

Also, the 1/2-ton and 3/4-ton front 10-bolt are identical except for the brake rotor and hub. The bearings, spindles, knuckles and ball joints are all the same, so all you need to switch to 8-lug is a rotor and hub. I'm pretty sure you can also re-use the caliper and backing plate but I'm not 100% positive on that yet.