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welding spider gears

73redblaze

73redblaze

1/2 ton status
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Aptos ca
i have searched for how to do this many times and i have not got a clear answer. how do you weld spider gears? where do you weld? and please some post pics. thanks guys:bow:
 
heres how i did mine. if your talking a 10 bolt.

stuck a small piece of 1/4inch plate in there BUT dont forget you have c-clips in there that you need to get out. so the other side just has the 4 corners welded so you can still get the c clips out. this axles been welded for about a year with 33s and still in great shape

welded1-1.jpg
 
i saw that one in my search!! haha. where are these c clamps you need to take out and do you put them back in?? also i ont understand what your saying about the 4 corners.
 
this is not my pic, i found it on the intronet but this is how ive done it in the past. welded the spiders together then also welded the spiders to the carrier. the c-clips abig84 is tallkin about are on the ends of the axle shaft on the inside of the spider gears. probably should have asked this sooner but what axle are you wanting to weld? semi float or full float? open carrier or...?

diff3ie5.jpg
 
OK... I'm not the type of guy that flames people posting with a question... Everyone has to start somewhere...


But, if you don't know what a c-clip is, I don't think you need to be concerned with welding spider gears...

I would suggest getting a book and start with one side and take everything apart, all the way to removing the axle shaft... Replace anything that looks suspect and reassemble...


The reason I say this is not to be a dick, but to help you get yourself off the trail when you snap an axle shaft from running a welded carrier...

Spend a day wrenching and get to know your truck...

My $0.02...
 
i thinking about welding up my 14bff. i know my truck just never screwed with gears. iv done hubs and shafts but never gears. i could take one a part and still say what the hell is a c clip. maybe i know it by another name
 
ok your 14bolt full floater does not have c-clips. semi floaters have c-clips that hold the shafts in the carrier.

if your 14b has an open carrier there will be 4 (i think) openings on each side of the carrier that can be welded up. my friend did this on an old truck he used to have and we never had a problem with it.

hard to see but this 14 bolt carrier is welded this way.

DCP_6492_small.jpg
 
ok lots of great info here guys. i will post some pics soon just to double check im doing it correctly. if anyone has any more pics or tips i would love to hear them.
thanks guys
 
ive welded 3 rears (2 half ton 1 3/4 ton) and never pulled the carrier out of the housing. the way i described earlier can be done without taking it apart. like i mentioned my friend did it that way in his with 35 in baja claws and quite a bit of street driving and never had a problem.
 
On a 14 bolt it really aint that hard to pull the carrier. Mine was welded with it in the truck but the peoblem is you get splatter from welding. I got all I could out then a few months later pulled the cover and cleaned out the rest
 
Jason4x4 said:
http://www.4x4mecca.com/forum/attac...ears-orb-traction-welded-rear-end-article.pdf
Click to expand...

I welded my 14FF using this same technique, however I didn't put nearly as much weld on it....maybe as much as picture 4 shows but definitely not more. This was done with a moderate size 220V MIG welder, no preheat or anything. It's been in the truck for probably 5-6 years now with 38's and 39.5's. It gets used pretty hard on the trail as I've broken multiple 30-spline Dana 60 shafts but never any issue from the welded diff in the rear. Prior to buying a trailer the Blazer also spent several years driving 150+ mile round trips to the trail.

The nice thing about doing a 14FF in this way is that it is plenty strong, but you can always replace the welded spiders with a set of open gears or a Detroit easily.
 
thanks for all the help guy! so im going to pick up my 14bff next week and try pulling the gears. im sure i will need help then. thanks
 
Its easy to pull the gears its putting them back in that can be the problem.

When you take out the gears start on one side loosening the adjuster. There will be a bolt that holds in a u shaped piece if metal to keep the adjuster in place. Before you start to loosen the adjuster mark it with a punch or something. Then when you loosen it count how many turns you make so when you put the carrier back in you can set it up exactly how it was set up before. Oonlt do one side then see if you can get the carrier out. If not do the same thing on the other side counting the rotations.

Does that make sense?
 
it makes perfect since. i dont think i will pull them if i dont need to. i dont want to put them in wrong and break eveything.
 
Do any of you guys drive your trucks with welded rears on the street? My truck is my dd but would really like to weld the rear. I know it likes to eat tires but do they really where that fast? Someone told me that with the short wheelbase that the blazer has it wont be fun to drive on the street with a welder rear. Anybody have any personal experience? Oh and my blazer does see about 2 hrs of highway time atleast twice a week.
 
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