divette

Hi guys!

Who knows - where to buy 300m billet inner and outer axles for C4 corvette (w/D44)?

Beforehand is grateful

P.S.
Some time back on forum there was such guy " 86 PlumCrazyVette "
I saw - he offered such axles. I wrote to him the letters - but he yet has not answered to me.

ZR1forFun

I'd be interested in these also.

Maybe try posting in the drag racing section, I think I've seen him in there.

divette

OK
Thanks

I try it

REDC4CORVETTE

The price was real expensive to produce ,unless a bunch of guys want to get in on it.
That was where the axles came into play.

divette

full set axles & caps +cryo = 1750$

97AGGIE

Try Summers Brother's Axles. They are out of California. Their phone number is 909-986-2041. Ask for Ole. They are known for awesome custom axles. They custom built me a set of 31 spline billet axle stubs and also modified my factory wheel bearings to accept them. Looks stock but will NOT break. In fact, when they sent them back to me, they told me that they were confident that I would NOT break them, but could not guarrantee that I would not find my next weakest link...sure enough...I exploded a half shaft after that and had to purchase carbon fiber ones. Have had no probs since. By the way...my car is a 6 speed, 383, on a 250 shot and has gone 9.8's @ 148. I used to break a lot of axle stubs!

Another thing...this will be a LOT cheaper than $1700. I tried the heat treated stock versions before and broke 3 sets of them. Really not worth it. There is only so much strength that can be obtained out of that diameter axle stub. You can tell Ole @ Summers Bros that you are interested in what he made for the guy in Texas. I have had them for over 2 years and at the time, this was the first time he had ever made something like this.

lcvette

this is excellent source of information.. I think I know what I will be saving up for.. now if we can get someone to fit a detroit locker in the place of our posi unit we should have some seriously bullet proof rear end assemblie for and IRS setup.

Chris

AKS Racing

You're forgetting the case, which has a tendancy to crack/shatter/break with the higher HP cars. Normally, I would suggest the "cradle" at this point, but I may have cracked the case on my streetcar in just the last couple of weeks.

This last rear has lasted for almost 8 years, with many 9 sec passes and lots of street miles. I guess like everything it has a certain service life.

I will probably jack it up this weekend to see what problems are there.
Aaron

jburnett

Movement breaks the case... ANY amount of slack in the driveline (including that you can't "feel") will cause case failure. In the ideal instance the case is merely a "vessel" to contain the rotating parts. There should be little load on the case itself; all motion should be rotational. However, if you have play in the driveline and you hit the tires; when the tranny tailhousing moves upwards (as the pinion gear tries to climb the ring gear) you put the nose of the diff case in a bind. This stems from having no tranny crossmember and using the diff as part of the structural member of the car. With a tranny crossmember and a torque arm mounted to the crossmember (instead of the tailhousing), as well as solid carrier bushings the case becomes more of a vessel and not a structural member of the car. This is what prevents catastrophic failure of the case in these cars. You'll have the common instances of the posi shattering and/or a ring gear coming apart and shooting a piece through the case. But, that is usually a simple matter of TIGing up the case to salvage it.
-Jeb

BrianCunningham

The case breaking has come up in C4 tech before.

Do you replace the rubber diff mounts with solids?

How about running diagonal struts from the bottom of the diff to the frame?

jburnett

I machine solid Delrin bushings with aluminum sleeves to replace the rubber/poly units. As for additional bracing that's been done as well in many instance. I've been working with one member on here and he's built a pinion snubber that actually goes through the floor into his roll cage; very inventive on his part. I also box the batwing; profile mill the beams and cut .125" aluminum plate and TIG in to box it. That increases rigidity considerably. But, the biggest problem is still the fact that these cars use NO tranny crossmember and the c-beam, as stout as it looks, still flexes. Mine is buckled all along the top from slick-tired launches. The beam plates that Bill Boudreau builds helps but the only true cure is a tranny crossmember OR a stiffer torque arm. I've built one out of 1.25" .083" wall chromoly and can assure you that it will not flex like the stock aluminum one. But the one I've built actually attaches to the tranny crossmember I've installed in my car (cuz it has a TH400).
-Jeb

divette

Tom's Differential sell BILLET cases for D44.
this case strongest ?

http://www.tomsdifferentials.com/catalog.asp?pg=31

It is meaningful to buy it?

price ????### who know ?

PS

****ing$$$$$$$$

jburnett

The last time I talked with Tom (about a month or so ago) they were nowhere near having the billet cases ready. He didn't know when they were going to release them. I've been using the Car Creations case; it's a cast case like the stocker but MUCH beefier. They're around $1100.00 for just the bare case.
-Jeb

divette

I too had conversation with Tom's Differentials - they yet do not make it.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...e/P0001975.jpg

It - BILLET
It is better, than Car Creations ?
Or between them already there is no large difference in force?

( "Red L98" has it - there spool is established also.)
I have found it here:
http://www.driveline-solutions.com/s...custrides.html
[(3-rd picture - this RED-vette - click on it to see )

This spool richmond - I it have found in SUMMITRACING (part #81-4430X-1)
[http://store.summitracing.com/partde...5&autoview=sku

jburnett

That spool is made for the Dana 44 straight axle. It must be machined to fit the IAS D44's. I did RedL98's spool. For what it's worth, there are currently NO Richmond D44 spools available...Period... I've had 10 ordered since last May and they keep pushing production back further and further. I had to find another source for them (DTS) and while they're very nice units, they're tailored to 4x4's instead of race cars and aren't the lightweight design like the Richmonds that I prefer.

A billet case would be much nicer IMO... However since they've not yet surfaced and Tom's has not given a firm date as to when they'll be available you have but two choices... A stock case or a Car Creations case and I can assure you the Car Creations case is much stouter than the stockers. However, don't be misled into thinking the stock case is weak either... If it is allowed to do what a diff case is supposed to do, which is be a CARRIER for the gear set and not a structural member of the car (as it is in the C4) then breakage is very rare. Remove the stresses afflicted on it by the addition of a transmission crossmember and a torque arm mounted to the tranny crossmember instead of the tailhousing, install solid carrier bushings and you essentially eliminate the stresses that cause case failure. Given that the stock Dana casting is plenty adequate provided you don't pop a pinion gear or shear ring gears and shoot pieces through the case.
-Jeb
PS- Here are some D44 pics of early, late, and aftermarket cases...In each pic they go in this order (left to right): Late model factory case (that's been damaged and rewelded, if you look closely), Car Creations aftermarket case, and early model factory case. You'll notice the early case is pretty beefy and the late case is not. Car Creations case is beefier than both.

AKS Racing

Jeb,
Thanks for the very informative pics. It is great that you are able to pull all of these cases together for a side by side comparison.

So it would appear that the "beefier" factory case is readily identified by the absence of a strengthening rib going forward at the CL of the axle stub on the passenger side (appears to bulge out instead of having the rib). Is this correct? I know there are other items that may indicate, but what is the quickest way to differentiate?

I have a stack of old D44s in the back of the garage and was wondering, as I may be due a rear change shortly. My seal on the '87 between the pumpkin and the batwing appears to be leaking ever so slightly, but no break.

Thank

TONYDEE64

Who was the place who had the nine inch ford carrier for independent suspension? With some fab work that might be a solution. The carrier has a flat top that could be made to mate with a new fabbed bat wing. Or I guess you could just put a regular straight nine inch in it and be done...

Rkreigh

I think the pinion snubber and boxing the c beam is the ticket. the solid rear bushings likely really help too but at the expense of harshness.

anyone try boxing the c beam?? the beam plates help by boudreau help as the c beam is "fish mouthed" and it helps increase the stiffness through better clamping and load distribution, but I think BOXing one side of the c beam like you did with the bat wing would make a world of difference. on the other side, putting in a "bolt in box" after the c beam is mounted would help too. it would take a zillion little "long bolts drilled through and tapped. bill and I kicked this around alot.

anyone want to hear more??? I would love to see if it works, my bet is that it would. take a look at the c5 torq tube and you get the idea.

stiffening the "spine" of the c4 would really help this problem alot

my buddy used to crack the d44 case quite a bit jugging it off the line even with drag radials. wheel hop seems to kill parts too.

I gave up and bought a drag car!!!

jburnett

The older cases have a flat bottom and no visible parting lines from the casting. They also have pocket milled "oiling" troughs for the pinion bearing; this can be seen in photo #1. They are also NOTICIBLY heavier than the later cases; I would say as much as 4-5 lbs. I don't know whether this is a case of more material or a different aluminum alloy, though.

Tony, I don't remember who had the IRS 9" units; but you're correct. I don't think it would be all that difficult to fabricate a sheet metal housing with integrated bat wing. That's the nice thing about a 9"; they're a "third-member" style diff. I would say build a sheet housing and weld the axle flanges directly to the case; then have some short axles built and then go about the usual halfshaft/spindle arrangement typical of C4's... Hmm... Dammit... Another project...

The pinion snubber/torque arm mods are a necessary evil if you want to eliminate movement completely from the driveline. The tranny crossmember, IMO, is paramount. The solid Delrin bushings are as well; but it's true they do make the ride more harsh. But, honestly not that much worse than poly's when new.
-Jeb

TONYDEE64

Hi Jeb,

Here it is, I just thought of it. You would not have to use the inner brakes. Just make a simple flat top mounted triangulated bat-type wing and adapt your half shafts accordingly. If you look at the picture on their website they even have a provision for a torque arm, albeit on the wrong side... but that's no hill for a climber!!!! Besides, with your set up already having a trans cross member you would probably be good to go without a torque arm...

They also have billet hub cariers that are already set up for Corvette hubs. I think this is the ticket if you are dead set on keeping your IRS... It would likely be cheaper to just throw a straight axle Ford 9" in it... I'm guessing the Dutchman stuff is EXPENSIVE!!!!!!!!!

http://www.dutchmanms.com/1_irsnav.html