front diff housing.

Joined: 04 Dec 2003 Location: Springwood NSW

ok..got me self some 60 series diffs to go under my fj40...anyhow I have to cut and rotate the nuckle end of the housing for the spring over conversion...after looking at some of the yankee sites it seems the operation is not that difficult being a fabricator/welder by trade....
the site doesnt mention but what I would like to know if anyone has done this before is how tight the sleeved part of the knuckle is in the housing, is it pressed in or a shrink type fit into the tube part of the housing before it is welded up...any ideas people?

Joined: 03 Nov 2002 Location: Lake Macquarie NSW

On a 105 series, they are a tight fit, not very deep (about 10mm from memory).

Joined: 09 Nov 2002 Location: Berwick, Melbourne

Eddie, it's nice to see another tradie fabricator/welder on the site. I'm a Boilermaker/welder here in Melbourne specialising in Tig welding.
Regards Andrew.

Posted: Tue Jan 20, 2004 12:02 pm

They are pressed in to about 50mm from the seal weld on the end of the tube. Tube wall is about 6mm thick. Use a thin metal cutting disk and cut on the inner half of the seal weld so that there is the tiniest bit of weld left on the tube after the cut. If you have good stong lighting or a good torch you will be able to just see the oil seeping in to the bottom of the cut whenm it is deep enough. Take the steering stops and shock mounts off carefully so they can be re-used.

I used some u-bolts and bolted the housing to my bench then got the handle from my trolley jack and put it through the bearing holes. I Put maybe 50kgs of effort on the end of the jack handle and they turned. No heat required.

Joined: 22 Oct 2002

2car wrote:

They are pressed in to about 50mm from the seal weld on the end of the tube. Tube wall is about 6mm thick. Use a thin metal cutting disk and cut on the inner half of the seal weld so that there is the tiniest bit of weld left on the tube after the cut. If you have good stong lighting or a good torch you will be able to just see the oil seeping in to the bottom of the cut whenm it is deep enough. Take the steering stops and shock mounts off carefully so they can be re-used.

I used some u-bolts and bolted the housing to my bench then got the handle from my trolley jack and put it through the bearing holes. I Put maybe 50kgs of effort on the end of the jack handle and they turned. No heat required.

When you cut it you shouldnt have any oil seeping into the bottom of the cut. You have cut it way too far if you get oil seeping in.

To answer the original question, some knuckles are quite easy to turn, some are that tight it is near impossible to turn them!!

Joined: 04 Dec 2003 Location: Springwood NSW

ok thanks fellas.....now the fun starts of stripping it down....lol

Joined: 12 Jul 2003 Location: victoria

I did my 60 with a 6'' pipe cutter. grind the weld down flat and cut
about quarter inch in from that. measure the depth with a knife blade
or some thing but dont go more than 6mm deep or it will be stuffed
you will have to turn them about 6mm. Clamp the housing down
and use a bar through the bearing holes. Leave the old shells in
to protect the housing. it does take some effort

Posted: Tue Jan 20, 2004 9:04 pm

mickbj42 wrote:

When you cut it you shouldnt have any oil seeping into the bottom of the cut. You have cut it way too far if you get oil seeping in.

Wrong! When you get down to the interface between the housing and the cast insert a very small amount of oil can be seen. Have a close look next time you do one - and I expect you have done a few now.

Joined: 12 Jul 2003 Location: victoria

2car wrote:

mickbj42 wrote:

When you cut it you shouldnt have any oil seeping into the bottom of the cut. You have cut it way too far if you get oil seeping in.

Wrong! When you get down to the interface between the housing and the cast insert a very small amount of oil can be seen. Have a close look next time you do one - and I expect you have done a few now.

Capilary reaction even if the 2 surfaces were vertical the liquid would
suck up between them regardless of gravity

Posted: Fri Jan 23, 2004 2:27 pm

60serius wrote:

2car wrote:

mickbj42 wrote:

When you cut it you shouldnt have any oil seeping into the bottom of the cut. You have cut it way too far if you get oil seeping in.

Wrong! When you get down to the interface between the housing and the cast insert a very small amount of oil can be seen. Have a close look next time you do one - and I expect you have done a few now.

Capilary reaction even if the 2 surfaces were vertical the liquid would
suck up between them regardless of gravity

Bingo!