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Little dent at end of axle tube


DudemusPrimus

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I snapped my left rear axle, the backing plate sheered from the mounts as well. I thought I could just get away easy with a new axle and brake components and backing plate but I noticed a little dent at the end of the tube where the seal sits that might be a changer. Even if I cleaned it up a bit a file (better to take a little by hand slowly than to much with a grinder) to get the burr off the bottom I fear the little dent on the inside may lead to a bad seal. Will certainly have an expert take a peek at it soon. I am up in the air if I should order the parts for this 7.5 or swap the whole rear end for an explorer 8.8 with disks, a more involved process but might have to if in the end I swap the 3.0 for a nicely built 308 that was built for pumped gas no crazy compression.
 

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DudemusPrimus

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the dent is at the 6 Oclock position
 

Captain Ledd

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HHMMMMmmm... Well, if cash is a real issue at the moment you might be able to squeeze some high oil resistant RTV (the black stuff) in there around the edge and have it be ok. But I can't tell how bad that dent is, or rather how it will impact how the seal sits in there. Is the lip bent down? The inside diameter is more important than the outside.

Next step is just another 7.5" or 8.8" from a Ranger that should swap right in. Normally the Ranger 8.8's hold up fairly well to V8 power, shafts are usually not the issue. And it looks like you're running fairly stock tires?

May I inquire as to how you managed to snap the axle off like that? lol

Explorer swaps aren't terribly difficult, but you do need to weld and make sure things are correct.
 

DudemusPrimus

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Hey Cpt. Thanks for the reply
Yes the inside lip is bent down just a bit. This damage happened the other day when a car went the wrong way against traffic. Without a second thought I swerved over a median. People behind me and the 4 cars behind them were not that lucky and pilled up pretty bad.
I have been mulling this little dent over and over in my head. I think and I hope the seal is going to sit just far enough behind it. I really am not so sure about welding it up as it might not go as planed. Sometimes things don't go as planned. I am getting a new seal today to see if it will (praying) seat well, but at the same time if I am going through all this, new axle, seals, brake component, I am thinking should I not just swap the rear end for 8.8 and discs? I see that can open up a can of worms.
....
your opinion sits pretty well with me and is somewhat reassuring, I will post the specs on the V8 and see if it will still be viable of if I should beef it up.
 

Captain Ledd

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Yeah, if it looks like the seal will still be a nice snug fit overall, clean the hell out of it with brake cleaner, put a layer or RTV around the seal edge with a thicker glob where the dent is, and hopefully that will keep it from leaking. Rub a thin ring around the edge of the axle tube side too. Hopefully it'll at the very least get you back going down the road. Then you can build axles and what-not on your terms and schedule, which is much more pleasant and enjoyable :icon_thumby:
 

DudemusPrimus

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Good advice Captain, I do not have a welder and was going to borrow one for the fabrication that needs to be done to the 8.8 however my neighbor is a welder fabricator by trade and will certainly get him onboard to assist with the fabricating. I found the build sheet for the motor and will post now to see if it warrants a definite beefed up rear end.
 

DudemusPrimus

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Here are the specs on the motor, so an experienced Ranger-Ranger can tell me if I should perhaps beef up the rear.


D.S.S Bullet short block 302ci bored to 308ci Piston fly cut is INLINE with DISHED pistons

Aluminum heads intake ports are 1&11/16th" by 1"

exhaust ports are 1&3/16th" X 1&3/16th roughly

ARP head bolts, roller timing set, Hyd Roller lifters, .080 wall pushrods, aluminum roller rockers,

HP/computer Hyd roller cam, guess that means a e303 ? don't know for sure

Big aluminum intake from the Edlbrock factory but no big Name on top

The builder is pretty well known in the racing community and the engine is designed for pumped gass
 

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DudemusPrimus

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I went to Advanced parts dealer, and they wanted $168 for the axle which was more than other places I had searched on the net, I had a quasi knowledgeable mechanic tell me that the little dent should not hurt the seal as the seating of the seal itself was far enough back from the dent. I did pick up a tube of the best black sealant on the market.

I stopped at Ford dealer where a pal works in parts. Gave him my VIN# so I could get the part numbers I need because Advanced had some trouble finding the backing plate. They want $325 for genuine Ford axle......wow total for the shaft, plate asy, bearing asy and seal was $477, about the price for a used Explorer rear end.

I plan to go to Discount and Napa tomorrow and finally call the YARDS as well.

Thanks for reading and any help offered,
 

DudemusPrimus

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Just opened the dif and had a hell of a time getting the axle out because it snapped off at the rotor. Dif and gears look good.

I haven't had any replies on the beefed up 8.8 Expo rear or 8.8 Ranger rear for the motor specs so I guess I will just spend the dough to get her up and running and move over to the V8 forum with my questions since they seem to merge axle questions with motor questions. Thanks
 
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Captain Ledd

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Well as I mentioned earlier, unless you're really pushing things the shafts hold up pretty well. Normally it's a bit offroad oriented though.

There was a member on here that talked about how he had built a nice 9" for his Ranger for "when the 7.5" blew" (the 7.5" and the Ranger 8.8 use the same shafts), he had welded the spider gears which are really the only weak point of the 7.5" and flogged it, I think he had 31's, it was a desert type race truck, and it had a 302 swapped into it. Something like 2 or 3 years had gone by and he was on the fence about selling the 9" lol. I think he did swap it though, trussed 9" ready to go v.s. a stock 7.5" that, well... who knows? But it never technically broke.
 

DudemusPrimus

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Only one yard that dealt with Lk Q had 8.8" rear asy, but they wanted my 7.5" and $300
and it had no axles or brake components. The pick an pull place had some chewed and rusted up rears, bent backing plates no components.

So I was able to order everything to get Mrs. Grey on the road again from E-harbor auctions for less than $175 and all new parts, axle bearings, backing plate and brake drum ect.

I am keeping my eyes peeled for a donor Exploder or Mountain-ear, I'll see what I can do about a nice tranny might have to buy a t5.

I really like this Ranger, I like the size and nimbleness of it compared to bigger heavier trucks, it will be perfect for scooting around quickly with plenty of power.
 

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