Planning a Ford Racing “Aluminator” Build with associated mods over the winter

[Scott]

Axle Seals and Bearings Removed

The OEM axle seals and bearings need to be removed in order to cut the ends off the axle tubes flush with the register. This is required for the C-Clip Eliminator kit.

OEM seal and bearing.



To remove the seals and bearings I used a 5lb Slide Hammer and Axel Bearing Puller.



Puller in position.



A few good slides on the hammer and out comes the seal and bearing. The OEM seal had a little sealer/glue on the back of the flange where it contacted the axel tube.



Next up cutting the axle tube ends off flush with the register.

 

[Scott]

Cut the Housing Ends

Was not sure on what the best method for cutting off the housing ends would be. In doing a little forum and web research could not find much on how it was done. I did find a Muscle Mustangs and Fast Ford article where they were cut with a reciprocating saw with the housing still in the car. Well I do not have the necessary skills to cut a straight line in flat metal with a reciprocating saw so I can only imagine what cutting a tube would look like. That said it took me all of about 2 seconds to eliminate the reciprocating saw. So I broke out my trusty hacksaw and with a new 32 tooth blade for each side went to work. It actually did not take very long and the cuts were pretty straight since I was able to use the register for a guide.

Before.



A few passes with a file and a quick Dremel with a small stone to clean the burrs from the inside of the tubing and we are all ready for the axles.

Cut flush with the Register



Driver’s Side Brake Caliper Mount trail fitted.





Axel slipped in for a look see.

 

[one eyed willy]

Lookin good!

 

[Timmbo]

Wow. Nice job there Scott!

 

[Scott]

Lookin good!

Thanks Paul!

I see you are getting your Air Lift to hook at the strip, great! Will PM you for more details on your settings etc.

Wow. Nice job there Scott!

Tim, it is coming along. I think I am pretty much ready to take the diff to be narrowed. Matt D recommend LE Chassis Engineering to me as they shortened his differential and welded the axle tubes. Just so happens they are about 20 minutes away from me and an hour from his location, who knew. I assume they will need the axles, spool, caliper brackets and C-Clip Eliminators to get everything right. No carrier bearings on the spool yet so I guess this needs to be done next.

 

[Scott]

Dropped into LE Chassis Engineering this afternoon and all they need is the housing and how much I want it narrowed. Will drop the housing off in the morning.

 

[Scott]

Dropped the housing off at LE Chassis Engineering this afternoon for shortening and welding the axle tubes. Housing measured 60-3/16” going in and will measure 58-3/16” coming home Thursday or Friday.
The Timken M802048 inner pinion bearing came today. This picture compares the

Timken bearing on the left for the 2014 Shelby housing to the Mustang GT housing bearing.

 

[Dark_horse]

Looking great Scott and as usual killer write up!

 

[onehotpny]

Scott, are going to do a complete narrowed rear end with tubs?

 

[Scott]

Looking great Scott and as usual killer write up!

Thanks Bobby!

Scott, are going to do a complete narrowed rear end with tubs?

No tubs James just shortening a total of 2" with the objective of airing out the Air Lift with 325/50R15's on the back. If they still protrude beyond the fender line I will drop down to 295/55R15's.

 

[Scott]

Shortened and Welded Axle Tubes

Picked up the differential today from LE Chassis Engineering. When I got there Luciano still had the diff in his jig so I snapped a couple of cell phone pictures showing how the rod and “pucks” worked to ensure integrity during welding.





Back home and I took a few pictures of his handy work.

Driver’s side axle tube end.



Driver’s side tube welded.



Passenger’s side tube welded.



Passenger’s side tube end.



Housing was narrowed 1” per side and now measures 58-5/16”

 

[05stroker]

Nice job! I was going to shorten mine but, with the custom Strange rear brake/ c clip elem setup I built, I gained about 3/4 on each side and that was enough to tuck my 325s inside the way I wanted.

 

[Scott]

Nice job! I was going to shorten mine but, with the custom Strange rear brake/ c clip elem setup I built, I gained about 3/4 on each side and that was enough to tuck my 325s inside the way I wanted.

Thanks, I am pretty happy with the job LE Chassis Engineering did.

By any chance can you point me to any pictures that illustrate 325's on your car with the 3/4" per side narrowing that you achieved?

 

[Scott]

Ordered a second Timken inner pinion bearing, part number M802048 for the final install. Decide to make a setup bearing with the first one by taking a Dremel to the ID so it can be easily slipped on and off the pinion to adjust shim thickness while setting up the pinion depth.

 

[05stroker]

http://www.s197forum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=88353&highlight=learning+make+fast&page=67
Post 1338 has the pics after my spacers where removed from the Bogarts front and rear.

 

[Scott]

http://www.s197forum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=88353&highlight=learning+make+fast&page=67
Post 1338 has the pics after my spacers where removed from the Bogarts front and rear.

Great, thank you Sir!

 

[Scott]

Pinion Preparation

I always thought the outer (small) pinion bearing was a slip fit on the pinion. I was shocked that the new bearing from the install kit would not slip over the pinion. In watching a CJPony Parts gear install video I saw that they took an air grinder and wheel to the pinion shaft to clean off the black oxide coating on the pinion shaft so the bearing would slip on. The finish on the shaft in the video looked a little “rough” to me so I used 400 and then 800 grit paper to polish the shaft. Only took a few minutes and worked perfectly.

Out of the box pinion bearing will not slip on.



Polished with wet dry sand paper.



Outer pinion bearing now a slip fit.

 

[Scott]

Carrier Bearings Installed on the Spool

Cut the cage to remove the rollers from an old carrier bearing so the cone could be used to press on the new carrier bearings on the spool.

Cleaned the anti-rust shipping film applied by Strange off of the spool with break cleaner and placed the spool in the garage fridge freezer overnight.

Heated the carrier bearings in the oven at 250 degrees for 30 minutes.

Pressed on the carrier bearing using the press and the old bearing cone.







And the other spool end.

 

[Scott]

Ring Gear Installed on the Spool

Deburred the mounting surface of the ring gear with a fine flat file and 400 then 800 grit wet/dry sand paper.

Ring gear out of the box.



After preparation



The inside matting edge of the Ring Gear to Spool was prepared with 400 grit wet/dry sand paper and the Ring Gear pulled onto the Spool using 3 of the OEM Ring Gear bolts.



The ARP Ring Gear bolts were tightened to 60 ft-lbs and then 85 ft-lbs with ARP Ultra-Torque assembly lubricant under the bolt heads and Permatex 242 (blue) on the bolt threads using a ¾” 12 point socket. The OEM Ring Gear bolts are 5/8” 6 point.







Installed the Moser Engineering Main Cap Stud Kit part number 7116, studs are tightened in the housing to 10 ft-lbs. (Don’t own a Torque wrench that goes this low so they were just snugged down with a 3/16” Allen wrench.

 

[Scott]

Inner Pinion Setup Bearing

In an attempt to simplify the process of determining the correct thickness of the shims required under the inner pinion bearing I prepared an inner pinion “setup bearing”. Took one of the two Timken bearings (part number M802048) I purchased and using a 1 .5” diameter sand paper wheel on a Dremel carefully “massaged” the ID of the bearing until it would slip onto the pinion. Was easier to do than I thought it was going to be.

Bearing is a press fit.



Dremel and sanding wheel.



Setup bearing installed on pinion.



Determined the pinion flange I have for my Axle-Exchange drive shaft is the wrong one. Part number FR3Z-4851-A only works with the OEM two piece driveshaft, the one required for my one-piece aluminium shaft is from a 03/04 Cobra part number Dl3Z-4851-A. Also ordered new 12mm 12 point pinion flange/driveshaft bolts and an oil slinger, part number D5AZ-4670-A.

I have had a Park Tool model TW-1 Torque Wrench (1/4-inch drive, 0 to 60 Inch) on order since December 14th for measuring bearing preload. But the latest tracking information I have says it could be delivered as late as January 7, 2015. Therefore a big delay in the build!