8.8 axle rebuild

[Bguetter]

Has anyone tackled a rebuild of an 8.8 straight axle rear end? How involved? I have access to a fox width rearend with 3.08 gears. It will need 5 lug axles of course. I'd be fine with 3.08s for now, probably have a shop change them to 3.55s down the road.

Is it straight forward work to change the axles, seals, bearings and rebuild the trac-lok?

[R Thomas]

This one of the things that you will be exposed to at the build school. Not a rebuild but disassemble and reassemble to allow swapping the brake brackets to opposite sides. deals with axle removal which would allow the change to 5-lug.

[edwardb]

I've not done a complete rebuild. But did change the gears in one. From a mechanical standpoint, actually not that hard. The challenge is there are various settings including the mesh of the gears themselves that are variable and require shims and specialty tools. Also requires an arbor press for bearings and the pinion gear. I bought this video which isn't network quality production value, but I found very helpful and down to earth. There's a trailer to give you an idea. https://vimeo.com/ondemand/29206.

[turbomacncheese]

Well, I'm not building a roadster, and I've never rebuilt one either. But I DID watch a video that made me respect the process. Eric the car guy. Good videos. This is part one, links to part two. He also has an edited version that skips some of the re-doing he re-did.

https://youtu.be/5fARhE7v5Bg

[NAZ]

Just to echo what edwardb said -- you will need some special tools to properly set-up your rear end. If you don't already have these you will shell out a couple hundred bucks (or more) for tools you may never use again. And you'll need a repair manual that gives you the procedures & specs you will be setting up the gears & bearings to. Do it wrong and you'll end up with a noisy, clunky gear set that won't last long. Do it right and you'll have a sense of accomplishment. Either way, don't expect to save a ton of money doing it yourself if you don't already have the tools.

[Doutie]

I'd like to throw this out for discussion. I have and prefer good measuring tools but an old mechanic showed me a trick that I have since used successfully on several automotive sized gear sets. Ford recommends .008 to .012 thousands backlash and newspaper measures three to four thousands. If you cut strips of news paper and feed it thru your assembled gear set it becomes a backyard gauge. If the paper comes out of the gears cut by each tooth the backlash is to small, ie less than .008. If the paper comes out not folded about each tooth tight and square the backlash is too loose. Ideally the paper should be folded in nice sharp square corners but not cut at the corners. Next read the paper strips to judge the meshing pattern. The paper should fold as described along the full length of the tooth. If the paper is cut at the low end of the ring gear teeth and not at the top, your contact patch is too low. If the paper is cut at the upper end of the ring gear teeth and not at the bottom, your contact patch is too high. Might sound crazy but it works and thoroughly amazed some four-wheeling buddies when I did this in a mud hole and drove the wounded truck away.

[KegMechanic]

If you are just looking to change the axles, it's a piece of cake. Remove the diff cover. Then remove one bolt holds the center pin in. Then there is a clip on each axle that will almost fall out on it's own and the axles will slide out. I'm sure that there are lots of youtube videos that will walk you through the process.

It's a good idea to change the outer grease seals and bearings while the axles are out. Again, no big deal.

When you get into changing the gears and other center section components is when things get a bit complicated.

[Bguetter]

Great, thanks for the input everyone. After further reading, it looks like i can handle the axles, bearings/seals at home. I'd rather not touch the gears or track-loc. I sent an email over to a local performance shop to see what they would charge to do everything at once. When i find out how much it would be for everything, I'll decide if i want to tackle some of it on my own. Thanks again.

[DadofThree]

Here is my Write up on my 8.8 Rear End 3.08 Rebuild. Hope it Helps

http://buildacobra.blogspot.com/p/1995-ford-88-rear-differential.html

[CraigS]

If you are just looking to change the axles, it's a piece of cake. Remove the diff cover. Then remove one bolt holds the center pin in. Then there is a clip on each axle that will almost fall out on it's own and the axles will slide out. I'm sure that there are lots of youtube videos that will walk you through the process.

It's a good idea to change the outer grease seals and bearings while the axles are out. Again, no big deal.

When you get into changing the gears and other center section components is when things get a bit complicated.

This is the answer.

[GSides9]

I look at this a lot like engine building. If everything isn't right, it doesn't last. Or it whines like crazy until it self destructs. My smartest call of my build was to Mike Forte. He sent me a rear, flange to flange, completely rebuilt with the correct axles, my gear ratio etc... along with a lot of other parts that all worked perfectly on my Coupe.

[Bguetter]

Here is my Write up on my 8.8 Rear End 3.08 Rebuild. Hope it Helps

http://buildacobra.blogspot.com/p/1995-ford-88-rear-differential.html


Thank you! Great info!

[CraigS]

I agree w/ GSides9 that changing gears you need tools and experience. But doing bearings, seals, axles, are pretty easy. Even re-building the trac loc isn't bad. When I pull a center section I put two plastic containers on the floor marked right and left. As the shims come out they go into the appropriate container. Then they go back in the same place on reassembly. I would also rebuild the Tracloc. It isn't that difficult, the upgrade carbon fiber discs are $109 and regular discs $75. Install instructions here.
http://www.americanmuscle.com/ford-88-traclok-kit-cust-install.html