Chevelle updates

[mockingbird812]

Well it was perfect Wx for test and tune. Now if only the car cooperated. It was nice to see you and Rachel and Doug. I'll post some photos later.

[VintageMusclecar]

Well, there's good news and "I'm not too sure" news:

Popped the cover off and no chunks fell out...matter of fact, I couldn't see anything wrong with the carrier or the gearset at all.

Here's what I did find...the "good news"

Drivers side axle:



The passenger side axle appears to be undamaged, I don't even see any twist to the splines. I couldn't get the remnant of the drivers side axle to slide in far enough to dis-engage the c-clip groove, so I had to pull the whole carrier out.

Thank <span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="text-decoration: underline">GOD</span></span> the carrier pin retainer bolt didn't break!
[img]<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/eek.gif[/img]

Here's what was left of the drivers side axle:







Again, the ring &amp; pinion appear to be undamaged:




Here's the &quot;I'm not so sure&quot; news--

While turning the diff to get the U joint strap bolts out, rotation felt very &quot;clunky&quot;. As soon as the driveshaft was disengaged from the rear end, the ring &amp; pinion rotated freely.

I've had enough for today so I'm not going to check it right now, but if that new transmission is hurt, the car's going to a 400 Turbo.

More sometime over the weekend.

[njsteve]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: VintageMusclecar</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Well, there's good news and &quot;I'm not too sure&quot; news:

Popped the cover off and no chunks fell out...matter of fact, I couldn't see anything wrong with the carrier or the gearset at all.

Here's what I did find...the &quot;good news&quot;

Drivers side axle:









</div></div>

Crazy question but what is the brown stuff on the inside of the broken surfaces? Is that rust? If so that would indicate a preexisting fracture that was old enough to rust. Or was it the residue from you pounding it out of the carrier with something?

[SuperNovaSS]

Eric,

Sorry for the bad news. Glad to hear about the good news. I can't imagine the transmission and the rear going at the same time but I guess i the car was really biting it is possible. You are an awesome guy but I don't see us going to Vegas together.


Jason

[PxTx]

The glass is clearly half-full. Glad to see it was an axle. A reasonable fix, and I'm optimistic for you and the trans. Thanks for sharing and quickly posting the carnage pics.

[VintageMusclecar]

That's rust from the end of an old steel barbell I was using as a drift to try to knock the broken stub in far enough to remove the c clip.

[VintageMusclecar]

Well, after spending the better part of the day yesterday researching 12 bolt components, I've decided that for the time being I'm going to install a new pair of Strange axles along with their c clip eliminator kits. The Yukon axles that were in the car are a quality product, but the car obviously took them past their limits. Unless I want to go to a 33 spline Eaton posi (MORE $$$) or a 35 spline spool (not happening on any street car of mine), the Strange axles are my best investment. As much as I'd love to keep a 12 bolt under the car, at this weight and power level with a stick trans, it just doesn't make sense to pour money into a 12 bolt when there is a far better alternative.

The plan is to get it back together and get it to the track again, but for the time being it'll be easy launches--nothing above 3K. I still want/need to establish a representative baseline with the 4.56 gears before I make any other changes. Once that has been accomplished, the (reasonably) near-future goal is to get a Strange S60 rear under the car. That will be able to take anything I want to throw at it--and more.

Ordering the Strange parts tomorrow, hopefully I'll have everything buttoned back up soon.

More eventually.

[njsteve]

Where's the old thread on the Suburban build? You need to update that when you do the brakes. [img]<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/biggthumpup.gif[/img]

[VintageMusclecar]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: njsteve</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Where's the old thread on the Suburban build? You need to update that when you do the brakes. [img]<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/biggthumpup.gif[/img] </div></div>

Got the new proportioning valve installed on the Suburban today...<span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="font-style: italic"><span style="text-decoration: underline">HYYYOOOOGE</span></span></span> improvement in braking capability! [img]<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/biggthumpup.gif[/img]

May need to adjust the rear shoes up a tad, the pedal is still a little lower than I prefer. I also need to check the front pads again since they've been so over-worked, they're probably glazed over again.

Thanks again for posting that tsb info for me, I really appreciate it. [img]<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/beers.gif[/img]

[njsteve]

Great news! You should now pull the drums and visually check the rear shoes, since if they were anything like mine, they were never really touching the drums for the past 21 years. And if you had any kind of seal leaks they are compromised anyway.

Also check the condition of the front rotor dust shields. I had one rusty one that broke away and instead of harmlessly falling to the pavement, it rotated around and rolled itself up like aluminum foil, in between the brake pad and the rotor. That was a real fun time! It happened when I was pulling the trailer with Gramma's car in it. It activated the ABS on the other wheel since it was technically reading the mangled dust shield as a wheel slippage event. Luckily I brought an extra set of old pads with me and some tools to rip the shield remnant out of there. P.S. There is no way to replace the shield without pulling the CV axle and front hub bearing assembly since the tin shield mounting flange is sandwiched between the hub and the bearing.