Transmissions and Drivetrain Need help with your trans? Problems with your axle?

is the 10 bolt "8.5 inch"?

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old 09-11-2006, 11:42 PM
  #1  
Supreme Member

Thread Starter
 
rwdtech's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Indianapolis
Posts: 1,975
Likes: 0
Received 2 Likes on 2 Posts
Car: 1991 Z28 (sold)
is the 10 bolt "8.5 inch"?

is the factory 10 bolt an 8.5 inch??? im trying to find an aftermarket cover that has a fill plug. the fill plug on the axle housing threads are stripped (not the plug threads but the threads on the axle...a new plug wont help). i have to RTV the fill plug so it doesnt leak. this makes it very difficult to remove the plug and check the fluild level.

thanks!
Old 09-11-2006, 11:50 PM
  #2  
Moderator

 
Apeiron's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2000
Location: Mercedes Norte, Heredia, Costa Rica
Posts: 20,981
Likes: 0
Received 9 Likes on 8 Posts
Car: 1984 Z28 Hardtop
Engine: 383 Carb
Transmission: 4L60
Axle/Gears: 3.54 Dana 44
No, thirdgen 10 bolts are 7.5"/7.625"
Old 09-11-2006, 11:58 PM
  #3  
Junior Member
 
quick ones's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: AZ
Posts: 76
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Car: 85 firebird
Engine: 355 soon to be 406
Transmission: th350
Axle/Gears: Summers Bros 12 bolt 4.56
Take your cover and weld a bung to the outside ( at the correct level) and just put a pipe plug in it if you cant buy a cover.
Old 09-12-2006, 12:19 AM
  #4  
Supreme Member

Thread Starter
 
rwdtech's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Indianapolis
Posts: 1,975
Likes: 0
Received 2 Likes on 2 Posts
Car: 1991 Z28 (sold)
Originally Posted by Apeiron
No, thirdgen 10 bolts are 7.5"/7.625"
awww MAN are u serious.... i cant find a cover with a fill plug in that size. game kill....
Old 09-12-2006, 06:02 AM
  #5  
Supreme Member

iTrader: (1)
 
sofakingdom's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Posts: 26,080
Received 1,678 Likes on 1,274 Posts
Car: Yes
Engine: Usually
Transmission: Sometimes
Axle/Gears: Behind me somewhere
Rear End Girdles
Old 09-12-2006, 07:45 AM
  #6  
Moderator

 
AlkyIROC's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: 51°N 114°W, 3500'
Posts: 17,114
Likes: 0
Received 120 Likes on 101 Posts
Car: 87 IROC L98
Engine: 588 Alcohol BBC
Transmission: Powerglide
Axle/Gears: Ford 9"/31 spline spool/4.86
JEGS High Performance - LPW Ultimate Rear End Support Covers
Old 09-12-2006, 12:51 PM
  #7  
Supreme Member

Thread Starter
 
rwdtech's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Indianapolis
Posts: 1,975
Likes: 0
Received 2 Likes on 2 Posts
Car: 1991 Z28 (sold)
yeah i saw those but who wants to pay 150 bucks for a damn diff cover! lol i'll probably end up getting one knowing how i spoil this car
Old 09-12-2006, 01:14 PM
  #8  
Supreme Member

iTrader: (1)
 
sofakingdom's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Posts: 26,080
Received 1,678 Likes on 1,274 Posts
Car: Yes
Engine: Usually
Transmission: Sometimes
Axle/Gears: Behind me somewhere
i cant find a cover with a fill plug in that size
You want one, or not? Didn't see anything in there about how much you thought one would cost.... I thought you were looking for a cover with a fill plug? Well there's 2 of them, competitors, pretty close in price; so you can pretty much assume that you're not going to find another one for much less. They just kind of cost what they cost.
Old 09-12-2006, 02:22 PM
  #9  
Senior Member
 
327???'s Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Rochester, NY
Posts: 622
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Car: '82 Sport Coupe/'89 bird/'77 280z
Engine: 355/2.8/L28E(t)
Transmission: TH350/T5/4 spd
Axle/Gears: 3.73/3.42/3.54
you can buy a fill plug kit for $20ish at summit, it welds in the stock cover.
Old 09-12-2006, 02:48 PM
  #10  
Supreme Member

iTrader: (1)
 
sofakingdom's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Posts: 26,080
Received 1,678 Likes on 1,274 Posts
Car: Yes
Engine: Usually
Transmission: Sometimes
Axle/Gears: Behind me somewhere
You can also buy a transmission drain plug at the auto parts store for about $8 or $10.

Or, you could just repair your housing by enlarging the fill hole and tapping it for the next larger size pipe plug.

There are several strategies that don't require the aftermarket cover that you asked about. On the other hand, those aluminum covers are a significant upgrade to the durability of the rear end, so you get quite a bit more benefit than just the ease of adding fluid.
Old 09-12-2006, 04:03 PM
  #11  
Supreme Member

Thread Starter
 
rwdtech's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Indianapolis
Posts: 1,975
Likes: 0
Received 2 Likes on 2 Posts
Car: 1991 Z28 (sold)
explain how a transmission drain plug would help
Old 09-12-2006, 05:51 PM
  #12  
Moderator

 
Apeiron's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2000
Location: Mercedes Norte, Heredia, Costa Rica
Posts: 20,981
Likes: 0
Received 9 Likes on 8 Posts
Car: 1984 Z28 Hardtop
Engine: 383 Carb
Transmission: 4L60
Axle/Gears: 3.54 Dana 44
You'd put it in your diff cover and it would magically turn into a differential fill plug instead of a transmission drain plug.
Old 09-12-2006, 06:01 PM
  #13  
Supreme Member

iTrader: (14)
 
//<86TA>\\'s Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Central NJ
Posts: 12,651
Likes: 0
Received 45 Likes on 43 Posts
Car: 86 Trans Am, 92 Firebird
Engine: 408 sbc, 3.1L of raw power
Transmission: TKO600, T5
Axle/Gears: Moser 9", 3:70 trutac, 3:23 torsion
Originally Posted by Apeiron
You'd put it in your diff cover and it would magically turn into a differential fill plug instead of a transmission drain plug.
lol
Old 09-12-2006, 06:07 PM
  #14  
Supreme Member

Thread Starter
 
rwdtech's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Indianapolis
Posts: 1,975
Likes: 0
Received 2 Likes on 2 Posts
Car: 1991 Z28 (sold)
i dont have a welder geez

thanks for the "help" everyone!

please no more replies

Last edited by rwdtech; 09-12-2006 at 07:42 PM.
Old 09-12-2006, 06:07 PM
  #15  
Supreme Member

iTrader: (1)
 
sofakingdom's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Posts: 26,080
Received 1,678 Likes on 1,274 Posts
Car: Yes
Engine: Usually
Transmission: Sometimes
Axle/Gears: Behind me somewhere
Imagins, if you will, that you put this magical plug in the cover at just the level that the fluid is supposed to be at; just barely not so high that the axle tubes would start filling up before the fluid started running out of that hole while putting it in.

Hmmmmm........

Or, like I said, you could just fix the existing hole. That'd probably be the cheapest thing to do.
Old 09-12-2006, 06:26 PM
  #16  
Moderator

 
Apeiron's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2000
Location: Mercedes Norte, Heredia, Costa Rica
Posts: 20,981
Likes: 0
Received 9 Likes on 8 Posts
Car: 1984 Z28 Hardtop
Engine: 383 Carb
Transmission: 4L60
Axle/Gears: 3.54 Dana 44
Originally Posted by rwdtech
i dont have a welder
They don't need to be welded in.
Old 09-12-2006, 06:29 PM
  #17  
ede
TGO Supporter

 
ede's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 1999
Location: Jackson County
Posts: 14,811
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
Originally Posted by rwdtech
explain how a transmission drain plug would help
i'm so glad i read this thread. it just reaffirms why i've decreased my involvment here.
Old 09-12-2006, 06:32 PM
  #18  
Supreme Member

iTrader: (1)
 
Sonix's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: Calgary, AB, Canada
Posts: 10,763
Likes: 0
Received 4 Likes on 4 Posts
Car: 1982 Trans-Am
Engine: 355 w/ ported 416s
Transmission: T10, hurst shifter
Axle/Gears: 10 bolt, true-trac, 3.73
you have superior axle shafts right? That's a strength upgrade for the rear, I think the girdle is the most obvious strength upgrade as well.

A cheesy chrome cover would probably work, maybe one for an S10, that's a truck with a 7.5" 10 bolt (trucks usually have the selection for chrome covered diff covers).

I have the summit girdle, $140, and it's got little preload studs to add strenth to the main caps. Plus machined aluminum that's 1/2" thick is pretty cool looking.

I'd lose the attitude if you want to get help on here.
Old 09-12-2006, 07:40 PM
  #19  
Supreme Member

Thread Starter
 
rwdtech's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Indianapolis
Posts: 1,975
Likes: 0
Received 2 Likes on 2 Posts
Car: 1991 Z28 (sold)
i didnt have an attitude until some of you guys started replying like im stupid (and maybe i am). i admitted i didnt understand the transmission drain plug thing, and i asked if someone could explain it, then i get a smartass reply. i dont see what the big deal is anyway, why does everyone get so uptight? im not complaining about the cost, i even said i will probably end up getting one anyway

and give me a break ede, i was thinking a transmission draing plug as the same thing as any other drain plug. i was being straight forward when i said "explain how a transmission drain plug would help"...i wasnt trying to sound like a jackass

seems like there are some people that are on here just to prove how much smarter they are than others

sorry for saying "suck my b****"
Old 09-12-2006, 08:31 PM
  #20  
Supreme Member

iTrader: (1)
 
sofakingdom's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Posts: 26,080
Received 1,678 Likes on 1,274 Posts
Car: Yes
Engine: Usually
Transmission: Sometimes
Axle/Gears: Behind me somewhere
This to some extent falls into the cateogry of "things you might notice if you just wandered into an auto parts store off the street and looked around".

Think for a minute about the idea of a transmission drain plug. Keep in mind that the goal is, you're going to put this in a featureless piece of flat sheet metal with no provision for anything of the kind, such that you can remove it and let the fluid fall out, and put it back in and hold the fluid in. So, it's gotta be a multiple piece deal. It has a sort of a bung with threads on the outside, and you drill/punch/grind/mutilate a hole in the sheet metal that it fits through, and there's a nut that goes on the back side, and a gasket/washer/O-ring that seals it to the pan. Then it has a threaded hole in the middle, that the actual removeable plug goes into. Very simple, very effective. You can put it into ANYTHING that's relatively flat and thin.

Or, you could file/drill/grind/mutilate your damaged hole in the housing,up to the next pipe thread size; and tap it for the next larger size plug. Then either use the larger plug, or put a bushing in it and use the OE size plug.

I think where this took a left turn was asking if there was a cover with a fill hole; then when 2 people (and later a 3rd) told you where to find them, the immediate reaction was that it cost too much, and in a highly unpleasant way. Well, when you ask for something, and someone produces it, and it's more than you want to pay, you don't say
who wants to pay 150 bucks for a damn diff cover!
if for no other reason than because there are those of use here WHO DO!! AND IN FACT ALREADY HAVE!!!!!! and take that as an insult. A more appropriate response might be something like "that's more than I care to spend fixing this one little problem, are there any other ways I could deal with it?" and at least then you don't call us all a bunch of damn fools. Not having, or not choosing to spend, alot of money, is OK; the other, insulting those who do have it and/or choose to spend it, is not.

It can be real hard to tell when somebody is being "funny" and when they really mean something, just reading what they write; might be good to proofread what you write using a temporary raw bleeding hemorrhoidal anus attitude, and modify your post if it comes across as rude to somebody that doesn't "get" the humor.
Old 09-12-2006, 09:01 PM
  #21  
Supreme Member

Thread Starter
 
rwdtech's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Indianapolis
Posts: 1,975
Likes: 0
Received 2 Likes on 2 Posts
Car: 1991 Z28 (sold)
yeah i thought the "lol" i put in there would be enough to show i wasnt that serious. i dont think anyone is a fool for buying one, i said who "wants" to pay, not "who would pay"...the second way comming across as an insult. sorry you didnt pick up on that

but thanks for the explaination, i guess its hard for me to understand writing instead of just a picture. it was a stupid question but im glad i asked it anyway, im not going to get uptight about it.
Old 09-12-2006, 11:41 PM
  #22  
Junior Member
 
quick ones's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: AZ
Posts: 76
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Car: 85 firebird
Engine: 355 soon to be 406
Transmission: th350
Axle/Gears: Summers Bros 12 bolt 4.56
Rwdtech your not stupid for asking questions about something you didnt understand.Dont buy a transmission drain plug kit it WILL work but it only has an 1/8" pipe plug hole it will take you 3 hours to fill the rear through that size hole. Figure out where the hole has to be ... drill one....take it to a welding shop and have them weld a 1/2' NPT bung on it ..... get a pipe plug....... done.
Old 09-12-2006, 11:43 PM
  #23  
Supreme Member

iTrader: (1)
 
Sonix's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: Calgary, AB, Canada
Posts: 10,763
Likes: 0
Received 4 Likes on 4 Posts
Car: 1982 Trans-Am
Engine: 355 w/ ported 416s
Transmission: T10, hurst shifter
Axle/Gears: 10 bolt, true-trac, 3.73
a half foot NPT would be pretty big

1/8" NPT is like a 7/16" hole, or .4375" hole, that's big. It's tricky filling it in place though, get some clear tubing and a helper, that makes it faster...

anyway...
Old 09-12-2006, 11:49 PM
  #24  
Moderator

 
Apeiron's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2000
Location: Mercedes Norte, Heredia, Costa Rica
Posts: 20,981
Likes: 0
Received 9 Likes on 8 Posts
Car: 1984 Z28 Hardtop
Engine: 383 Carb
Transmission: 4L60
Axle/Gears: 3.54 Dana 44
Most of the drain plug kits aren't pipe thread at all, they're 1/2"-20 and sealed by gaskets. Still not huge, but not so bad to fill with a hose and a pump.
Old 09-13-2006, 02:53 AM
  #25  
Member
 
crazycrocket's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Alberta
Posts: 215
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Car: 1985 camaro
Ever think of using a heli coil (if they have them that big)? If they seal well enough for use on spark plugs maybe a little locktight and it could work here?
Old 09-13-2006, 03:38 AM
  #26  
ede
TGO Supporter

 
ede's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 1999
Location: Jackson County
Posts: 14,811
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
Originally Posted by crazycrocket
Ever think of using a heli coil (if they have them that big)? If they seal well enough for use on spark plugs maybe a little locktight and it could work here?

never seen an insert for NPT, but like some others with the drain plug thing thry might make it just because i never seen it. if you wanted something a little better, and more costly, moroso makes a real nice bung for a a rear in fill port.
Old 09-13-2006, 04:10 AM
  #27  
Moderator

 
Apeiron's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2000
Location: Mercedes Norte, Heredia, Costa Rica
Posts: 20,981
Likes: 0
Received 9 Likes on 8 Posts
Car: 1984 Z28 Hardtop
Engine: 383 Carb
Transmission: 4L60
Axle/Gears: 3.54 Dana 44
I'm pretty sure I've seen pipe thread helicoils in the catalog, just not in person.
Old 09-13-2006, 11:38 AM
  #28  
Member
iTrader: (1)
 
ezliving4ume's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: rochester,in.
Posts: 196
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Car: Forrest 91 t/a
Engine: 5.0 tpi w/underdrive/accel,full 3"
Transmission: 700r4
Axle/Gears: 3.73 pos
This post is crazy And its all over a simple problem, very very good reading

i don't care who you are this post is some funny s**t
Old 09-13-2006, 03:09 PM
  #29  
ede
TGO Supporter

 
ede's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 1999
Location: Jackson County
Posts: 14,811
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
Originally Posted by Apeiron
I'm pretty sure I've seen pipe thread helicoils in the catalog, just not in person.
well yeah i've read about them on the internet but does that make them real?
Related Topics
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
MY87LT
Aftermarket Product Review
13
06-07-2016 09:47 PM
Numbah-1
Transmissions and Drivetrain
19
09-12-2015 08:57 PM
Saxondale
Exterior Parts Wanted
2
09-07-2015 06:11 PM
Jlanz55
Exhaust
7
09-06-2015 07:28 PM
UltRoadWarrior9
Transmissions and Drivetrain
3
09-02-2015 08:24 PM



Quick Reply: is the 10 bolt "8.5 inch"?



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 12:12 AM.