Batass

Have you tried LKQ?

GTFiero

nah, never seen ring gear bolts with washers, just make sure to use red loc-tite on them

Shagwell

Never seen any with washers myself. - Make sure it's completely devoid of contamination(oil, etc) and then use red lock tight. Technically, you should apply the loctite primer first, especially on something that has been submerged in fluid.

big gear head

The 12 bolt and 8.2 10 bolt rear ends have lock washers on the ring gear bolts. The 9 inch Ford Traction Lock uses special ring gear bolts with .030 thick hardened steel flat washers on them. I have a sack full of these washers that I use on all of the 8.5 and 7.5 rear ends that I build. The crappy Chrysler ring gear bolts that they send in the installation kits have a small 5/8 head on them and I've had these to sink into the differential case and come loose, even with red Loktite on the threads. I use the washers to keep them from eating into the case. The bolts with 3/4 inch heads are fine with no washers.

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

LKQ?

yea i kno to use red locktite on them... the new ford racing bolts have red stuff on the threads already.... looks like a sealent of some sort. guess i'll have to put red locktite on them anyways. the new gear the bolts are 3/4"

Batass

LKQ is a large nationwide salvage yard. They have a website. Their prices are usually better than local junkyards.

mr60ft

mustang rears:

if its a stock trac loc rear, put a motorsport gear of your choice in or find one (most mustangs here have 3.73 and 4.10 already and you see them crashed everywhere.LOL)

randys ring and pinion has a trac loc rebuild kit for like 50 bucks. Restack the plates, clutches for an extra set of frictions (pm me if you need help)and use an f150 s spring. no more waterbox one legs. Been doing this in mustangs for years.

weld or at least tack tubes to center section. (i have seen these and 8.5 ten bolts twist tubes in housings several times) do it now, cheap insurance.


use the stock ring gear bolts, ring gears hold up fine (seen cars in the five's 1/8th with plain ol motorsport gears.LOL)

stock mustang 28 spline not that strong, but 8.8's live ok with automatic esp. if light(broke one in a heavy gt on @7.70's 1/8pass) i have broken them with a stock 4.10 geared gt 5 speed on 8.60's 1/8th pass. I had a fluke lx coupe go 1.40 60 ft (mid six sec. 1/8th nitrous car) all season with street miles included, still alive six years later...but it's due.

i would say a hooking heavy thirdgen on good tires (especially manual would trash a stock 8.8 28 spline quickly)

honestly never broke 31 or 33 spline even c-clip ones.So explorer might be ok if you can deal with the big *** tubes and width.or buy a set of cheap 31 splines and get a f150 31 spline or explorer 31 spline carrier.




we swapped explorer rears in jeep cherokees, they are offset , so are the mustangs, but just barely.


fwiw we have welded mounts on tubes and back braced the top of the housing for upper mounts on rat rods in the shop. i didnt do the welding, but it held up fine
you might be able to fab torque arm on stang 8.8 off that big *** vibration counterweight that bolts right up front on the housing with two bolts.

wish you were closer, i just pulled the motor and trans out of a mark vii lsc (they werent all pos, and 3.27's b.t.w i had three of them last year)...this one is. svo 11.5 disk brakes rear too. wider than a fox by about two inches or so from the looks of it.

sn95 cars are a bit wider than fox cars (and have disk brakes too)

disk brake=******* c clip elims..LOL

trash an axle, and the rotor keeps the wheel from completely wiping the quarter.LOL

we are broke around here.LOL




didn't mean to hijack your thread, but thought this would be usefull info.

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

i was thinking about the extra clutch with new clutches but i didnt want to shim it etc. i wanted increased bite and more of a locker vs a posi. so i already bought the carbon fiber clutch pack and it comes with a f150 spring. i heard these are pretty bad @ss... so well see. they come pre assembled and shimmed so i just have to soak them in limited slip fluid and install it. also the gears i got are 3.55 which is what i wanted in the first place but i would have went with 3.73s as a max since i will be driving this daily.

i also plan on getting a pair or moser axles that are stronger than stock... 28 spline since thats the posi i got, but have them drill it out for the chevy bolt pattern vs the ford so i can use my stock wheels.

i already bought new ford racing ring gear bolts as well, they are 9$ and cheap insurance vs the old bolts when i get a rear!

do u have something against the carbon fiber clutches? hear anything about them?

i wish u could just send me a housing but u are too far!!! D@MNNNN. now if i can only find a rear.... hmmm

67chevelleguy

This is actually something i brought up a long long time ago, i got totally flamed for it too, anyway I should be getting something else on the road so i can get started on this finally

I had a question for the guys working on this, the stock thirdgen TA sits to the side of the drive shaft, but seems like its pretty close to the center line of the car because the pinion is offset, are you guys planning on going that route and just coming up with a way to build a mount on that side of the diff (like granny's but to the side like), or going under the drive shaft just like granny has, I had actually thought of getting a mustang housing and using the top ears of the housing as additional mounting points for the TA, and then going off the top of the nose on the pinion, although that would mean making the trans tunnel pretty large, it seems like that may also help to fight the force of the pinion pushing up on the case, although i doubt it would counteract it that much, not sure how much impact that would have on the stiffness of the car either

also, does anyone know what the weak point is of the 8.8 case, with the 7.5 it seems like axles first, and then the pinion gear climbing its way up the ring and out of the case at power levels a bit beyond stock axles, in the 8.8 after the axles are upgraded and the axle tubes welded with a support cover on it, where do the 8.8s start failing, i can't find much about it which is a good sign i suppose, and what i have run across doesn't seem very consistent and usually at power levels way past what i'm shooting for, but it does leave me curious

I'm actually looking into getting one of these under my chevelle as well for a cruiser, I need to get a few more measurements, but it may end up being pretty slick if it works the way i'm hoping it will although it won't be a TA suspension, does anyone have the distance from the pinion flange to the axle centerline, been looking for a while and still can't find that and i haven't found a yard yet to pull it from, i'm guessing its about the same for all the 8.8s, it would be nice if you could just add a bit to the lcas and the ta and keep the stock length drive shaft, lca's aren't too hard to make yourself

Atilla the Fun

www.lkqcorp.com is far far overpriced compared to the local Pick-N-Pull. And they are inflexible, even when you show them proof of the current price for the exact same thing, on the exact same day, at PNP 5 miles away. Plus they don't include any ancilliaries that they can unbolt. Thgey are a last resort, not a first choice.

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

UPDATE
still in the process of looking for a ford 8.8

i was at a car show this past weekend in englishtown NJ... saw this HUGE 9" with custom TQ arm mount... this thing had to have 35spline axels... they were thicker than my forearm lol. also had wildwood drag brakes and a centersection in a crate below. again this is like no other tq arm mount that ive seen fron moser or strange or currie or anyone... BUT IT WAS CAST IRON!?!

check it out

Batass

That looks pretty close if not the same as my moser tq arm mount. Its awfully heavy.

Shagwell

Definitely looks nasty heavy. - Also, those do appear to be 35 spline axles; if you think those are big you'd **** if you saw my 40 spline's.


I'll try to remember my camera this weekend. We finished up the tq arm and crossmember in the stang project this past weekend and it's all mounted. I simply offset it slightly to one side, it's between 1/2"-5/8" off the side of the tq arm.

If you can do the fab work to mount it, then just fab up a custom tubular tq arm. It's considerably easier than trying to fab some funky bracket just to get back to a stock type tq arm mounting surface.

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

lol why would u ever need 40splines lol... running 6s?

i thought the mosers where cast right into the housing like stockers... on the 12bolt... im not sure what their 9" setup looks like... i wouldnt put that on mine lol the dang tq arm mount is as heavy as my 9bolt.

yea def get some pics up... im basically just looking for a housing now. i already swiped some calipers off a 96 crown vic, and i got the posi/carbon fiber clutch pack/3.55 gears.

ALSO DOES ANYONE KNO WHERE I CAN FIND NEW BRACKETS for the ford 8.8.... im talking about the brackets found on our 10bolts/9bolts... things like LCA brackets/panhardbar/shock mounts that i can buy new and weld onto the ford 8.8 for a direct swap?

i thought i mentioned i already had purchased a jegster TQ arm, tunnel mount tubular. already been installed on the car right after i did the cage so i will make a mount to fit to that.

Shagwell

6's if I actually ran in the 1/4. I preffer 1/8 mile, where we run mid 4's. I actually need to push low 4's to be in the program most places now-a-days.

The moser 12-bolt does have a cast in mount, all the aftermarket 9" housing will have a bolt on bracket so that you can still remove the center chunk.

Since you're going to want relocation brackets anyhow, why not just build the control arm mounts? You could also cut some off a stock housing fairly easily.

Since you've got the Jeg's arm, I kind-of understand sticking with it. I could bend a piece of tubing into a "U" shape that attaches to my upper and lower mounting points, and then weld a tab on the top and bottom(offset for the bolt holes to clear the pipe) that would enable a stock type arm to be bolted up. - That was the first idea that came to mind. A little thought could go a long way, but tabbing from my bridge type structure to a stock type mounting surface is very do-able.

Batass

The rest of the housing also looks exactly like my Moser. You can get a bare housing with all the camaro bracketry for 600 bucks. The mount is heavy, but its right over the rear tires. I actually prefer the weight on the street.

big gear head

Cut the brackets off of a stock housing. The axle tubes on the stock housing are 2 5/8 inches and the 8.8 will probaby have 3 inch tubes, so by the time you cut them off and clean them up they should fit right on the 8.8.

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

moser doesnt sell the ford 8.8 with TQ arm mount or LCA brackets for the 3rd gen... ive already got money into the ford 8.8, i got 50$ into the worn posi/ 3.55 gears, i got 100$ into the carbon fiber clutch pack for the posi that im rebuilding, i got 9$ into the ford racing 8.8 ring gear bolts lol. im stickin with the ford 8.8. it would just make my life easier to find new brackets that i could just weld on instead of junking my 9bolt... that i could sell to a lucky member on here if theyd want it

shagwell... im prob gona try to do something like what u did with the 2 tubes welded to the axel tubes and then bolted to the center section. i would like to see what u had done tho.

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

hello guys!!!! UPDATE! just bought a 8.8 rear today. was 200$ but i got the calipers with it for an extra 40$. i need alil help with the decoding of the rear cover ID tag.

the guy i bought it from said it was out of a 97 crown vic... private car not a police/cab.

the rear has disk brakes which i wanted. and it has the same calipers as the ones i stole off a 96 crown vic so its between a 95-98 crown vic rear. also it doesnt have a WATTS link suspension setup... which i was told started in 98... it has the traditional upper control arms.

heres the diff cover ID tag numbers...
top line- S040L
bottom line- 3 08 88 5M20

so i kno it has a 3.08 open non locker diff... doesnt matter i have the posi. its a 8.8 ford and from what i can gather the 5 stands for 1995? M is the month?(dunno wat month) and 20 is the day of the month it was assembled. can anyone help me out? granny?

also can anyone tell me what i can do to get the ford bolt pattern from a 5x4.5 to fit the 5x4.75 chevy pattern? is there adapters out there? thanks

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

also i measured the stock 9bolt i have and its 62" total length to where the wheel surface mounts to the rotor surface. i was running the SLP ZR1s that are 17x8 with 0 offset... the ford 8.8 i have is roughly 65" total length, which is roughly what im guessing is close to the same width as the stock 4th gen rear. since the 8.8 is 3" wider than the 3rdgen rear and the stock 4th gen rear is 4"total wider than the stock 3rd gen, that would mean the 4th gen rear and the 8.8 are almost the same total length. with that being said... and with the 8.8s smaller 5x4.5" bolt pattern it would be ALOT simpler to just buy a wider set of FORD rims lol... i kno i said it!

i was looking at some rims and i really want to go pretty wide now that i have the extra room for it. and my 17x8s SLPs werent wide enough for me at ALL!
this is what i found.
17x10.5 rim
back spacing= 6.8"
offset= +28mm (1.10")
with a 5x 4.5" bolt patterm
WOULD THESE FIT?????!!!???

the stock 4th gen rim specs are
17x9
backspacing= 6.89"
offset= 45mm
5x4.75" bolt pattern.

the only diff is that the offset is more by about half on the 4thgen rim vs the rim i found. and the rim i found is only 150$ each. adapters would cost me like 200$ and it would push my rim out even farther!
will it work?

91blackrs

good work cant wait to see finished product.

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

ok guys, heres the finished product. steel is 3/16" mild steel, partially tig welded and the rest is mig welded. the tubing is 1/8" thick. the assembly slips over the snout of the pumpkin(center section) and then has 2 brackets that slip over the pumpkins supports which will be drilled (see holes) and bolted to the pumpkin with grade 8, 1.5"x 3/8" bolts. its pretty close to the stock setup as far as the tq arm mount on the stock 9bolt. My TQ arm is an aftermarket Jegster shorty tunnel mount tq arm.

im pretty happy with the way it turned out... its a really tight fit (bang on with a mallet) even with the bolts not put in i cant pull it off or twist it at all. i wanted it to be removable which is why its not welded but there are a bunch of points at which i can if i ever decided to down the road.

now all thats left is to dissassemble the rear(axles,posi, etc) transfer my brackets over from my 9bolt and then put it all back.

let me know wat you guys think. i took a couple of ideas from some members,BMR, grannys etc. and im super jealous of anyone with a plasma cutter since cutting 3/16" steel with a sawzaw and a jig saw is NOT FUN OR FAST! took me 3 days, last day for painting etc. i think its plenty strong but im interested to see what you guys have to say

big gear head

Just might work. You'll know when you put the power to it.

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

lol i wonder if i should worry about it. if that fails while driving u can kiss the car gbye lol

anything u would change?

big gear head

I think I'd sandblast it and weld it to the housing with nickel. I would NOT weld around the outer pinion bearing area, but I would weld the inner plate and some of the braces to the housing. This has to be done carefully. Otherwise it looks like you did a fine job. It might work just fine the way you hav it, but I'm not sure that the 2 bolts is going to be enough to hold everything in place. There is a lot of distance between the bolts and where the torque arm goes on, and leverage might overcome the bolts and brackets.

67chevelleguy

that looks good, and i'm sure getting a fit like that took some time, I was putting a mustang 8.8 into a 67 A body this summer, and i wanted to put one into my thirdgen after that using a TA bracket that tied into the ears of it, but if you don't mind i think i'd actually like to steal your idea, that looks like a much cleaner way to go about it than what i was planning

the one thing i was thinking was that you might want to add some kind of U bolt or shackle or something behind each side of the pumpkin where the axles come out, that way you can actually preload them a bit and hold your bracket onto the nose, I would bet money your way holds unless your lifting the front wheels, but most of the TA kits i've seen for the 8.8 housings have something that goes around the backside, either around the tubes or back around the rear cover, because if that bracket opens up a little or the housings distorts just a little, i think it would rapidly lose its "hold" on the nose

http://www.livermoreperformance.com/...TASS-1_4in.jpg

that one sort of shows what i'm talking about, except i'd run the bolts from behind the tubes forward towards your mount instead of having those arms like the MM ones does, and instead of having them way out on the tubes i'd move them in closer onto the actual housing, and add something onto your bracket for them to go through, that way they are really just pulling your bracket onto the housing, that puts a tension load onto the bolts where they are strongest instead of a shear load where they usually don't hold as much, I tried to textogram it out, but it just wouldn't let me, anyway

basically i think the snout of the 8.8 can hold it, its just a question of how tightly your bracket can hold onto the snout

and i wouldn't worry about it failing too much, the control arms locate the housing, the TA just controls the twist, sure your handling would be shot, but the axle should stay in place and i don't think it rotating around a bit before you stop is going to do much besides maybe tweak your shocks or cause the springs too fall out, and even then you should have a bump stop to keep the car from falling onto the tires, if your worried just get it out into a parking lot with no poles and wail on it a bit, that way even if it does break catastrophically, there isn't anything you can hit, if you have a thirdgen you haven't invested too much into, that could be a good test mule, or wait a few months until i build one of these and i'll gladly space monkey it being as my car gets driven like its stolen anyway

I also just wanted to say again, awesome job, your way ahead of me on this one, i'm just glad someone can now finally stick it to all nay sayers

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

haha thanks 67chevelleguy! cutting out the 2 peices to fit over the snout made me wanna forget about it. but two 12 hour days got it in check. i got no prob with u stealin it. just hope it works out for u. i had a few ideas running in my head. most of them wanted me to weld it to the housing... which is great for strength (if done correctly, cast metal is a weird one) but it would loose all ability for it to be removable. which is key to my design. i kno exactly what your thinking about... and many ppl have done it this way... look at Grannys grannyspeedshop.com his RX7 fits around the backside and sandwiches it around the snout. also BMR has one out for early firebirds and soon chevelles.

http://www.bmrfabrication.com/f1/f1ta.html

some one else is having one for chevelles that is basically a mix of mine and grannys and its nice.

im gona have 2 grade 8 bolts (3/8") holding/sandwiching the bracket to the side supports of the case. this should stop it from coming off or loosening around the snout. its a really tight fit, gotta smack it a whole bunch to get it on and off. but i would have liked to make something up like how u want to do it but it would have taken alot more designing/fabrication. cutting 3/16-1/4" steel without a plasma cutter is not worth it lol. the 2 bolts bolting it to the case should stop upward and downward movements of the bracket but i will beat on it before. I will be beating the **** outa this thing when its done. i never do anything ordinary and paying 2700-3000$ for a moser rear is insane! When ppl say it cant be done its just more incentive for me to do it

good luck with your build. post your designs/build id love to see how it turns out.

big gear head.... id rather not weld it bc then it would ruin the plan of having it removable. but thats the only thing im worried about is the 2 bolts giving out even being that they are 3/8" grade 8 bolts. is there a way i could tap the case maybe? how thick is the housing on these? maybe i'll fab up something that swings underneith and bolts to the back cover bolts... hmmm

anyway! update! took longer than i thought. transfered the 2 spring perches/panhard bar bracket to the ford 8.8. hope i got the angles right :/

67chevelleguy

the 8.8 from a mustang can actually bolt into a chevelle (i think), they are both triangulated 4 link, I'll put my own lca brackets on the 8.8, the only specialty part is an adjustable uca and spherical bearings on the housing side because the angle on the ears between housings is different, guys already bolt in A body 12 bolts and 8.8s into G bodies, I can't find anyone thats done it, but I'm sure someone already has even, i hadn't really thought about going with a TA suspension though, it does get me thinking

The remove/swap ability of your bracket is what i really like, the 8.8 is cheaper and more plentiful for about as much strength, cheap enough it would even make sense to have two completely separate housings for different gears, might as well play up its strengths and make it so you can swap a whole housing easy

the only problem i'm having now is sourcing a housing, unfortunately i live near a marine base, and the yards around here are a bunch of crooks because they're used to another sucker coming along every day, and they are ruthless when it comes to ripping of marines, i had a place want 900$ for a housing with no hardware, the cheapest in town was still 600, they even had the nerve to act suprised when i laughed at them, sadly, some young chump will pay because he just won't know better, there also piles of wrecked cars around because every marine just HAS to get a mustang when he gets back from iraq, and he also has to wreck it i guess, but i plan on calling around to some other yards one of these weekends to get a better price, i can't even find a pic n pull around here, i do miss california some times

keep up the good work, i'm on the edge of my seat, out of curiosity, what state are you in, i'm in NC right now

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

i believe they can too... car craft just did a swap. i would loook it up in carcraft.com. the eyelets are diff... between the 12bolt and the ford 8.8. unless your building a drag car i would look into fabbing up a tq arm setup. ya kno be alil diff lol. ppl build them from 1" round tubing with a thickness of prob .120. get some spherical ends. you should be able to fab something up pretty easy. thats the prob i had tho... i already purchased and installed a used jegster short tunnel mount tq arm so i had to make a stock type tq arm mount on the pumpkin.

i could see the two diff housings for 2 diff rears. swapping them out wouldnt be all too hard but bleeding the brakes would be a pain in the ARSS! i hate how many mustangs are on the roads now.... its insane. and anyone driving a V6 should just kill themselves. everyone and there mother has a mustang. my friend has a mustang for his show car and he races one but he runs the 80's early 90s fox bodies so hes ok. hahahahaha wow 900$ i would punch them in the throat... D@MN CROOKS! still tho i would keep looking! def look for like cab companies etc and wrecked police cars. it took me about 6-7 months to find mine. not that many around here believe it or not Northern NJ. most want 300$ for just the housing no brakes. a couple wanted 200 but the rears were sitting outside for a while. i picked mine up for 200$ and 40$ for working calipers.... not as cheap as i would have wanted it. but it was in good condition.

why are u looking for stang rears? bc of the overall rear length? i would look into the crownvics and mark IVs. they are alil longer by about 3" over the stock 3rd gens rear but about an inch shorter than the 4th gen rears. the extra 1.5" of backspacing will let me tuck a 10.5" wide rim back there without many issues

TKOPerformance

I would get one from an Explorer and use the Explorer discs. The Explorer discs are a great setup and will not be hard to adapt. The best part is the drum brake parkign brake unit inside the back of the disc instead of the troublesome integrated parking brake found in the calipers of stock 3rd gen disc setups.

I doubt you are going to find a rear that is the right width. I'd just get the Explorer unit and plan to have it narrowed to fit. Most fab shops can do this for you for $100-$150 if you give them the stripped down housing. I would highly recommend having a competent shop do this work. Alledgedly people have done this themselves with a chop saw and a welder at home, but if you get the ends wrong the axels may not engage the carrier. Axels will tolerate about 1 degree of angle and still slide into the carrier, but any more and they won't go in.

big gear head

The Mustang 8.8 won't bolt into the Chevelle. I've got Chevelle and Mustang housings and the angle and spacing of the upper controll arm eyes are not the same. It would take custom built upper arms and possibly some frame modifications to get the Mustang housing into the Chevelle frame. The Mustang housing also has smaller axle tubes, so they are going to be weaker and require some work on the Chevelle lower controll arm brackets to get them to fit.

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

TKOperformance... are u following lol? the rear has already been purchased its a crown vic rear i believe a 97, does have disk brakes with the internal hub for the ebrake. the explorer rears are great.... but as discussed int he many pages of this thread that the explorer rears are wayyyyy to heavy! the axle tubes are wayyy to thick for a street car and the brakes are cumbersome. besides it being heavy duty the only payoff of explorer rear is it comes stock with 31spline axles. my buddy is running his stock ford 8.8... stock posi never been rebuilt, stock axles (4lug) in his fox body with drum brakes and hes running high 10s with a 150shot and slicks. id say the 28spline axles are strong enough since i wont be hitting anything lower than 10s for a longggg time lol.

on a side note. i wont be using the ebrakes anyways. my new fuel lines/brake lines run above the Drive shaft on the top of the tranny tunnel above my jegster tq arm tunnel brace. they basically lay on and around the ebrake so using it is not an option. wasnt working for the 4 yrs i had it and im not worried about getting it inspected. also the crown vic rear is only 1.5" wider on each side compared to the stock 3rd gen rear... stock 4th gen rears are 2" wider each side... so the extra 1.5" means i get 1.5" more backspacing for new wide rims helloo 17x10.5s

TKOPerformance

I picked up the first page and thought that was the up to date posts, but obviously it wasn't. I'm with you now.

The only real weakness of the 8.8 is the c-clips. I have seen these rears fail and spit axels, albeit usually running in the 9 second range or faster. At that speed I believe c-clip eliminators are mandatory to be track legal anyway. C-clip eliminators are mickey mouse and if I was running an 8.8 that needed them I would just have the housing ends replaced ith 9" style ones for bolt in axel retention.

I find it interesting that you felt the Explorer discs were cumbersome. They are the basis for all of the cheap rear disc brake kits on the market today for musclecars that had 12 bolts or 9"s.

The other thing about the 28 spline axels is that a Mustang is a good bit lighter than a 3rd gen (probably 300-400 lbs) and they get away with a little more than a 3rd gen can. Most of the serious guys still upgrade to 31s. For the Mustang guys you can do a budget 5 lug upgrade using Bronco II axels and Aerostar discs that liter the junkyards. Yes, I've owned a 5.0 try not to faint.

big gear head

custombbird, I've got to warn you that running the brake and fuel lines in the tunnel with the drive shaft is very dangerous. If the u joint fails and the shaft gets loose it will cut through both lines and you will probably be on fire with no brakes. NHRA will NOT let you run with the lines in that location. NHRA rules state that both brake and fuel lines must be run on the outside of the frame rails and away from the drive shaft.

Shagwell

Most of the street performance guys upgrade to 31 spline. The serious guys go 33 or 35 spline and 9" housing ends. - I have seen several of them run well into the 7's in the 1/4 when fully built.

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

yea i kno the lines have to be run on the outside... i just couldnt bring myself to do it. they are tucked up and braced behind the tunnel brace of the jegster tq arm. the only part exposed is the area above the pumpkin. the front also has a jegster drive shaft loop. im gona fab something up to protect them, some kinda brace or cover. last time i went to the track, well only time the guy looked at my car and asked how fast i was gona go and didnt even look at my car lol. i was going for more of a clean look since the car wont be driven much at the track.

since it wont be at the track much and will be running street tires 99% of the time i wasnt really afraid of the 28spline axles failing since i wont have enough traction to break them lol. this is more of a budget build than a performance build. i will go to 31-33 when it gets converted to track duty or i throw a turbo on it

tkoperformance... i was told the explorer disks are too heavy... the brakes as well. theres no need for the extra weight. now i could be wrong but from what i was told i decided to just stay away. the crown vics disks are alil bigger than the stock 3rd gen by .5". the calipers seem to be alil smaller (piston DIA) but the rotor is larger by 1/2" i just hope they stop... honestly my stock brakes were such a pain, they barely worked and i replaced everything. from what i hear its GM and they rear calipers have to be adjusted regularly to work properly.
also not worried about the Cclips failing since disk brakes wont be goin anywhere and they will hold it on if catastrofic failure happens. ive also taken alot of weight off the car so im hoping to be a few hundred pounds lighter as well. no rear seats, no spare, driver seat is 5lb polyethelene drag seat, aluminum door panels, fiberglass rear wing, fiberglass hood, aluminum heads, HSR(dunno if its lighter than the TPI), fiberlgass heater box, no AC/smog equipment, no front bumper support, total tubular rear suspension. but i added a 8pt roll bar, light SFC and drive shaft loop, and ford 8.8 over stock 9bolt. not sure where that puts me lol

TKOPerformance

I can't see the Exploer discs being any heavier than the Crown Vic ones. They are a simple solid rotor. The weigth of the parking brake assembly is negligible and doesn't rotate anyway, so I doubt you'd feel it. The Ford parking brake setup is no better than the GM one, FYI. If it works for you then great, just be aware that the caliper may have issues related to the parking brake function.

Weight wise you are probably still a bit lighter than stock. Upgrade the shafts when you can afford it. It isn't a big deal.

I see your point about the brake and fuel lines being protected, but I have to say this because in good conscience I can't not say it. Racing rules were made for a reason. The reason was to keep people alive and injury free in a sport that has inherent dangers. A lot of tracks have lax tech inspections. My local track is one of them. I see people run absolute junk down the track a lot of the time. It's annoying because when some yahoo oils down the track, or dumps coolant on the track because he doesn't have an overflow tank he doesn't pay the price; everyone else who came and paid to race that night does. We're the ones who lose an hour of prime running time while they clean and dry the track. It's infuriating, but I've yet to see anyone get seriously hurt. The problem is that people get hurt from just such situations. Everyone has gotten so used to it being that way that they have totally let their guard down. One of these days someone is going to get seriously hurt in a car that wasn't tech'd right, maybe worse. When that happens I may lose my local track, and that will really bite the big one. Do yourself a favor and get your car in compliance with the proper tech rules, even if you don't plan to run a lot. What's safe for the track is definately safe for the street. The life you save may be your own.

brandoz28

iTrader: (1)

well said, lots of people look at safety equipment as an annoying thing their track makes them spend money on. i've seen some nasty crashes out here in some 10.5 cars, and fuel altered and they've all walked away, but rules are there for a reason, especially safety rules

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

i understand the saftey aspect. i wanted to run AN lines eventually. which ill prob have to do when i upgrade to 1/2" fuel lines and an external inline pump. but for now i did it this way.

sooooo i spent about 6hrs on sunday setting up the rear. dissasembled the 8.8 cleaned it all out. i rebuilt the posi with the carbon fiber clutches and F150 spring. (that was the hardest thing to get in ever!!) i also installed the 3.55 gearset and pinon back in the housing with old crush sleeve to test fit everything and see the contact pattern on the gears. i also installed ARP cap studs and new ford racing ring gear bolts. the contact pattern is not great... too far in on the ring gear. but i didnt set preload on the pinon and i dont have the pinon seal in (have to get a new one) so im sure thats messing with it as well. prob gona have to pay someone to set it up... how much would this cost since most of the work has already been done?

also for the stock driveshaft on the 3rd gen.... whats the conversion yoke that will allow me to bolt my stock driveshaft to the pinon? anyone got a part # or something? something that looks like the stock one on our rear pinon... bc the ford one is a round plate.

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

so ive been looking around at yokes etc. ford uses the round flat yoke and i have no idea what yoke style our rears use. is it a 1310?

i found this site that sells a special yoke for the ford 8.8 and it bolts to a 1310 style u joint. i just dont kno what stock is. moser sells some but i dont kno the pinon spline count or what u joint im running on my stock DS.

http://www.mountainoffroad.com/Catal...nstallkit.html

part # 221379 at bottom of page

big gear head

You have the 3R u joint, which is GM only as far as I know. You can get an adapter u joint that will allow you to keep the stock 3R drive shaft and use a 1310 yoke. Most good auto parts stores sell these.

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

darn... never heard of the 3R before lol. so its 3R, so i can get the 3R to 1310 u joint and then run a ford 8.8 to 1310 u joint yoke? and call it a day?

im just wondering if the stock DS is gona bolt up... like has the distance changed at all. does anyone kno if i'll need a longer/shorter DS? or is the pinion the same length

67chevelleguy

depending on the way the drive shaft bolts in, if it is too short you won't even be able to get it into the pinion yoke (most of the kind with strap bolts or caps are like that, it needs that forward play to get in front of the yoke and slide back into it), however a too long DS will wreck a trans very quick, or instantly on a large bump, I've seen that happen before

you could also measure the snout off both axles compared to the axle tubes, I doubt they are the same but they are probably close at least, i would imagine its close enough to compensate with adjustable LCAs if you even need to, and i doubt that would throw the springs too far out of whack, but keep and eye on them if you go that route

Granny

1310/3R u-joint at NAPA is PN# 372
The 1310 flange yoke that fits the smaller dia 8.8 pinion flange is a Spicer 2-2-939

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

thanks guys. so all i need is the spicer 2-2-939 and a 1310/3R u-joint granny? what if i was to find a stock one? like outa a junk yard... would that work? or should i just get a new spicer 2-2-939?

thanks 67chevelle guy... ill look at it when i get it back. i remember the 8.8s pumpkin being wider... by a few inches... but foward maybe just alil.

on a side note ive talked to the guy that built our 74 stingray vette rear and my brothers munci 4 speed for his 68 509ci vette and he said he would do my rear (set pinion depth and backlash etc) for 175$ is that fair? ive already installed the main studs, rebuild the posi, installed the used gears and the races that where with it (thanks granny) i just want to have the right yoke to put on for him this week.

Granny

The stock 1310 flange yoke from a Ford driveshaft will work just fine, just be sure it has the same bolt circle as your pinion flange.
Be sure to pick up the 4 bolts too.

big gear head

There are a few different sizes of the flanges, so be sure that you get the right one for the flange that you have now. You should be able to find one in a JY pretty easy. $175 isn't bad for setting the pinion depth, bearing preload and backlash.

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

thanks. so i'll be heading to the nearest pick n pull looking for some crown vics lol. i'll measure the DIA of the one i have before.

so i find the right flange yoke that fits my pinion yoke and that has a 1310 u-joint size? then all i need is the 1310 u-joint to 3R u-joint from napa? just want to be clear.

yea i figured that 175 although alil more than i thought he would charge is an ok deal since im working with used gears and used bearings etc.

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

finnally got the rear in... had to modify the tq arm alil bit but other than that it just bolted right in. gona post pics of the rear in all assembled with moser support girdle etc.

newest problem is that i connected the brakes and procceded to bleed them and im leaking outa the fitting off the rear distribution block on the rear end. its not a stock rubber line, its a russel stainless braided line. i originally set it up with some 3/16 fittings i have and got the one side to seal. but on the driver side the after market 3/16 fittings i used leaked 3 times (remember i have to cut it off and reflare it everytime! also using stainless 3/16 line)i then got fed up and had to drill the old rusted line that was on the stock rear. got them cleaned up and procceded to bleed it. DARN thing still leaks!!! i need to get this fixed or i cant finnish the install. anyone kno where i can get the stock type fittings for the rear rubber line? the ones that go to each rear caliper?

customblackbird

iTrader: (15)

ok fixed it. used a pressure gauge and im running 750psi at the calipers in the rear. thats with the prop valve turned almost all the way in with no vacume boost assist.

next are the picsss! post them alil later