Dana 60 axle...what to look for before installing?

[lucky23]

I found a complete Dana 60 w/3.54 rear end from a guy on Craigslist. It' came out of a 1966 F250, same as mine. My question is, does anyone have a good inspection checklist? What should I be looking for as far as what might be worn out or need to be replaced? I already plan on servicing/replacing the brakes and drums, but I don't know much about what to look for apart from that. Thanks in advance for any guidance!

[Indy63]

1. Do the old eyeball-for-straightness test.
2. Look for corrosion/ wear from the U-bolts around the housing. Check the spring plates for wear. Egged-out holes are not a deal breaker, but could make for a good bargaining point.
3. Pull the cover and inspect for rust/ damage/ missing or loose bolts on the carrier and gears.
4. Pull the shafts and make sure they are't twisted or heavily pitted. Especially easy on a full-float rear end since you just remove the axle shaft bolts and slide them out.

edit: While you have the cover off, make sure to verify the gear ratio on the ring gear. Never take the word of the tag that may or may not still be on the axle.

[lucky23]

edit: While you have the cover off, make sure to verify the gear ratio on the ring gear. Never take the word of the tag that may or may not still be on the axle.

He gave me a receipt from 1986 showing he had 3.54 gears installed at that time. Is there a way to make sure?

[lucky23]

I'm also thinking maybe I should replace the bearings and seals while it's off the truck?

[milomilo]

edit: While you have the cover off, make sure to verify the gear ratio on the ring gear. Never take the word of the tag that may or may not still be on the axle.

He gave me a receipt from 1986 showing he had 3.54 gears installed at that time. Is there a way to make sure?

Pull the cover plate, count the ring gear teeth and the pinion teeth. Divide the pinion number into the ring number = gear ratio.

[Indy63]

The tooth count is generally stamped into the perimeter of the ring gear. Counting the teeth is pretty fool-proof, though.

Carrier and pinion bearings would mean re-setting the gears. If it needs new bearings, I would skip on the axle and buy and install new name brand gears and bearings into your own axle unless this is really cheap ($100 or less) as you could avoid some down time.

As a general rule of thumb, NEVER take anyone's word when buying something off Craigslist. It takes all of 5 minutes to pop the cover out and maybe 5 minutes each to pull a shaft if everything is in good shape.

[lucky23]

The tooth count is generally stamped into the perimeter of the ring gear. Counting the teeth is pretty fool-proof, though.

Carrier and pinion bearings would mean re-setting the gears. If it needs new bearings, I would skip on the axle and buy and install new name brand gears and bearings into your own axle unless this is really cheap ($100 or less) as you could avoid some down time.

As a general rule of thumb, NEVER take anyone's word when buying something off Craigslist. It takes all of 5 minutes to pop the cover out and maybe 5 minutes each to pull a shaft if everything is in good shape.

I paid $100 bucks for the complete rear end.
I haven't popped the cover off yet. What's the best way to see if the carrier and pinion gear bearings are good or not?

[chris401]

Member mentioned looking for rust. Look on the contact side of the ring gear and pinion. If sitting for a long time rust could develop on shinny parts not submerged in grease.

[lucky23]

Will do. It's my understanding that these Dana 60s are virtually indestructible...

[Indy63]

Everything has its limits in strength and longevity. The ring and pinion are fairly strong, but definitely still subject to rust, poor installation, and often crappy aftermarket gear sets. The shafts that came in these trucks are weak for an axle that size. They're only 1.31" in diameter, a very course spline, and likely brittle at this point if the truck the axle was in was used hard. They, too, are subject to heavy rust and other damage at this point in their lives. Look for twisting and hair line cracks at the splines.

Drain the fluid and remove the cover before spending another dime on it. Look for rust and signs of wear, including heat discoloration. Now would be a good time to see if your new axle really has the gear ratio you were promised and check the setup since who knows who did it - there have been more than a few botched gear installations. If everything "looks" okay, check the pattern with some marking compound (slathering on some anti-seize works in a pinch). Check the backlash with a magnetic base dial indicator (less than $30 at Harbor Freight and will work well enough for the job). Look up both processes if you are unfamiliar with them. They are easy with the axle on stands and could save you from a lot of trouble later on.

[lucky23]

Thanks Indy63 and everyone else. The info is much appreciated. I'll post as soon as I get a chance to inspect the axles. Maybe this info will help some other folks down the line! When I actually get to the swap, I'll post a step by step with photos so it might be able to help some other newbies down the line(:

[lucky23]

Ok, I took the cover off today. Not too much fun as it's about 10 degrees in my garage(:
Everything LOOKS ok to inexperienced eye. My question is, how tight should everything be? There is a bit of up and down play in the two small rotating gears and I can rotate the yoke a bit back and forth before engagement. I'll try and post a video later. Just trying to figure out if this is a good rear end or shot.

[lucky23]

Bump

[Toyz]

Indy63 gave you some good information. Without specifics, it is hard to make a "judgment call" on the assembly. The contact checks are probably moot at this point, but the specific backlash is worth determining, as well as the other suggested checks. Changing bearings (other than axle bearings) on 27 year old assembly is somewhat risky IMO, especially since you are describing what seems to be an appreciable amount of wear.
Get some backlash measurements and compare them with OEM recommendations; then determine whether you wish to chance installation or bite the bullet for a full overhaul. A visit to a trusted drivetrain repair facility might result in a quick, educated assessment at little or no cost.
Paul

[Indy63]

Is the ratio what you thought it was going to be?

Every open diff Dana axle I know of has thrust washers between the spider gears and the carrier.

If the backlash is overly loose at this point, you'll need new gears as they develop a wear pattern very quickly and will never be right if installed incorrectly and ran more than a couple miles. You want some play, but it is a small, very specific amount of play. A little bit more is expected in a used gear set, but too much makes for an extremely weak gear mesh, vibrations, and howling gears.

Did the oil have any indication of metal in it? Clean the gears with some brake cleaner. 1st step is checking backlash. If that is within acceptable tolerances, you'll want to check the pattern before running it.

[lucky23]

Did the oil have any indication of metal in it? Clean the gears with some brake cleaner. 1st step is checking backlash. If that is within acceptable tolerances, you'll want to check the pattern before running it.

No metal in the oil. Does anyone have the oem backlash specs?

[lucky23]

Here's the info on the ring gear:


Here, you can see a bit of the wear pattern:

[lucky23]

I assume it means 46 tooth ring and 13 tooth pinion, which is 3.54?

[BarnieTrk]

The number of teeth on the ring gear divided by the number of teeth on the pinion (eg: 46/13 = 3.54) equals the gear ratio.
Looks like yours is a 3.54 as you hoped......

BarnieTrk

[lucky23]

Yup, it sure is(: May just say hell with it and install it. The back lash seems good so why not?