Have an Explorer rear end that I'm trying to remove the axle tubes but no luck. The plug welds have been cut out on a mill and though a 11/16 would have removed all the weld I used a 3/4 end mill just to be sure. One can't get to the inner end of the tubes like on a 9" so have entire housing on steel table with one end chained to the table edge and the other end chained to a 10 ton porta-power with a the puller ram. Have max tension of this puller applied and have heated the axle tube sockets in the center section with a rose bud but nothing has moved. Have a 60 ton press but unit is too long to fit inside frame work of the press. Any advice or ideas will be greatly appreciated. I called Moser and they said they cut off the axle bearing flange, shorten, and then weld flange back on. I thought the tubes would pull since the Mustangs at the drag strip often have a tube turn. Too late smart.
I got one out before. The plug welds don't run straight down. I bet there's a little weld remaining on one edge of your drill holes.
This is interesting, I'm going to be attempting the same process on my Explorer rear, having read online that someone had done it the same way. Seems logical that you could drill out the plugs, make one straight cut, and weld it back in. Please post back again and let us know how you make out with it. Thanks - Karl
Hmmm...new stuff here, all right. In MY day, an 'Explorer rear end' would be found in a pair of Jodhpurs!
Wow ,you guys are doing it the hard way, I have not heard of anyone taking the tubes out . learn something every day.
Yeah I agree, definitely the hard way to do it. We cut the flanges and tubes off to length. Buy new flanges from speedway. We actually put the new flanges in the lathe and cut a recess for the axles tube to fit with slight hammer interference fit. Then we put a bevel to it so we can really burn in a good deep weld. More time to do it this way but it makes for a super strong joint, especially when it's a rear end flange system that holds the axles by the bearings I.e. ford 9"
Can you see the dividing line between the housing and tube? Usually some hits on the housing will show them. if you heat it around the hole it should show up easily. Maybe mill the tube more if you have the tooling to do that without making the hole bigger.
There is a thread on the HAMB somewhere, I believe, from a few years ago, showing the process of removing the tube from the carrier. Maybe it was in a magazine article. Google is your friend! It does involve a sturdy fixture and a hydraulic ram and chains (whips optional). Ray
Yes new flanges and a lathe would be awesome, but not for those of us who don't have the equipment or money to do it that way. And before I hear any stupid comments about how cheap it is to have that done, keep in mind that there are people like myself out there. I was accustomed to clearing 100k a year. Then, 3 surgeries, half a million dollars and 20 titanium screws plus rods later, I have no income, but just happy to be walking again. I would feel a lot more secure in my ability to end up with a safe, solid housing if I was inserting a tube into a socket that is going to hold it fairly straight. Later - Karl
how much are you cutting off? I would cut the tube and grind or cut the last of it out of the cast center.
To be more specific, I cut the "long" side off, flush with the housing. I then used a sawzall to cut a lengthwise slice in the remaining "chunk" that was left inside the housing. A chisel was then driven in to peel / curl the chunk out. That's why I know the plug weld goes beyond what you think it does. There's about 3" in the housing. It works perfect to cut it flush with the housing. Weld a nut or something on the tube as a "stop" to ensure you don't push it back in too far.
Now that's what I wanted to hear, looks like that is the route I'm going to attempt. I've read that people are welding the tube to the housing with no issues, anyone have any more info on that?
Lots of drag racers and 4x4 guys, including me, weld the tubes to the housing. The weld is to keep them from turning. Use an arc welder, and 7018 rod, for best results.
Before you cut the tube off, try through drilling where the plug welds were. All the way through to the inside of the tube. In any case, you will need hydraulic force to remove or install the tube in the housing.
I'm with Chucky. I cut mine off flush with the housing, drilled the plug welds and then carefully sliced the remaining part in two parallel lines and popped out the small sliver and then used a slide hammer with a hook to get the rest out. The housing is sort of "knurled so it takes some effort to get it out. There is still plenty of axle tube left this way to get to your measurements. I used a tubing cutter to scribe a soft line on the axle tube and drove it back into the housing to the line. Checked my measurements and that it was square and plug welded it up. Been under my dad's 62 comet for 4 years now and no issues and that is ALOT of 5,000 rpm launches on the street with both tires up in smoke. I actually am getting ready to do another one for in my 48 ford coupe and then others for my other projects. I pick them up at the pick and pull for $100 and just change out a short axle while I'm in there and carry out a "complete" rear with brakes and rotors. Good luck.
Had thought of cutting flush with housing and splitting but this would make it too short by the time tube was pressed back in. Already have the plug weld drilled to 3/4 which is 1/16 bigger than needed but will mount back in mill and go to 13/16. Have a 7 foot piece of 4x12 channel with 1/2" thick flanges which I'm going to park the 10,000# fork lift on and then chain one tube to the channel and the other to the fork. I know this machine will snap a 7/16 wire size chain on idle so I guess SOMETHING will separate. Once one tube is pulled it will fit in my press. The saga continues.
That seems like an insane way to do this. I'd have to say it's very similar to fly hunting with a shotgun or planting rose bushes with a backhoe. Cut the end off, weld an end on. The exploder 8.8 has 3-1/4" X 1/4" wall tubes, you could cut the tube in the middle and not need s new end or mess with the housing
Do you understand that the 10 ton porto power would be 20,000 pound pull and the 10,000 pound forklift will be 5 tons of pull? If the 10 ton porto power didn't remove it, the 5 ton forklift won't either.
I did two of them last year. Blew the seals on 1st "porta power" (Chinese version), so I rigged a method of getting it to fit in my harbor freight 20 ton press. I had to extend the uprights to fit the housing in the press. Also had to replace the bolts at the top with grade 8. The second one I did, I borrowed a real PortaPower. I fought the plug welds and finally drilled them oversize and completely through the tube. That part gets cut off anyway. LOTS of hydraulic pressure, a rosebud tip on the cast iron and an ice water soaked towel on the tube. Comes loose with a bang that the neighbors will check on.
Sounds sorta hairy to me. The '40 Ford coupe I bought finished has 8.8" that was shortened where the weld joint was right where the U bolts for the parallel rear springs will straddle it.
The cheapest and easiest way to possibly do it and the way I would do it if money was a major concern. Cut tube towards the end, take out as much tube length as you want while leaving 3" or so of original tube at bearing flange. A square and a file and square up both ends of the tubes. Buy a chunk of tube about 6" long that will almost fit inside the axle tube. Cut the 6" in half, split it length ways, drill 4 1/2" holes around both ends of the axle tubes. Squeeze the split tube down into the axle tube from the center section. small tack weld in 1 of the 1/2" holes you drilled. Tap the flange end tube onto the squeezed tube you just tacked into the center section axle tube end. Tap down until your about an 1/8" away from mating up with the center section tube, check for square. Tack welds around the tubes, double check square, weld solid, plug weld 1/2" holes, grind, dress, paint... A couple hours work and probably less than 10 bucks of materials with a strong, sleeved, butt and plug welded joint. That's how I would handle it....
It's all of a 1 hr job start to finish with an extra set of hands - because The exploder 8.8 is a heavy axle and moving it is a chore. If you can mark a pipe, follow a cut on a straight line and know how to weld it's pretty easy. Couple pieces of channel and a couple clamps is all you really need. The alignment jig is a plus from here. Snap a sawzall blade short enough to run in side the axle and have at it. No mills, no 1/16" over size holes, no presses, no blow porta power seals, no fork lifts, no holes in the ceiling, no neighbors checking on boom noises, no heating, no beating, no sleeves, no plug welds, nothing special at all . It's an 8th grade shop project.
THANK YOU everyone. It's obvious that I probably didn't choose the best approach but had done probably close to a hundred eight and nine inch with no problem BUT you can get to the inner end of the tube on these. One thing for sure, there are some really innovative minds on the H.A.M.B. so I should have stated up front that we have very extensive welding and machining capabilities as that would have brought on even more suggestions. This is not the first screw up I've made and it won't be the last which I can check this out on the pond across the highway. So far every time I've tried to walk across it I've sunk so I'm not perfect and who hasn't screwed a really ugly one without using a condom. Bad decisions and wrong approaches mean one is at least doing something and LEARNING. Thanks again.
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