A friend of mine is preparing to drill his dropped Deuce axle. Knowing him, he will drop job in the lap of his 85 year old dad. Any ideas on how to ease the pain? I rather like the "old fart"(tm) and would appreciate any ideas that would make drilling a bunch of 7/8" holes less likely to kill the fuck out of him. Wayno
Wayno -- Lacking a mill or huge, slow-turning drill press, I'd drill the holes in three or four steps, preferably with a bench- or pedastal drill press, using high-quality drills and cutting oil, at the lowest speed possible. Finally, I'd do a 1/32-inch chamfer on each side of each hole to obviate any future problems with chipping of paint or plating.
Hole saw and CUTTING OIL. LOTS OF CUTTING OIL. Do not use a regular dril bit. Why cut out every bit of metal? The hole saw is way more logical and works way better. I've done it both ways and the hole saw route is way quicker and way cheaper.
[ QUOTE ] Hole saw and CUTTING OIL. LOTS OF CUTTING OIL. Do not use a regular dril bit. Why cut out every bit of metal? The hole saw is way more logical and works way better. I've done it both ways and the hole saw route is way quicker and way cheaper. [/ QUOTE ] . Yup that's what I did.
[ QUOTE ] What kind of weight reduction does it offer? Just planning [/ QUOTE ] I figure he'll lose six or eight pounds unless he paces himself. Wayno
[ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] What kind of weight reduction does it offer? [/ QUOTE ] Who cares it looks cool. [/ QUOTE ] exactly!!!
It does look cool... But for me I like to look at the structural regidity losses to the weight reduction! Anyone know off hand what an average axle weighs? Or... One thats fully assembled with springs/locators and steering arms?
[ QUOTE ] Hole saw and CUTTING OIL. LOTS OF CUTTING OIL. Do not use a regular dril bit. Why cut out every bit of metal? The hole saw is way more logical and works way better. I've done it both ways and the hole saw route is way quicker and way cheaper. [/ QUOTE ]whats your record ?? i did 21 1 1/8 holes in 40 minutes using 4 differnt sizes drills, hole saws suck they wobbel all over the place and if your lucky you might get the hole where you want it, ive seen to many axles with the hole pattern that goes up and down , also , it doesnt really effect strength as what takes the punishment is outside of the perches the inside span just connects the two ive seen the outside drilled also im not quite sold on that idea also drilling the bones is not a good idea unless you plan on welding sleeves everyone i have seen more than one broken drilled bone at the shop
Hey Wayno I was reading an old Rod & Custom last night, trying to get sleepy. August 1995 to be exact, was a letter from a Ronald Rickel telling how he had gathered up pieces of the Tony Nancy 22 Jr. roadster and had sold it to a friend he only knew as Wayno who was buying it for a Mr. LaCroix, to be restored. There can only be one Wayno. Hows the 36 coming along?
I thought the reason for drilling an I beam axle was to take some of the rigidity out of it when splitting the wishbones? I have no idea why someone would drill a tube axle.. unless they are making a flute. Paul
No it doesn't have to be a forged axle. You can buy drilled Superbell's which are cast. I asked a Superbell sales guy about drilling my Superbell axle and he said do a maximum 3/4" hole and keep the axle cool. Has anyone used one of those stepped drill bits (Unibits) to drill an axle ? They are great for everything else and don't seem to wander at all.
If the holes are too big,or too close together,you will sacrifice some stiffness. The weight savings for drilling any component are only signifigant for serious racing.But it does look good,and I've never heard if a drilled I-beam failing on the street. Drilling a tube axle is asking for trouble.
I was thinking that on english wheels a steel tube version is about as rigid as a cast iron one that ways 10x as much... Was kind of poking at the shadows that it'd work the same way for axles!
Stop right there. Superbell axles are not cast. They are forged, but they are not steel like the original Ford stuff. And that's where my memory stops. I'm pretty sure they are iron, but I don't want to be passing along misinformation.
...and according to this website, they are now offering them in forged aluminum..... Pete and Jakes Website (now owns Super Bell)
Funny how things change. I inquired about axle drilling at Superbell back in 94 and was told "Don't even think about doing that to one of our axles". Ok, how about chroming? "Nope hydrogen embrittlement". So I bought a Magnum and drilled that. Then I chromed it. It's on the street and doing just fine. And, look what you can get from the manufacturers today!
[ QUOTE ] Stop right there. Superbell axles are not cast. They are forged, but they are not steel like the original Ford stuff. And that's where my memory stops. I'm pretty sure they are iron, but I don't want to be passing along misinformation. [/ QUOTE ] chassis engineering(iowa) has had the only aftermarket forged steel axle available , the rest, unless something has changed with in the last few years, are cast steel ,and like i said before ...if the center span is drilled, its not really going to effect the integrity as basically the center just holds the two ends in the same line, however i have seen slotted axles, i do not think that is such a great idea..
[ QUOTE ] I think the idea is to make it lighter.... [/ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] I thought the reason for drilling an I beam axle was to take some of the rigidity out of it when splitting the wishbones? [/ QUOTE ] Man, haven't you guys learnt anything? It's to reduce wind resistance!! Duhhh, everyone knows that!
[ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] I think the idea is to make it lighter.... [/ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] I thought the reason for drilling an I beam axle was to take some of the rigidity out of it when splitting the wishbones? [/ QUOTE ] Man, haven't you guys learnt anything? It's to reduce wind resistance!! Duhhh, everyone knows that! [/ QUOTE ]mine looks pretty cool but going down the freeway at 70 it wistles a lot at about 90 its almost unbearable, i cant even hear my exhaust or radio, so i guess the can double as a deer wistle also???
[ QUOTE ] Has anyone used one of those stepped drill bits (Unibits) to drill an axle ? They are great for everything else and don't seem to wander at all. [/ QUOTE ] Simon, I don't think they would work well for drilling an axle. There's not enough support on the cutting edges for the pressure involved. Sorta like enlarging a 15/16" hole to 1". If you're not real careful pressure-wise you'll break and burn the outer edges of the 1" bit.
[ QUOTE ] Hey Wayno I was reading an old Rod & Custom last night, trying to get sleepy. August 1995 to be exact, was a letter from a Ronald Rickel telling how he had gathered up pieces of the Tony Nancy 22 Jr. roadster and had sold it to a friend he only knew as Wayno who was buying it for a Mr. LaCroix, to be restored. There can only be one Wayno. Hows the 36 coming along? [/ QUOTE ] Eddie, I met Ron Rickel last year but I didn't know him in '95. The '36 is coming slowly at present. I'm inching perilously close to 12 hours a day, 7 days a week at work. Wayno
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