Welding a truss on a Ford 9" housing

[Dirt Rider]

So here's the deal. I have full width 9" housing out of a 1976 F150 that I need to narrow it to fit an early Bronco. I also need to weld on a truss for a 4-link setup that I am installing. I may even add a rear truss for more support. As far as narrowing it goes a will have to farm that out as I don't have a jig to make sure it is straight. But i would like to weld the trusses on.

Looking for advice. Should I tack weld the trusses in place, let them cool and come back and weld an inch or so on each side, let it cool again. I just don't want to pull it out of wack and then have to have it straightened.

Tim

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[LXCam]

You can but you're taking a major chance on warping it. Once it's narrowed I would suggest you build a jig that's mounted to the backing plates as well as close to center on the axle tubs to maintain alignment. Even then take your time on the welding. If you don't have a massive welding bench you might try and work a deal out with whoever did the shortening work. Tac everything in place them take it to them for final welding. It doesn't take much shrinkage to lose both toe and camber angle.

 

[Dirt Rider]

You can but you're taking a major chance on warping it. Once it's narrowed I would suggest you build a jig that's mounted to the backing plates as well as close to center on the axle tubs to maintain alignment. Even then take your time on the welding. If you don't have a massive welding bench you might try and work a deal out with whoever did the shortening work. Tac everything in place them take it to them for final welding. It doesn't take much shrinkage to lose both toe and camber angle.

Thanks for the input. That's what I was afraid of. I think I will just farm it all out, that way it should be straight when I get it back.

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[zmotorsports]

I have welded a lot of axles and planning out the sequence is the most important thing. Moving around and not concentrating too much heat in one area is what you are trying to accomplish.

I also replace the seals and on front axles I generally replace ball joints at this time as well.

Mike.

 

[dontlifttoshift]

As long as the last step is weld the housing ends on it really won't matter. The hardest part is keeping the face of the housing (where the pig bolts in) flat when welding a truss or back brace on.

Got any pictures of what this truss looks like and how it attaches?

 

[FishingMan]

Look into currie rears. I have one in my early bronco.extra thick tube with a skid plate welded to bottom with a drain . It also has a big fill plug up top. Mine has their heavy duty axles,456 gears and an arb air locker. Also disc brakes. It's alot of money but you won't break it

 

[bbcc]

As dontlifttoshift mentioned (great name btw), as long as the axle ends are the last to be welded on you'll be fine. Follow good work practices and you won't have excessive warping. I would advise MIG welding the brace on to limit the total BTU input to the housing. Although TIG is more focused/localized the end heat input is usually higher. Depending on the type of truss you're looking to weld, stitch welding may be effectively used.

Best of luck with the project! It sounds like a cool rig.

 

[Jamie V]

I would consider buying a housing like this rather then using what you have.

http://www.strangeengineering.net/product/ford-9-tubed-fill-drain-no-ends-or-mounts.html/

The tubes are way thicker then what you have and are reinforced into the housing extremely well. Once your brackets and braces are welded on then have your ends installed.

 

[Dirt Rider]

Thanks guys, I'm not building my Bronco for rock crawling although it will be more then capable. I bought a used set of 35 spline Dutchman axles. And I have a line on a zip locker. As far as the truss goes, I don't have a photo of it but here is a link.
http://www.ruffstuffspecialties.com...D&Product_Code=TRUSS-MED&Store_Code=ruffstuff

As all projects go am sure. I'm already over budget. But that is the way out it goes. I got a price on welding it all together from a shop that does differential work. Including a rear truss that I haven't looked into yet, just an idea at this point. $450 for labor only. I'll look into those other options.

Tim

Here are a few picture of the project.



Parts ready for primer!



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[Dirt Rider]

This is the kit that have for the 4-link.

http://www.ruffstuffspecialties.com...roduct_Code=4LK-OPT1&Category_Code=4LINK-KITS

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[steel 35]

As long as the last step is weld the housing ends on it really won't matter.

I agree 100%

As for one of the for mentioned aftermarket guys it's -110%

 

[dontlifttoshift]

Now I understand.

They sell it so it must work, right? You can weld that on without issue. The tubes will pull up......maybe a 1/2* That may have to be straightened some before welding the ends on but can easily be done by welding a bead right under where the truss welds on to the top of the axle tube.

Side note. If it were mine, I would tie that truss to the top of the housing. A simple piece of box tubing fit inside the C channel and going straight down would do it.

 

[zmotorsports]

Again, I don't see what the big deal is. I have been sleeving, gusseting and trussing axles for years and as long as you pay attention to the sequence you will be fine. I have welded a lot of Arctic Industries trusses on and they are quite labor intensive but turn out great as long as you don't rush it and put too much heat into the axle at once.

Mike.

 

[dontlifttoshift]

:Shrug: Who is making it a big deal?

 

[Tim C]

Now I understand.

They sell it so it must work, right? You can weld that on without issue. The tubes will pull up......maybe a 1/2* That may have to be straightened some before welding the ends on but can easily be done by welding a bead right under where the truss welds on to the top of the axle tube.

Side note. If it were mine, I would tie that truss to the top of the housing. A simple piece of box tubing fit inside the C channel and going straight down would do it.

On our off road rigs with a 9" or corporate 14 bolt we tie the front of the truss to the pinion support bolts, but we make it so it can be unbolted for service.

I'd definitely tie it into the pinion support or like dontlifttoshift says tie it into the top or even the back of the 9" housing. I've seen the trusses get ripped off taking chunks of the housing with it if you get to axle hopping and catch traction. It wasn't the welds that failed either.

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[4 FN 27]

I have welded a lot of axles and planning out the sequence is the most important thing. Moving around and not concentrating too much heat in one area is what you are trying to accomplish.

I also replace the seals and on front axles I generally replace ball joints at this time as well.

Mike.

As long as the last step is weld the housing ends on it really won't matter. The hardest part is keeping the face of the housing (where the pig bolts in) flat when welding a truss or back brace on.

Got any pictures of what this truss looks like and how it attaches?

Again, I don't see what the big deal is. I have been sleeving, gusseting and trussing axles for years and as long as you pay attention to the sequence you will be fine. I have welded a lot of Arctic Industries trusses on and they are quite labor intensive but turn out great as long as you don't rush it and put too much heat into the axle at once.

Mike.

On our off road rigs with a 9" or corporate 14 bolt we tie the front of the truss to the pinion support bolts, but we make it so it can be unbolted for service.

I'd definitely tie it into the pinion support or like dontlifttoshift says tie it into the top or even the back of the 9" housing. I've seen the trusses get ripped off taking chunks of the housing with it if you get to axle hopping and catch traction. It wasn't the welds that failed either.

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My opinion is all of the above have merit. Mike's point is very valid.

Every housing assembly I have done started with welding the complete assembly less the ends and sent it out for stress relieving. Then we machined in the Bolt Hole Pattern for the Third Member and last welded on the Axels ends. For our application this was the only way to do it reducing parasitic drag to am absolute minimum. Now do you need that for this application, yes, maybe no. Fabricators choice.

Sequence is important no matter what you are welding.

To install the Axel Ends we used a Nodular Iron 3rd Member and a precision ground Bar going through both ends and bolted them complete and then weld.

Once assembled using a 3rd member with ceramic bearings you could spin the tire with one hand and it would go a few revolutions before stopping.

And I agree it should be tied to the Pinion Support. There is strength in triangles.

Good luck!!!

 

[bagged150]

As long as you can keep the axle tubs true, you should be fine. Find a long bar that can slide through but not give any play and you can weld them up that way. Ian did it that way on extreme offroad.

 

[rsanter]

I have the fixtur and do rear housing narrowing on the side.
If you are planning a trip to CA you could bring it with you.

I weld them up as evenly as I can with the MIG and if they are off a little I just use the the TIG to relieve a little of the stress out of the weld or I also will add a little more weld to the side I want it to pull to.
If you TIG weld it generally you don't get the weld shrinkage so that may be a good option for welding on the brace

Bob

 

[fourjeepin]

Look into currie rears. I have one in my early bronco.extra thick tube with a skid plate welded to bottom with a drain . It also has a big fill plug up top. Mine has their heavy duty axles,456 gears and an arb air locker. Also disc brakes. It's alot of money but you won't break it

They will sell you the bottom skid plate separately. I recommend this so that you can minimize the coin you drop with the Currie bastards. They make some good stuff, but have also sold junk and not stood behind their work,

 

[Dirt Rider]

Thanks a lot guys!

I like the idea of tying the top truss to the pinion support bolts. I have a guy lined up that has the equipment to narrow it. I think I will go ahead and weld the top truss on. If I add the back brace I will have the shop do it that has the jig.

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[Dirt Rider]

4 FN 27, Nice work on the differential housing that thing is beautiful !!

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[bluebolt]

Got a build thread anywhere?

I have a 74 Bronco myself, disc front brakes, PS, C4, 351W swap.

 

[Dirt Rider]

Yes, it's on FTE it's not a very active Bronco site. But that's where it is.
http://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1459906-tims-bronco-build.html

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[4 FN 27]

4 FN 27, Nice work on the differential housing that thing is beautiful !!

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I can't take credit for the welding. I made the Sheet Metal pieces after spending a hours designing it in Cad. The welding was done by one of the best in the Pro Stock Chassis Fab business.

I took the hand made patterns they had been using over the years and redesigned it using Tab and Slot construction and eliminated about 20 hours of "fitting" on each assembly.

Wish I had a picture of the Titanium version of this. That is a thing of beauty!!! I'll see if I have a picture when I get home tonight.

 

[Dirt Rider]

That sounds cool.

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[4 FN 27]

Here you go. All Titanium Rear End Assembly I can't believe I laid this thing out 11 years ago. How time flies.

 

[Dirt Rider]

Your right that is a really cool, beautiful ! Is it still in use?

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[4 FN 27]

Your right that is a really cool, beautiful ! Is it still in use?

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Yes as far as I know a lot of these that were built are still running today in NHRA Pro Stock and Comp Eliminator. I am not sure how many were actually built. The majority were run in Comp so the car was lighter for the weight to cubic inch rules. In Pro Stock it was an option for a heavier driver to off set the weight.

The fit of one of the hand crafted Rear Ends was spot on. Everything lined up perfect. Once you take the last Nut off to get the 3rd Member out you had better watch out so it doesn't fall out. The Axel Bearings just slipped right in.

The shop that built these were the best in the business. They built me 3 awesome cars over the years.

 

[zmotorsports]

Here you go. All Titanium Rear End Assembly I can believe I laid this thing out 11 years ago. How time flies.

I don't like saying this to another guy but that is a nice rearend.

Mike.