duragg Posted December 17, 2011 Share Posted December 17, 2011 (edited) Following my R200 install I am pretty sure my driver side Half-shaft is bottomed out. So I will try to detail how I am fixing that. Disassembly of the Half-shaft is detailed below. Remove rubber boot, remove inboard c-clip and cap (has o-ring). Push the shaft together to expose the internal lock clip area and remove. Pull the inner from the outer and take stock of the balls and shafts. Pull it all apart, get grease everwhere and marvel at the quality of the nearly 40 year old grease and metal. I will have to ask, but I supose these ID slots are cut with some type of gear "hobber"? Surprised there are 8 slots but only 4 in use. Quite impressive. I will take these bits to my machine shop friends and let them chuck up in their massive lathe. I think it will be easiest to just remaching the end cap area 1/2" shorter with the same ring land for the c-clip. Just recreate the end nipple 1/2" deeper is pretty quick work for a lathe master. Edited December 17, 2011 by duragg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duragg Posted December 17, 2011 Author Share Posted December 17, 2011 (edited) Confession: These images and disassembly were done on a half-shaft I already destroyed changing the u-joints. New u-joints Half-shafts are coming. I think those u-joints will have to come off too in order to do this job. If so, a professional driveshaft shop will do that work.. Edited December 17, 2011 by duragg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duragg Posted December 20, 2011 Author Share Posted December 20, 2011 (edited) Got my new half-shafts today. Comparing some 1960s vintage 510 shafts Vs 1983 ZX half-shafts... Identical. All dimensions (lengths and girth) identical. Guess they had big plans for the 510?? 510 on the top, ZX on the bottom. Removed rubber boot, removed c-clip and retaining ring, pulled inny-from-outy. The salty balls; Dropped the part at SuperFinishers so Mikey can have Toney make some "soft-jaws" and turn the end down by 1/2". The new shaft will have an identical end, just 1/2" shorter. 1/2" should do??? Guess I should research this Crap. Anybody notice my unacceptable lathe etiquette that will cost me a 12pack of beer? Edited December 20, 2011 by duragg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsicard Posted December 20, 2011 Share Posted December 20, 2011 Yes. Don't leave the key in the chuck and pull the work from it or tighten the chuck to the work. Where are you located in Arizona. I am in Tucson. Your picture shows you sitting in a T6 Aircraft with a F4U in the background. Where was the picture taken? Please advise. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duragg Posted December 20, 2011 Author Share Posted December 20, 2011 Yes I suspect I left the T-bar in the chuck which is a no-no. Perhaps I can swing by the shop in the morning and remove it before they notice (which means I am only obligated to buy lunch). Picture is my Yak 50 at KSEE next to "Faceshot" in DM's Corsair (Faceshot from the cool movie "Speed and Angels" for you true gearheads). The Corsair broke the night before, I fixed it and flew wing on a big photo flight the next day. Email me if you want the supergoodpics. Tj Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMortensen Posted December 20, 2011 Share Posted December 20, 2011 I think 1/2" would be enough. I'd probably go 3/4". I think you need to take one set of balls and spacers out after you remove the end of the shaft. Check to be sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duragg Posted December 20, 2011 Author Share Posted December 20, 2011 (edited) 5/8" then? I think we could take .050" off the face of the tip also. Plenty of meat just to secure that c-clip for the retainer. Spacers; Rather mill down all the spacers by maybe .060" and still keep them all there? On second thought. The very outside spacer just cut down by .250". The others I could zip down .100" with a small ball-end mill and retain the shape. Thats a good plan. Edited December 20, 2011 by duragg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duragg Posted December 20, 2011 Author Share Posted December 20, 2011 I searched a ton before starting this thread and totally missed this one: http://forums.hybridz.org/index.php/topic/75098-280z-halfshaft-shortening-for-r200-conversion/page__p__715126__hl__%2Bhalfshaft+%2Bgrease__fromsearch__1?do=findComment&comment=715126 Mike (owner of SF2) said his carbide tooling would blast through that steel. (actually it may be "Gub-ment tooling", but in an election year all is well). If we are eating up tooling, this is another option. TJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lazeum Posted December 20, 2011 Share Posted December 20, 2011 I was going to reply I have tried before with a carbide tool on a lathe but the teeth profile creates some erratic contact that would hit the cutting tool. We basically destroyed the tool after 0.1mm of material removed. I've cut mine with EMD since it was available to me but a angle grinder with the appropriate wheel would also do the trick. then, you'll have to build the insert from the other thread... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duragg Posted December 20, 2011 Author Share Posted December 20, 2011 Spoke to Mikey at SF2, they are going to see how it cuts with carbide tooling later today. Told them I wanted it cut .726": With machinists you have to put a peg in the sand... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duragg Posted March 12, 2012 Author Share Posted March 12, 2012 (edited) The intervention of life and other projects delayed this project. I decided to use a wire EDM here in town to remove .650" from the shaft. I will weld on the tab. Need to find that nasty grease for the balls and spacers (and probably shorten the plastic spacers a bit). Edited March 12, 2012 by duragg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leon Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Nice! I've been using the EDM at work, looks like a good project! Keep us updated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Anybody notice my unacceptable lathe etiquette that will cost me a 12pack of beer? In college I ran the machine shop at night. So many people did this and jumped belts off of the lathes that I welded springs to all of the keys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lazeum Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 (edited) By welding the shaft, you'll "destroy" the hardness of the material if you don't quench it afterwards; even by doing so, you'll degrade material properties. You might end up with the balls brinelling the shaft resulting in creating some shaft play (= clunk noise) I don't know how bad you'll hurt the material but you need to take this into consideration. That's why I've drilled mine (shaft's core is not hardened) & build an insert. Edited March 12, 2012 by Lazeum Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMortensen Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 By welding the shaft, you'll "destroy" the hardness of the material if you don't quench it afterwards; even by doing so, you'll degrade material properties. You might end up with the balls brinelling the shaft resulting in creating some shaft play (= clunk noise) I don't know how bad you'll hurt the material but you need to take this into consideration. That's why I've drilled mine (shaft's core is not hardened) & build an insert. How much welding are we talking about here? I haven't done any testing, but I'd imagine that a couple tacks with a mig on the center of the cut end of the shaft isn't going to change the temper of the shaft outside of the HAZ in any meaningful way. Those balls aren't actively trying to come off of the end of the shaft, so you don't need a whole lot of weld to hold the thing together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duragg Posted March 12, 2012 Author Share Posted March 12, 2012 Couple of tacks here and there will be just fine. There isn't much load on those balls / spacers. The original cap is just snap-ringed in place. Tired of messing with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duragg Posted March 12, 2012 Author Share Posted March 12, 2012 And where does that grease from in there come from? Thats some pretty tacky stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnc Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Wurth SIG 3000 works very well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duragg Posted March 30, 2012 Author Share Posted March 30, 2012 Dribbling progress.... Half shaft is done. Gotta get that grease and put it all back together and bang it in (maybe this weekend). Machine shop that didn't said "nah that material isn't hardened. Its just good material. You wouldn't want it hardened or it would be too brittle". Regardless. its done and will last as long as I need it to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duragg Posted April 7, 2012 Author Share Posted April 7, 2012 Guess I should have measured before making a short halfshaft. The stock 240z halfshaft was not binding, in fact if had room to go in another 1/4". The newly cut and builtup half-shaft is verging on too short with 1/4" spare travel at max droop. I have pictures but they are rather embarrasing actually. Shorty half-shaft available to a good home. Switched to a different half-shaft anyways for newer u-joints. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.