280zwitha383 Posted March 17, 2005 Share Posted March 17, 2005 I'm terribly sorry if this is a stupid question or if it has already been answered, but I just got my JTR mounting kit in today and I crawled under the car to look at my pinion flange. However, while I was under there I looked at the flanges on the halfshafts and they look pretty identical to the adapter that came with the mounting kit. So here's the question, is it not possible to use these flanges (or something similar to them) to make a halfshaft that uses chevy u-joints? I know that the halfshafts give a little where the boot is and that might be difficult to fab, but would it not be possible to use a completely chevy halfshaft with chevy u-joints? Thanks for any info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2126 Posted March 17, 2005 Share Posted March 17, 2005 Well, with enough time, money and fabricating experience you can do just about anything! However, if you use the search function and read about the usual differential and halfshaft conversions, you will discover there are OEM Datsun/Nissan parts that will do the job and handle alot of horsepower. They won't cost you a fortune either. It's all there for the reading! Good luck 280zwitha383! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
280zwitha383 Posted March 17, 2005 Author Share Posted March 17, 2005 So you're thinking that it would not be cost effective? I have read gobs of posts about CV vs. U-joints and 280zxt CV's and 300zxt CV's, Splicer u-joints, stock u-joints blah blah blah. I was looking for a strong alternative perhaps that would be somewhat practical. I would think that converting the u-joints to a common Chevy u-joint would be more practical because they are bigger and probably have a better market. I wouldn't think that getting a shop to fab two halfshafts would be any more expensive than some of the conversions that some people have done. I'm just throwing the thought out there because I haven't seen anyone do it or even mention it. It does occur to me that if it was practical and doable that someone would have already done it, but I thought it was worth looking into. Also, does the pinion flange that JTR provides actually fit the bolt pattern on the halfshafts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedZ85 Posted March 17, 2005 Share Posted March 17, 2005 The adaptor that you got has the chevy u joint on one side, and the the datsun differential input flange bolt pattern on the other side(for a flange with a 2.25" pilot). Being that you have a 280Z, you MAY already have this flange on your differential, if not...you will need to obtain one and install it. Basicly, this is as strong as you can get, easily that is. THis allows you to have a chevy driveshaft made up that will slip into a a chevy tranny and still bolt up to the stock datsun differential. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pop N Wood Posted March 17, 2005 Share Posted March 17, 2005 I would think putting chevy U joints into a stock half shaft would be worth doing, if it could be done cheaply. I know the CV swaps have been well established, but I don't like the idea of all the adapter plates. Maybe just because I have not done it. You might try pointing out this thread to JohnC or Mike Kelly (among others). I bet either one of those guys could answer this question off the top of their heads. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fl327 Posted March 17, 2005 Share Posted March 17, 2005 could be done, but probably just as expensive as a cv conversion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clifton Posted March 18, 2005 Share Posted March 18, 2005 Neapco makes a Brtue force U joint for the half shaft U joint. It has a solid center but I have read that they aren't any stronger. I wouldn't start worring about going larger until you break one though. Is it a drag car? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
280zwitha383 Posted March 21, 2005 Author Share Posted March 21, 2005 No, it will be a street car. However, its got a 383 with dart heads and a full roller setup. I'm sure it could easily break a lot of stuff. I'm planning on keeping the rearend stock as well as the tires for a while. I'm hoping that if anything breaks it will be traction. Atleast that's the plan until I get everything settled out with the swap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pparaska Posted March 21, 2005 Share Posted March 21, 2005 For a short halfshaft like the Z has, my opinion is that it's not really a good idea to go after the U-joint method, from an engineering standpoint. The range of angles the halfshaft u-joints move through is just too large for this to work well with alot of torque. U-joints are very poor for transmitting torque when more than a few degrees off of zero u-joint angle. Very quickly they tend to "bind up" due to this fact. That's one reason that they break in the halfshafts, unless you can keep the angles down during the time your are throwing the large torque through them. Even still, you're trying to get the forces across two opposed bearing cups, instead of the typical 3 locations in a CV joint. CV joints have much less of a problem transmitting torque when more than a degree or so off of straight. Sure you can offset the strength deficit of the U-Joint design with bigger stronger joints, but with the Z31 CV shaft bolt in upgrades that are out there, you'll just be behind the game. JMO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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