My new Salisbury axle

[James86004]

Today, I bought the Salisbury axle from that parts pile greenmeanie turned me on to. I went over and met the owner, and we took the cover off to see what was inside. It turns out nothing was inside. The ring, pinion, spider gears and carrier are all missing. The half shafts are there. This axle (and the whole parts pile) were previously owned by the guy who started Safarigard, so we theorized he was putting a locker in it when he had to sell everything.

We came to a suitably low price, and loaded it up in my truck.

Now to find gears!

Thanks for all your help, everyone.

 

[Alaska Mike]

So now is the perfect time to look at an ARB. You're going to have to buy a loaded carrier anyway.

 

[James86004]

So, an ARB uses compressed air to either lock or unlock the diff. Does an E-locker use an electromagnet or solenoid to do the same thing? I imagine that can get hot.

 

[Alaska Mike]

Not when covered in gear oil. I've never heard of a heat problem (or even a heat concern). You're not relying on the magnet (or solenoid) to actually provide the locking action, just to move the locking portion of the locker. Doesn't take much force to actuate or maintain.

 

[TeriAnn]

So now is the perfect time to look at an ARB. You're going to have to buy a loaded carrier anyway.

I second that, plus having an on board compressor makes a BIG difference on how you feel about airing down for different terrains. The decision is a lot easier to make for traction and washboard ride comfort when you know that airing up is easy and always close at hand. If you have a diff on hand with good 4.7:1 R&P's you can get a spacer & reuse them. If you have to buy an ARB & new R&P gears then consider spending the extra $$ for the 4.75:1 R&P. It doesn't require a spacer & it is a lot stronger than the 4.7:1.

ARB + 4.7 R&P + spacer is not that much cheaper than ARB + 4.75 R&P.

Also consider new drive flanges for the Salisbury. The stock ones are soft & the spline clearances open up. It doesn't take much drive flange spline clearance to get a very noticeable drive train clunk. I went to the harder Great basin ones last year because it seems like I was wearing stock ones out in about 3 years on the average.

I'm glad you are making the upgrade. A Dormobile has no business going off road with 10 spline rear axles.

 

[greenmeanie]

Now here's a question.for my general education. How far can you go with different diff ratios before it becomes an issue with drive train wind up? I can see 4.7 matched with 4.75 not being an issue as long as you don't spend all day driving around in perfect traction - the answer to that is you wouldn't be in 4wd then would you. How different can you go before it becomes impractical?

 

[James86004]

You're not relying on the magnet (or solenoid) to actually provide the locking action, just to move the locking portion of the locker.

Ah, so it has detents in it like the gearbox does? Or like the electrically actuated overdrive on my MGB?

I second that, plus having an on board compressor makes a BIG difference on how you feel about airing down for different terrains. The decision is a lot easier to make for traction and washboard ride comfort when you know that airing up is easy and always close at hand. If you have a diff on hand with good 4.7:1 R&P's you can get a spacer & reuse them. If you have to buy an ARB & new R&P gears then consider spending the extra $$ for the 4.75:1 R&P. It doesn't require a spacer & it is a lot stronger than the 4.7:1.

I assume I can't, or should not, use the 4.7 R& P from the Rover diff? Where do I get the 4.75 R&P?

A guy on the SII club forum in the UK is putting 3.54s in his Salisbury and has offered me the 4.7s. If we can ship it over here for a reasonable cost, I may end up using that.

I am going to install the compressor and tank from the air suspension on my Range Rover. Air up tires, fill air mattresses, actuate diff locks, spray paint fences...

Also consider new drive flanges for the Salisbury. The stock ones are soft & the spline clearances open up.

I'm glad you are making the upgrade. A Dormobile has no business going off road with 10 spline rear axles.

If the ones I have are in good shape, I wonder if I can harden them?

I am glad I am making the upgrade, too. So is Kelly.

How different can you go before it becomes impractical?

I imagine you can go a few percent. It all depends on how much your tires can slip. Maybe a couple of percent you won't notice, then a couple more and your tires are wearing out faster, and a couple more and your drivetrain starts winding up, then you start breaking things.

 

[revor]

4.7, 4.75 whatever it takes... No biggie

the Eaton E Locker is currently not available with 24 splines.

considering the locally avaible Lockers you can get your hands on:

ARB, Tru Trac, Detroit.

Maxi Drive and McNamara make them but be prepared to pay through the nose if even available. Maxidrive is closed but I think sombody has picked up the locker line.

There are others too.

What's a set of 4.75's going for now? $500 I'm thinking the 4.7's will be plenty strong for anything besides an LS1 and should be available for a couple hundred bucks And use an RD 32 ARB Locker (no spacer).. Depending on current pricing I usually sell them for about $800

"A guy on the SII club forum in the UK is putting 3.54s in his Salisbury and has offered me the 4.7s. If we can ship it over here for a reasonable cost, I may end up using that."

$200 delivered


Time to start hitting the series boards!

Maybe Ike Goss can help! I asked a series friend as well..

Too bad we can't find 3.76 gears for Rover diffs I have a set of these for a Salisbury, Brand new!! What a nice ratio..

 

[ntsqd]

I can't answer that, but I have repeatedly read that the 'fast' axle is preferred to be the front axle.

My guess would be that .05 difference is nearing the outer limit. Quite common to see a .01 difference in things like Early Broncos where the rear axle is made by the OEM and the front is made by Dana/Spicer.

I had to put it into numbers for my own understanding of the effects. Given a true 33" OD tire and using 2875 drive shaft revolutions as a comparison point. The 4.7 axle travels 5284.7 feet while the 4.75 axle travels 5229.1 feet, a difference of 55.6 feet in roughly a mile.

 

[revor]

It's part time four wheel drive, even in the case of a late modle the center diff would take the difference and make it un noticable.

Locked in four wheel drive on the dirt/rock/snow/mud nothing would ever come of it.

Try the same calculations with a 33" Tire and a 32.5" (worn out) tire.

In any case 4.7's shouldn't be hard to find.

 

[Alaska Mike]

My thought is that Salisbury diff is such and upgrade from the Rover one in terms of strength that you'll likely never have an issue with the stock 4.7 Salisbury gearset. I think that $500 figure for the 4.75s is pretty accurate after the install kit.

$800 for an ARB is a no-brainer for me, especially if you visit places with mud, snow, or sand. The nicest thing about the ARB over non-selectable lockers is the fact you can turn them off. Put yourself on a slick sidehill and you'll see what I mean.

Who is doing your setup? That's often a large part of the expense. While I'll tackle most anything, I never do my own internal engine work or my own gear setup. Just too easy to make mistakes that get really costly down the road.

 

[ntsqd]

I wouldn't hesitate to do the gear set-up with one requirement: Have someone who has done many looking over your shoulder for the duration. The process isn't a difficult one, but it is filled with nuances. Lacking a previous pinion being in place means the you're starting from scratch with pinion depth. I have the tool for measuring this, that I've never used, & will offer the loan of it for the shipping.

If that expertise is not available, then I'll second Mike's suggestion. There is value in knowing that they're right and that you don't have to worry about them.

 

[revor]

Said tool and "set up" bearings make this a relative breeze..

My set up bearings are available for loan as well..

 

[Alaska Mike]

If you get a used set of gears, try to see if the previous owner will mark the pattern before they are removed from their axle. This will allow you to match the pattern and make them run a little quieter and decrease wear. Not a requirement, but it makes the job go a little easier.

Setup bearings make it go a lot easier- especially when dealing with a custom bearing like the ARB (that's where the air line is fitted). An ARB requires a little work to install, like drilling the housing and notching the bearing retainer for air line routing. I did my own rear ARB and gearset on my Jeep's Dana 44 (with a highly-qualified someone looking over my shoulder), and it took me much longer than a pro and probably wasn't quite as good as it could have been. Now that I've done it, I can check it off my list and just have someone else do the work. I'm lazy like that.

Talk to your local 4x4 club and see who the best axle guys are in your area if you decide to have someone else do the work.

 

[James86004]

Some contacted me who has a set of 4.7 gears on his shelf. He doesn't know if they are for a Salisbury or a Rover diff. Is there a way to tell the difference if you don't have the other kind handy to compare?