ncsu602

iTrader: (10)

More pics to come!

First of all, don't bash me for building a 10 bolt instead of saving for a 12 bolt. I'll never put slicks on it so I'm not that concerned. Also, I would've loved to have 4.10s, but it's hard to spend the money when I've got perfectly good 3.73s infront of me for nothing. I've only got about $50 in this rebuild, which is what I paid for a new pinion seal, fluids, and a kit from KBS Rustseal (Por15 alternative) to paint it. The bearings were in great shape, so basically we swapped the ring and pinion out. The previous owner had already been in it and added a stud kit, AAM cover, Moser axles, and solid pinion spacer, with the stock 3.42s and Auburn posi. I have a spare rear with Motive 3.73s in good shape with a bad Torsen, so I decided to swap the 3.73s in. My father-in-law set the gears up, we welded the tubes, and I got it back from him tonight. I'm gonna mediablast the tubes, clean it good, and paint it with the kit.

How am I doing so far? The car was build for autox by the previous owner so it's got subframes, lcas, springs/shocks, torque arm, and doesn't wheelhop a bit. It's also got a Textralia Exoskel. I'll probably take it to the strip just to see what it'll run on street tires, but otherwise it's just a toy/3rd vehicle. Think it'll hold? It's a cam/bolt-on car. I do have a really bad habit of snatching 2nd . I guess if it goes I've got enough spare parts to piece one back together!

Also, anyone know a good way to clean a rear? Pressure washer, dawn, degreaser, toilet paper??

95 TA - The Beast

iTrader: (2)

Finish it off by putting in a LPW Ultimate cover and rear brace kit.

If you have the rest done, the LPW setup will make sure the axle tubes don't move under load and pull the carrier out of alignment with the pinion...

I just got done building up my 10-bolt and all I reused from the previous setup is an Eaton HD Posi unit. Other than that I added a set of Motive Performance 3.73 gears, Timken master install kit, solid pinion spacer, Moser axles, LPW ultimate cover and brace kit and POR-15'd it... I had the housing/tubes checked for straightness before I welded them... I am expecting it to handle 600+rwhp just fine, as the most I will be running will be Nitto Drag Radials and even then it will probably only see the strip once or twice...

I figure the biggest killer to these rears are that the axle tubes pull forward of the center section and pull the carrier out of alignment with the pinion... As long as the pinion stays where it is supposed to (and the solid pinion spacer will help with that) and as long as the carrier stays aligned, as well as the gears being setup properly, it can't be that much weaker than a 12-bolt... I attibute a lot of failures to the above mentioned items as well as improper gear setup...

95 TA - The Beast

iTrader: (2)

Oh, forgot to mention, I spent about $80 and did the whole POR-15 routine, as in Marine Cleaned it first, dried it, then Metal Prep, dried it, then painted with 2-3 coats of POR-15... Turned out great and that stuff is rock hard... No need to worry about any of the staking studs on the housing to axle tubes leaking when youa re done if you didn't weld them, as the POR-15 will seal it permanently...

Be sure to also use some smaller and thinner brushes to get all inside the bracketry to get it covered 100%... took some screwing around and got some of it on my hands, but it turned out well...

If the stuff you are using is like POR-15, be sure to use acetone or brake cleaner to get it off your skin before it cures, because once it does it is not coming off... Took over a week to get it all off and that was was from the skin being worn off from overscrubbing more than anything else...

SuperSport01

^ I just wear gloves when I use POR15.

95 TA - The Beast

iTrader: (2)

Yeah I did too, until I noticed something after I finished up and decided to touch up a few things... And I didn't put gloves back on... DOH!

01ssreda4

iTrader: (96)

Good work....go easy though because M6s can pop them even during spirited gear shifts.

ncsu602

iTrader: (10)

Thanks alot guys! The KBS stuff is supposed to be just like POR15....I basically need a hazmat suit to guarantee none gets on me. I need all the advice I can get, I've never used the stuff. I may have to pick up one of those LPW covers and brace kits, looks nice and not to bad priced.

This is my second 4th gen, the first being a bolt on LT1 6speed. I know their weaknesses so I'm not much for high rpm clutch dumps. I do, however, have a problem with powershifting 2nd and 3rd gear. I know it's bad, but it's soooo much fun! I've got enough spare parts to put another one together. If I break two, we'll talk 12bolt or maybe a budget 8.8. To me, there's still something dirty about putting Ford parts on a GM....

Anyone know a good way to clean it up? My plan is to seal it up, degrease/pressure wash (staying away from seals and the vent), and blast the rest. The kit I've got is identical to the POR15 kit. It has cleaner, zinc etcher, and coating. I found this stuff when I was researching coatings for my 67. http://www.kbs-coatings.com/rustseal.html

01ssreda4

iTrader: (96)

Be careful with spray abrasives, that **** gets through the tiniest cracks. I used to spray glass beads in a cabinet and that **** would get everywhere inside cracks and crevices. I think I would coat the housing bare and build it after so I could give it a good internal scrub.

ncsu602

iTrader: (10)

Exactly.....I've got a cabinet and a pressure pot blaster. I pulled the siphon gun out of the cabinet to use on the rear because I hate my other one. It seems to only work a couple of minutes before it clogs, and that's with a dryer inline. I basically stayed away from the center section, it was in good shape. The tubes, especially around the spring perches and shock mounts, had paint flaking everywhere. I lightly hit them just to knock the paint loose.

Thanks for the advice!

ncsu602

iTrader: (10)

Thought I'd give a review of KBS Rustseal since I'm here. This seems to be a great product, we'll see how it lasts. I didn't completely strip the paint, just knocked off the flaky stuff and left the rest. It was a breeze to paint. I used the Aquaklean (cleaner), then used Rustblast (rust converter/zinc etcher), then the Rustseal coating. The Aquaklean didn't have any smell at all, and finished cleaning where I had missed. The Rustblast sprays on and you have to keep the surface wet for 20-30 min to etch. The Rustseal goes a LONG way. I bought the starter kit from ebay which had an 8oz can of Rustseal. I ordered satin black, and it's a little more gloss than satin. Not a bad look, but for someone specifically looking for satin, you may want to go flat. I used half the can on my entire rear and had to throw away some of what I had poured out. I'd estimate two good coats would take 1/3 of the 8oz can. It dries rock hard and will ruin anything it's not supposed to touch. Contrary to what everyone says, it will come off your skin, in a few days anyway. I painted it yesterday evening, got a little on my forearm, and it's almost gone today. Of course i've scrubbed a couple of times with Gojo since then too. USE GLOVES, OLD CLOTHES, AND POSSIBLY LONG SLEEVES!

The only bad thing I've seen is that the rear looks so good I want to take the rest of the components off and paint them too!

This pic shows the etching up close after the Rustblast.


Hard to make out with this one, but 1/2 is done, the right side tube isn't painted yet.


And here she is, as strong as I can make a 10 bolt...


I ran through the gears gently with it on the jackstands and I keep getting a strange squeal/squeak when I let off the clutch in 1st or reverse. I know that some aftermarket clutches do this (have a textralia exo-skel), and it's done it ever since I've had it, but it seems more pronounced now. I guess it's cause it's on jackstands. I'll have to wait till tomorrow to take it up the road, it's pouring rain now. I also found out I think I've got a freakin bent rim. Never noticed a vibration or wobble till it was on the jackstands. I still don't notice any vibration.

EDIT: I'm embarrassed to say this but it's funny enough I'll admit to it. Had the car on jackstands running it a little and thought I had a problem with the traction control. It kept coming on when i'd let out of the clutch. Took me a minute to figure out that the front wheels were on the ground and still and the back was spinning. TC works perfect......my dumbass forgot to turn it off!

Put about 15 miles on it and wow what a difference. It's so much easier to take off in first due to the lower gear. Slight whine at about 45mph, but none otherwise. Breaks loose way too easy in second, but no big deal. I'll leave the TC on when the wife drives it. No wobble or vibration either!