I got a front D-44 and noticed its a little bent. Looks like from where the passenger side tube connects to the diff case. Apparently caused from too much weight. Anyway, I had the idea of welding some box steel lengths to the top and bottom and jacking the top apart while winching the bottom together and then welding in some bracing and grinding off the box steel.

I got a good eye for straightness. You think my eye would be good enough? Anybody ever done anything like this? I figure the forces involved shouldn't be TOO much, after all, its not a Mack truck that bent the little 44.

 

I could have been a 6000lb truck slinging 44" tires coming down from a 6' jump that bent it... If your eye is good enough to detect the bend, then you should be able to make it LESS bent (which is better), but it's still kinda moot. If the thing is bent, then it should be scrapped or professionally repaired to original spec for any kind of on-road reliability. If you're just gonna bog it or crawl it, you're certainly better off straightening it than leaving it bent, but it's likely more damaged than just what you see from the outside.

You should be able to find an aftermarket axle truss, which would be a MUCH better indicator of how bent it is, and also a good gauge to know when you've got it close to straight.

 

I planned on using some steel to truss it up, I figured that went w/o saying. I don't think anything inside is damaged, front driveshaft was never hooked up since the axle was put on the truck. But, then again, I don't know the particulars of the bearings on the inside and how the increased angle on the axle might affect them. Isn't there some tolerance? I hear you can't run a locker if the axle is bent.

 

What I meant about the AM truss is that it's already built to fit a straight axle, so you could use it as a gauge.

The axleshafts slide into the side gears of the diff, and fit fairly tightly so bending the tube could throw those gears out of line or bend the axleshafts. Straightening the tube wouldn't straighten the shafts or fix any damage to the diff.

I wouldn't put ANY new parts into that axle until it's been professionally straightened.

 

Hard to imagine the axles being bent, since the truck was never jumped. If they were bent, do you think I would notice a binding going on when I spin the wheel with my hand? I don't have any such binding.

How much do those trusses cost?

I would like to have a d-60, but have written it off, too hard to find. So, I'll just truss this one up if I can.

 

I've never priced them, but I'm sure plenty of online retailers sell them.

If there have been a lot of miles put on the axle since it got bent, the binding could have worn away, or maybe it never bent enough to bind. I just wouldn't spend any money on a bent axle except to have it straightened by a machine shop.

 

I never thought of that, thanks for the input, Steve.

 

> I got a front D-44 and noticed its a little bent

Are you sure it is bent and not how they come from the factory? Have you compared it to another D44, even a junkyard one?

 

I've looked at other trucks and never see the camber that I do on mine. Looks kinda lame with the wheels out like that.

 

If that's ALL you're using to gauge the bend, then it could just be ball joints or camber alignment.

 

No, the joints are fine. That was my first thought as well. I can see the axle is bent while laying on the ground, as I said before.

 

Its really a poor design. I would have never put my name on a design like that. If the diff was centered, then it would be ok. But with the diff off center like that, theres an obvious weak spot there. A simple piece of angle steel from passenger side welded to the case to triangulate would work wonders. It wouldn't bend then. The driver's side is ok, no bend there, just that long tube on the pass side.

 

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 23-Dec-02 AT 00:12 AM (EST)]The tube is probably stronger than its attachment to the casting, but the way loads are applied to the axle makes them both fine for their original application. It's all the modification & abuse it's been subject to in the past 30 years that's bent it. Give me an axle & a chance, and I could bend a D60, D70, D80, or 10.25".

 

Yea, given enough force. But, its an obvious weakness, having the joint right in the middle. Doesn't really matter how big the tube is. Either put a brace there to take the strain off the joint, or put the load from the truck more on top of the wheels. But the way its set up, theres alot of torque on the joint in the middle.

 

well if anyone can figure out a way to make a solid axle with the diff centered, i think you'd be a hero. Unfourtently most likely that would mean off centering the engine and tranny, and that seems like way too much work. So, yes, i would agree that a truss piece would have been a good idea from the factory for any of us that use our trucks, but for the 95% of dana 44's that came off the assembly line, they were more than strong enough with out one, and for the other 5% of us, we probably should have dana 60's or larger. anyhow, good luck with getting that straight again.

Ryan