3.25 9" Center Section
 

Hello, anyone have a Ford 9" Center Section with a 3.25 gear ratio they would consider selling?

Posi preferred but does not have to be

Thanks, Dave

Junk yards here have plenty of em - though more commonly the trucks (57-72) had 3.50... I took my 3.00 off a 72 F100, and passed over a 3.25 from a '67 (brakes were 1/2 robbed) - I took the whole beam. If you want posi/lsd and go to the yard then look at the cars (didn't find a single truck with a posi/lsd, but understand the stang, falcon, and other cars were more common to have the lockers.

Thanks for the tip, junkyards here want $300 for an open center any gear ratio. Posi centers they ask $400 for. I have a guy that said he would take a center section I have now that is non posi and put 3.25 gears in it and convert it to a posi. He said new bearings, seals, clutches, spider gears, and install kit, and basically every other part would be replaced and new. Cost is $550 if I supply a donor center section. If I want to leave the center section non posi cost was $280 including the 3.25 gears and all new parts. Does this sound reasonable?

holy wow... location will vary, but I got my complete beam from the junk yard for $120 ($90 plus core, uncle sam, and the EPA - they charge a fluid fee now).
And they still advertise that same price:
Aurora price list

brakes, brake lines, drums, 1/2 of the front u joint, everything - the "axle beam (loaded) TRUCK" as the junkyard calls it, u bolts and everything.

As for building it up from parts, I opted for the donor whole beam cause there was no way to get it all as cheaply, just the ring & pinion and I was already more than the yard (I was searching for a ring/pinion for a Dana 41).

Since these old vehicles pull money in like a vacuum cleaner I would shop around for some other yards, maybe look at driving an hour to a better yard (course see if you can verify inventory before driving way out of your way). Oh and don't trust the tag, do the "count the turns" math to verify the tag is what it is, and block a wheel to check open v. locker.

I wish I lived that close to a yard with prices that cheap, I think I am just going to have that guy rebuild my center and convert it to a posi. for $550 I will have everything new and not need to ever worry about it

FWIW: Out here, $550 for a limited slip rebuild is a fantastic bargain. Currie and others are over $1000. I paid $450 for an open in 1992. $300 and $400 from the scrappy is a good price too. The $125 price is from the late '60s/early '70s on the west coast.

ymmv.

I was hoping to find a good used one for a reasonable price but my reasonable price and someone elses reasonable price arent the same. I had a guy that wanted $400 for a used posi no guarantee on condition. Maybe thats an ok deal but for $550 I will just go all new

And the wow thing is, if I wanted to really really scrounge at that company they have a sister yard that your admission ($2 daily) gets you into both - and they didn't look at the axle more than just from behind the register. If I had taken the time to scrounge out a locker from a car I could have had a locking for that same price).

There are some drawbacks - it's fully EPA regulated, so they drain every fluid... and guess how, large mechanical punch. They don't unscrew anything, punch a hole in the gas tank, punch a hole in the oil pan, etc. So while some parts are great some are nonexistent cause all the incoming stock was ruined by their practices.

[edit] I consider putting a locker in my "new" 9" and prices I have seen tell me that $500 is a very good deal... new parts alone are $525 retail.

Have you tried Ebay?

Yeah, prices range from 500-1000 plus shipping