upside down axle??

Status
Not open for further replies.
It might do a cool 4 wheel burnout right before it rips the rig in half!
 
Last edited:
IslanderXJ said:
It might do a cool 4 wheel burnout right before it rips thhe rig in half!
A sure winner at the burnout contest! Might win some real cash.
 
The joke is funny......it is a joke, BTW......but it's sort of crazy that some still don't understand that you can't just flip an axle over and make it high pinion. If all you do is flip the axle over, now the pinion gear is on the other side of the ring gear. Since the driveshaft, and the pinion gear, will still spin in the same direction, now with the pinion gear on the opposite side of the ring gear the same rotation of the pinion will spin the ring gear backwards. So, to make a high pinion work, with the axle spinning in the same direction, the pinion needs to be on the same side of the ring gear, just above the center line of the ring gear rather than below it. And, provisions need to be made inside the housing so the pinion gets oiled properly. In a low pinion diff the pinion bearings sit in the oil, in a high pinion diff the oil needs to get slung up to the bearings in enough quantity to keep the bearings oiled and cooled.

Sometimes high pinion gears are called reverse rotation (even by the experts at the 4x4 mags :)) but this isn't totally true, since the axle turns the same direction as in a low pinion. The gears are called reverse cut, and here's why. High pinion diffs are designed by the manufacturer (Ford, basically) to run in a front axle. Basically, a front axle must rotate in the opposite direction relative to a rear axle, so that the tires actually turn the same direction as the rears. To make the diffs stronger, the pinion is put on the top and the gears are cut to run on the strong side when turning the opposite direction, so both the front and rear axle gears are running on the strong side. There's no other reason for the front diffs to be high pinion. We tend to think that the gears are cut to be able to run high pinion, but really the high pinion is used to be able to run reverse cut gears.

WTF, thought I'd throw that out there since we're on the subject. :)
 
So.. theoretically you could take Low pinion waggy axles, swap the front and rear housings, flip them, figure out a solution to oiling (biggest problem from my perspective), and have "brand-new" High pinion waggy axles?
 
IslanderXJ said:
So.. theoretically you could take Low pinion waggy axles, swap the front and rear housings, flip them, figure out a solution to oiling (biggest problem from my perspective), and have "brand-new" High pinion waggy axles?

No.

Think about it some more... you have many more problems than just oiling issues.
 
IslanderXJ said:
So.. theoretically you could take Low pinion waggy axles, swap the front and rear housings, flip them, figure out a solution to oiling (biggest problem from my perspective), and have "brand-new" High pinion waggy axles?

Sure........if you want to have one forward speed and four reverse speeds.

:)
 
Cause if you JUST flip them over they are rotating the wrong way, right?
And if you JUST swap the front and rear housings, gears and all, they are rotating the wrong way, right?
If you do both of the above it equates, if the above is correct, to a double reversal, right?
What am I missing?

EDIT: When I said housing, I just ment the diff housing, not the axle tubes and all the junk welded to the ends of them.
The steering would stay in the front, I'm not that retarded.

RE-EDIT: Mind you, I'm sitting in my living room with a pencil and paper, my Xj is very far away, it would be easier to just go look.
 
Last edited:
IslanderXJ said:
And if you JUST swap the front and rear housings, gears and all, they are rotating the wrong way, right?

Nope. Many people run a rear axle diff in the front or a front axle diff in the rear without problems... because they're not flipping them too. Call Currie or Danatrac and order a center section and see if they ask you if it's for the front or rear :D
Billy
 
Ah see.. I am that retarded. At least I didn't actually do it, lol.
 
IslanderXJ said:
Cause if you JUST flip them over they are rotating the wrong way, right?
And if you JUST swap the front and rear housings, gears and all, they are rotating the wrong way, right?
If you do both of the above it equates, if the above is correct, to a double reversal, right?
What am I missing?

EDIT: When I said housing, I just ment the diff housing, not the axle tubes and all the junk welded to the ends of them.
The steering would stay in the front, I'm not that retarded.

RE-EDIT: Mind you, I'm sitting in my living room with a pencil and paper, my Xj is very far away, it would be easier to just go look.

A low pinion housing is a low pinion housing no matter if is a front axle application, or a rear axle application - the pinion is on the same side of the ring gear. If you put the rear in the front and the front in the rear, the pinion is still on the same side in relation to the ring gear. Now, flip them over and both pinion gears are on the opposite side of where they are normally in relation to the ring gear.

The driveshafts spin in opposite directions out of the t-case so that a low pinion front and a low pinion rear are able to work together in allowing a vehicle to go foward.
 
I figuered it out just before Jeepfreak pointed out the retardedness, heres how/why:
iMDUMB.jpg
 
Capt. Nemo said:
A low pinion housing is a low pinion housing no matter if is a front axle application, or a rear axle application - the pinion is on the same side of the ring gear.
Thats what I wasn't sure about, seeing as I have never really looked in the diff housing, so assumed they were the same, and proved to my dumb self that: "Yes, I am still retarded"
 
IslanderXJ said:
Thats what I wasn't sure about, seeing as I have never really looked in the diff housing, so assumed they were the same, and proved to my dumb self that: "Yes, I am still retarded"


Nah, you'd be retarted if you didn't ask and try to figure it out so you understand. :)
 
IslanderXJ said:
Thats what I wasn't sure about, seeing as I have never really looked in the diff housing, so assumed they were the same, and proved to my dumb self that: "Yes, I am still retarded"

You're not retarded. I went outside and looked under my rig before I posted my comment just to make sure I was correct (my axles are both high pinion, pinions are on the same side). :)
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top