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Narrowing a rear with home made fixture

25K views 30 replies 20 participants last post by  fairlaniac 
#1 ·
Hey guys,

Just wondering if anybody here is using a home made narrowing fixture to narrow rear ends, where they got the stuff from, and how exactly you guys are doing it. Im going to be narrowing my Dana 60 quite soon and I already have the tube, but need to figure out where im going to get/ make pucks from and just a small guide on some do's and dont's when narrowing. Pictures are a bonus!:cool:
 
#2 ·
One of the biggest things is make sure you weld the bearing/housing ends on last. The tube will more than likely not be straight/square once you're done welding. What matters is that the bearing/housing end is square to the spool, locker, posi. I have done quite a few 9" rear ends, but never a Dana 60. I know there are plans out on the net for making your own jig. Some are real simple to make.
 
#4 ·
so are you saying that I should trial fit the diff and axles first and then??? sorry, im a newb and am slightly confused...What would be the order of things after measuring and then cutting the housing...what would i do before welding the ends on for good?
 
#10 ·
your right you should do it yourself. im 20 years old and just put a full 10 point roll cage in my corvette cost me 300 with everything. everyone said take it to a shop and spend 1500. yeaa ok took 3 weekends but its done and looks awesome. now im putting a straight axle leaf springs and caltracs in it. and you can say you did it. the guys that need everything done by professionals are usually the guys that dont even know what components they have in the engine. they know how to let go of the button and pull the shifter. there was a thread on her acouple of days ago where a guy explained how he did it to make sure the ends were square. if you scroll back acouple pages you could probally find it. goodluck and have fun
 
#13 ·
I was just running this through my head, does anyone think this would work, use the original axles with the outer bearing in place, cut the axles to the desired width and either use a couple straight edges with clamps, or fab some inner only pucks to hold everything straight inside the pumpkin? 1 foot of tubing with the correct inner diameter cut length-wise half and clamp it to the cut axles? Not sure, but it sounds like it would keep everything straight??
 
#14 ·
Even with a professional jig the tubes are going to move around when you weld them. I have a jig for 9" rear ends and by the time you are done welding and remove the jig the tubes are not perfectly straight and a back brace and the tubes move even more. This is why you weld on the ends last and square them up. Very hard to explain in writing. If you look at narrowed read ends you will see that many times there is a slight offset at the ensd of the axle tubes, where the ends are welded on.

To the OP keep your positive "I can do it" attitude and it will take you a long ways and save you a lot of money. Don't be afraid to make a mistake. You don't learn anything by handing money to people to do your work. This is what hot rodding is supposed to be about. I'll PM you a link to pictures of what I mean by putting the housing ends on last.
 
#15 ·
This is not a fixture you can make in the garage out of spare parts. If you build a fixture you will need to buy material for at least 3 pucks and a perfectly straight center shaft. Then you will have to pay a machinist to fabricate them unless you have access to this equipment. You will spend more at the machine shop for 2hrs. of labor than it will cost to have it done by someone experienced in doing it. I built the jig I use almost 20 yrs ago and have probably narrowed 100 rears with it. If I were only going to narrow only one, I would pay someone else. Not sure of other's prices, but I charge $100 to narrow. That includes having the rear vatted. Not that expensive.
As stated before, weld the ends on last after all brackets and braces are welded. As you weld the ends on you have to continuously check which way the ends are moving and move your weld to pull the ends back into alignment. Good luck with what ever you decide to do............Toni
 
#17 ·
This is not a fixture you can make in the garage out of spare parts. If you build a fixture you will need to buy material for at least 3 pucks and a perfectly straight center shaft. Then you will have to pay a machinist to fabricate them unless you have access to this equipment. You will spend more at the machine shop for 2hrs. of labor than it will cost to have it done by someone experienced in doing it. I built the jig I use almost 20 yrs ago and have probably narrowed 100 rears with it. If I were only going to narrow only one, I would pay someone else. Not sure of other's prices, but I charge $100 to narrow. That includes having the rear vatted. Not that expensive.
As stated before, weld the ends on last after all brackets and braces are welded. As you weld the ends on you have to continuously check which way the ends are moving and move your weld to pull the ends back into alignment. Good luck with what ever you decide to do............Toni
its not going to be made from spare parts lol...I already have the long straight shaft, just need to find the material for the pucks...I have access to the machines to machine them

The jig is not going to just be for me, but also for my dad, brother, and anyone else who wants their diff narrowed...time for me doesnt cost me a penny, and if i get to learn something in the process, im more than happy...atleast if i screw it up i can blame myself lol , but i know that aint going to happen

thanks for the kind words and insight though, I appreciate it!
 
#18 ·
I had my pucks made at a machine shop, i might have $100 in them. I have done 2-8 3/4'' Chryslers, a Dana 60 and my latest was a 9'' Ford which i had to have new pucks made for.So i think my jig paid for itself in my case. Its not that hard , just make sure you weld all your brackets and braces first, the rest is cake !!! The ends will usually be a little offset if you have done a lot of welding on it. I say, Go for it !! Good Luck
 
#20 ·
Hey sorry to bring up an old thread, but there is a lot of good info in here.

I'm building a narrowed 9" Once all welded up, my alignment bar spins freely installed through all fixtures. Installing or taking out the fixtures on the ends though while the rod is still installed they move a little. They push back in pretty easy, but you can tell they are slightly off. My question is, how much is too much misalignment? Am I going to have problems are nah? Didn't know if it all had to be dead nuts or if just a tad of misalignment is OK.

Thanks
 
#21 ·
Depending on the rigidity of your welding fixture, you can use chains and a bottle jack to tweak in the housing to perfection. Just take your time.
Its easiest to do on a large hydraulic press but not everyone has access to those.

I will be using a 4" x 14" x 1/2" thick piece of channel iron that was Blanchard ground flat on the back and has a key slot milled the whole length. Its solid.
The expense will be in v-blocks, pucks, and the straight bar. I have plans of using a 1-1/4" ACME threaded rod which are relatively inexpensive for new ones
and are very straight. I have the channel thats been ground and machined and the ACME nuts already. I have access to the equipment, just dont have access to that much time. lol
I will get it done sooner or later.
 
#23 ·
I made my fixture:
1.5" TGP steel bar, then made the pucks in my lathe.

If you don't have access to a lathe, I can't see how you'd make it.

To straighten, I use an Ibeam, 10 ton jack, some heavy chains, and a little heat.
 
#28 ·
I bought my 1.25 cold rolled bar at 60" from the local metal yard. It was a drop and cost me $18.
 
#29 ·
I just did my first narrowed rear yesterday. I have a jig, (bar & 4 pucks and end locks). I welded it up, sat for about 30 minutes, spun my jig bar and pulled everything apart. Today I went to stick the bar back in just to check and it's not lining up. At 33" total length I don't have much length to play with for straightening. Any ideas?
 
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