|
|
|
|
| Author |
Messages |
|
sammy 87
Street Queen
Posts:107
 |
| 09/04/2008 12:41 AM |
|
| hey webby you are the only guy i kno that has dealt with fj40's and their axles. these axles are perfect for my ZUK because of the off set rear axle. can you tell me the strength of them are they as strong as toy mini truck axles? i think my axles are the exact same only mini because they are smaurai axles. im sure i wouldnt break the fj40s due to i only have 60 or 70 hp stock and if i upgrade to a newer zuk motor it will be 80-85hp and probly max running 33inch tires. can you tell if the steering might be the same if you kno anything about zuk steering? i kno il need drive shaft adapters and probly have to relocate the spring perches to line up to the sammy leaves. btw these are 1980 fj40 axles with disk breaks |
|
|
|
|
webby4x4
Forum Admin, Magazine Editor
Rock Star
Posts:2351
|
| 09/04/2008 9:26 PM |
|
Hey Sammy - The rear axle on the FJ is incredibly strong, but the Achilles heel for the FJ40's was the front axle's birfield joint. There are a whole slew of companies that make upgraded (Marfield, etc.) birfield joints that are nearly indestructible though, for not a lot of money.
The steering on the FJ40's was a complex, multi-link, crank-bell system that had about eleventy bazillion pivot points to it, which is why so many people upgrade to the Saginaw system. The steering on the front axle comes in from behind the axle itself, as the steering box actually sat on the outside of the frame rail (driver's side), way back behind the tire, which in turn pushed a rod forward, into a bell-crank and... welll, it's kind of hard to explain. :)
If you're going to swap axles though, unless you just happen to have a set of FJ40 axles laying around, I would probably look at something different up front. The Birfield joints are a closed-knuckle design that are seals with felt (yeah, felt) gaskets, and they leak like a siv. Plus, if you ever break a birfield, you'll be wrenching on it for at least 2 hours (in comparison, a 20 minute fix for a u-joint at the knuckle).
Hope that helps!
Rick |
|
Rick Webster
Editor, 4X4REVIEW.COM - A Tork Media, Inc. Publication
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
'74 FJ40 Land Cruiser
"Measure once, cut twice" |
|
|
sammy 87
Street Queen
Posts:107
|
| 09/05/2008 12:39 AM |
|
| yea i already have the closed knucle on the sammy with bifs and felt seals. i figured the front of a 40 is a hell of alot stronger than than a sammys birf. is the 40 rear axle shroter than like an 83 or 85 mini truck axle? i could use mini truck axles but the mini truck rear diff is centered unlike the sammis which is off set to the pass side like fj40's. and i wouldnt like to think my drive shaft is at an angle going to a mini truck centered axle. |
|
|
|
|
sammy 87
Street Queen
Posts:107
|
| 09/05/2008 4:23 PM |
|
| any ways rick i got a call today. danny and i went and seen the axles. these axles already have the tie rod in front of the diff instead of the stock position of being in the rear by the 3rd member.. |
|
|
|
|
webby4x4
Forum Admin, Magazine Editor
Rock Star
Posts:2351
|
| 09/06/2008 11:30 AM |
|
Then you're all set. Overall, the FJ40 axles are pretty stout units (likely stronger than the Sammy's axles, but I don't know the numbers off of the top of my head). The only other down-side to think about (aside from the fab work you're in for, which may actually be fun for you), is that the price of parts for the FJ axles are going to be higher than the Sammy's axles. So a complete gasket kit for the front axle of the FJ ran me about $200, 8 years ago - I assume that they've gone up since then.
You shouldn't be sorry though, they're pretty tough axles, and the upside is that you can get some really strong, cool parts for the front axle too.
Rick |
|
Rick Webster
Editor, 4X4REVIEW.COM - A Tork Media, Inc. Publication
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
'74 FJ40 Land Cruiser
"Measure once, cut twice" |
|
|
|
| Please login or register to post a message or a reply. |
|
|
|
ActiveForums 3.7
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|