D35 to 8.25 axle swap

[neverstuck]

Pulled out the wimpy d35 yesterday,cut off the perches and shock mount from 8.25, got some new u-bolts, I'm goin to be welding perches onto the 8.25 today. Any suggestions how to get the pinion angle correct? anything else to look out for?

 

Thanks in advance

[Blue XJ]

Measure what the old axles pinion angle was and set the new one the same. General rule of thumb is the angle between the driveshaft and tcase output should be the same as the angle between the driveshaft and rear pinion. If you have an SYE installed, the rear pinion should be about 2 degrees low.

[neverstuck]

Thanks man. Just welded it and its wrong. I'm more than 2 degrees low without a sye. i can tell it aint where it needs to be kinda because i know where it doesnt need to be now that its wrong. The wheel(brake) cylinders need to be pretty much straight up and down if the perches are welded right. i currently have mine facing towards the front of the truck. :grrrr: . It is not too bad but not where they need to be I'm assuming. I have the perches perfect distance wise but pinion angle wise its no good. :(

[neverstuck]

Just found some spare shims in my basement and they are getting the call

[johnnyc]

Yeah, you have to set the axle up under the truck with the weight on the axle. Rotate the pinion with a floor jack and tack weld the perches onto the tubes. Remove the axle and finish the welding.

 

My first attempt at guesstimating was also off. Had to do it all over again...the right way.

[kro10000]

Personally I set up the axle on jack stands, set the pinion exactly horizontal then measured the angle and distance of the perches. Of course this made more sense to me as I had to take the axle to get the perches welded on. I didnt want to set up the axle, measure the pinion, pull it all out to get welded, and then reinstall.

 

But also this could make it easier to make sure everything is done properly, I just measured 3 or 4 times before I did anything

[Geonovast]

Get an angle finder.

[neverstuck]

The problem was, the truck was in my yard, and the rear had to be taken across the street to my neighbors who had the welder. Atleast i know how I'm goin to do it next time, the shims made it work out ok. I'm not 100 percent happy but it will be ok. Keep on truckin :). And the whole deal only cost me twenty bucks for the u-bolts so not too bad.