Outer Limits 4x4 Board

The Centre bearing in the rear tail shaft is rattling again, and I am sick of replacing them.

I know the common option is for a one piece shaft, but are there any other ways to combat the problem? I read somewhere that you could use the centre bearing of a Ford F-Truck (150 I guess?)

Anyone with ideas?

single peice tail shaft
just pull the log take in the tail shaft and get it made longer. problem fixed

What are the disadvantages of a one piece? More stress somewhere else?

Mine is gone too.

yeh ive been through 3 of em. since changing to 1 piece shaft havent had any trouble (touch wood)

go a 1 peice shaft and get it made with the spline a the bottom end so that it almost makes up the difference in the ground clearence u will loose

You can buy just the bearing and rubber surround on their own, drill the welds out of the cage on the bearing and then you can replace just the bearing, put bolts in the holes to reassemble the cage. It might pay to check out the rest of the system as you should get a reasonable life out of the bearings, unless you have other problems in the driveline. The driveline guys say that the shafts should be balanced as a total assembly - stuff that. Do you have the transfer case in the standard position (ie no lift in the case?) this will induce excessive vibe in the front uni (they run about 6 degrees misalignment with the standard crossmember) as there is no correction in the shaft for the front uni(transfer case end). The centre bearing is there to remove the excessive vibes from the assembly, so if they are flogging out prematurely perhaps there is too much vibe.

i had a mate that replaced 2 or 3 within a few months, but he was using cheap aftermarket jobs, wen he forked out the extra 4 a genuine jobby it lasted him ages

go to the F150 centre bearing you will have to get your tail shaft modified to fit it though that was an optoin i was going for but dollars wouldnt permit it in the end

Also, it may pay to check the condition of the steel dust shields that cover the bearing itself, when the rubber flexes from the torque of drive, the steel dust cover can rub on the rubber mount, cutting into the rubber and reducing the life of the rubber isolator.

I shaved mine down, removed about 3mm off the shield, so now it won't contact the rubber on torque. (because the shaft changes angles due to the centre bearing, the shaft deflects under torque load at the centre bearing, this is usually when the shield cuts into the rubber.)

Ed I remember Baz doing his, after the 3" lift it cacked itself pretty soon after.
He replaced it with a new bearing and spaced it down a bit and has seemed to last ok.

When mine starts to rattle and vibrate I just give it another few hits with the hammer. The steel is now that dinted that the bearing can't possibly move

anyone know what it costs for a single piece tailshaft, my centre bearings gone.......dont really wanna replace it if its gonna be cheaper/better to get single piece.....

If you are basing it on price you will be able to replace two more centre bearings before you come close to the cost of a new one piece shaft. Look for other problems in your driveline that will cause the bearing to fail.

Last price for a one piece (for a shop to make it and balance it) was about 350.00 this may give you more grief though as the uni at the transfer case end may wear out quicker - or worse still, the bearing and housing in the t-case - mismatched angle to the diff uni.

Area54 wrote: this may give you more grief though as the uni at the transfer case end may wear out quicker - or worse still, the bearing and housing in the t-case - mismatched angle to the diff uni.

This is never going to happen.EVER.

The US Pickups never had a centre bearing and they have no problems.
The early hilux had no centre bearing and have non of these problems.
Some of the late model 4wd hiluxs have no centre bearing either with no problems.

I have run a single piece shaft for years and never have i had a UNI fail due to wear.

Single piece is the best way to go. You are going to keep handing over money otherwise.

To get a single piece made just take the rear half of your 2 piece shaft to a driveline shop and give them the measurement you want. Its only a re-tube job not a complete shaft. The most i have ever paid for this was $180.


There is only one advantage to running a 2 piece and that is a very slight increase in ground clearance near the diff centre.

A one piece will not cause any more vibration.

Without sounding like a tosser.........Where exactly do I measure from?
Is it just the same length as what it is now with the centre bearing or will it need to be a bit longer?

Cheers

diesel028 wrote:Without sounding like a tosser.........Where exactly do I measure from?
Is it just the same length as what it is now with the centre bearing or will it need to be a bit longer?

Cheers

At ride height measure from the centre of the transfer flange to the centre of the pinion flange. This is with the tailshaft removed. A driveline shop will work it out from there.

Cheers Ruff, will chase it up tomorow