1964 Dodge 440

[91r/t]

Nothing like bench pressing an 8 3/4 complete axle above your head haha!

 

[dadsbee]

Parts lined up for the blasting cabinet.

Let's gett'r done.

Axle housing thrown up into place.

Shock mount / spring retainers blasted.

Dipping was good enough for the factory, works for me as well.

Paint draining off.

Original rear axle snubber cleaned up and reinstalled. Snubber plate coated in Boeshield T9

 

[dadsbee]

Brake backing plates media blasted and painted with high heat BBQ paint. Goes on glossy

Dries flatter than flat.

Simulates the original grayish/black finish they were coated with quite well.

 

[Aron Gleason]

Looking good.

 

[dadsbee]

Going together..

New double lip axle seals going into the housing

The 2" socket from my 3/4" drive set works perfect for this.

Premeasured for cavity depth, less the seal thickness.

Don't even have to touch the fluid. The bottle is enough and your Wife won't go near you for 3 days!

Easiest way to put it in the housing and make 1800 square feet inhospitable from the stink!

I am getting old. Damn near killed me lifting this up into place. Yes I remembered the gasket and it got aviation gasket sealer all around.. I hate leaks and don't plan to take it apart again! 10 new nuts.

All 10 nuts torqued to FSM spec.

Before I forgot... pinion nut to 240 foot pounds!

Metal seal between housing and brake backing plate.

 

[dadsbee]

Backing plates into place.

Foam seals on next and then the axle assemblies put into place.

Time for some nuts.

Easiest way to turn the passenger side axle adjuster. Big channel locks.

Axle retainer nuts torqued to 45 foot pounds on both sides.

Break out the dial indicator to set the axle free play.

FSM is 0.008 to 0.018" play. I like shooting for 12 thou.

Roll the axles, brass hammer the axles back and forth a few times. Set for zero on the drivers side.

Pull them in and out and repeat about a dozen times, while turning the adjuster on the passenger side, until it settles in.. A hair over 12 thou. Good to go.

 

[Islandkent]

Better pictures than the FSM
Thanks Wayne!

 

[Dave6T4]

A bunch of years ago, a neighbour of mine came over to get some advice from me regarding the rear end in his 1966 Chevy Nova. Sometime in its life the original GM rear axle had been swapped out for an 8 3/4 out of likely a 340 Dart. He had had his car up on a hoist for some exhaust work, and he noticed some looseness on his rear wheel/axle.
We popped his rear wheel and drum off, and I noticed there was no lock on his bearing adjuster. The adjuster was waaay loose and I could move the axle up and down. I went home and got my indicator and an adjuster lock, and set the axle drift up for him, and locked it down. He had never heard of such a thing. I explained that this was because Chrysler used far superior Timken tapered roller bearings on the rear axle, rather than the cheap ball bearings that GM used. Chevy boys should NEVER play with Mopar stuff!

 

[qkcuda]

Back when we were young and foolish I had a 66 Barracuda 340 race car and my buddy was building a 70 Nova 350 race car. We ended up putting an A body 8 3/4 in his Nova because we had one around and they were easy to change gears on. We never used a dial indicator to set up the axle free play. We just did it by feel.

 

[dadsbee]

One rear end out.. another in..

Cleaned up brake Y fitting and a new flex line.

New wheel cylinders, brake shoe push rods and cylinder gaskets.

New wheel cylinders installed.

New brake line kit... RRA6801.

Test fit, bent to work cleanly, wiped down with Boeshield T9 and then reinstalled.

May as well bleed the lines. Up and over the exhaust and a bottle just incase.

Crack the bleeder screw, wait 2 minutes and then fluid and air coming out. Played with the wheel cylinder pistons to burb a bit more air, then it cleaned up quickly to fluid only and I closed the bleeder screw.

Same deal on the drivers side.

New Monroe shocks going on. Won't extend long enough to get them on the lower shock mounts.

 

[dadsbee]

Front of car braced, once again, so that it can't be lifted off of the hoist arms.

A small lift on the rear axle.

Axle lifted up and shock into place.

Both shocks mounted and snugged up.

Shiny new brake parts.

Parking brake levers mounted to the rear full shoes and strut rods/ anti rattle springs sorted out.

Original parking brake cables cleaned up and installed to the new backing plates.

Ready to install brake shoes and components.

 

[dadsbee]

Bit of brake grease.

Brake shoes and hardware installed, both sides.

Cleaned the manufacturing oils off the new drums inside and out and then coated them with Boeshield T9 to fend off the rust for a few years.

Ready for drums.

Drums on.

Wheels on, with a nice clean drum behind them that visually looks very similar to the disc rotors on the front.

Even remembered to fill the rear axle with gear oil! Ready for a test drive when Mother Nature allows!

 

[Fran Blacker]

Wayne the brakes are they 11" X 3" or 2.5"? They look like 3".

 

[dadsbee]

Stock 10" x 2.5.

 

[dadsbee]

Not the best of days, but she's going for a test drive.

Brake fluid checked one last time.

A few backwards stops to tighten up the rear shoes, a couple forward lock up checks and off we go.

On the home stretch in a light shower.

New rear axle runs absolutely quiet and shows no sign of excessive heat. It left a few LONG double black strips while out, using those P275's. One nice thing about a front disc, rear drum car.... and ZERO tire rub! The initial goal...

 

[Aron Gleason]

Congratulations on a trouble free outing.

 

[toolmanmike]

Not the best of days, but she's going for a test drive.
View attachment 1454492
Brake fluid checked one last time.
View attachment 1454493
A few backwards stops to tighten up the rear shoes, a couple forward lock up checks and off we go.
View attachment 1454494
On the home stretch in a light shower.
View attachment 1454496
New rear axle runs absolutely quiet and shows no sign of excessive heat. It left a few LONG double black strips while out, using those P275's. One nice thing about a front disc, rear drum car.... and ZERO tire rub! The initial goal...
View attachment 1454497

Dang that's a good lookin' 64. I hope to own one sometime before I get too old. LOL

 

[dadsbee]

It's a "20 foot" car Mike, but I rarely slow down for anyone to notice.

 

[dadsbee]

Granma wants some mounts for Grandchildren's car seats. Spent 1/2 an hour trying to pop the rear seat with every old trick in my play book.

Break out the "Seat Master 2000". Push down and jack screw at the same time and pop.

4 minutes tops, seat is out, after removing one arm rest.

Now here's something I've never seen and pulling the carpet up and examining the welds it appears to be factory.. BOTH sides!

Bastard is still just sitting there and laughing at me.

Seats out.

Figured I'm this far in. Thought the rear package tray cover was factory it was so deteriorated.

Surprise, an REM reproduction less than 5 years old.

Seat out, location marked before hand and figuring out how to add "baby seat" tabs.

One formed, 3 to go. Then some welding and trying not to burn the car down.

 

[Aron Gleason]

Coyote doesn't look like he's much help...on another note, projects are so much fun lol