8.75" sure grip, axles, bearings, questions

[dpstark2]

Here are the main questions:

1. Are 66-67 8.75" housings in fact narrower than 68-70?
2. Do sure grip and non-sure grip OE axles interchange? Are they different lengths?
3. Green bearings: yay or nay? Which ones?
4. Do the thrust buttons need to be removed to convert to green bearings?

Background:

I got a 742 case 3.23 sure grip third member that came out of a working 70 Charger to replace the open one in my 67 Charger. I did the swap, and five miles later there was a ton of noise coming from the rear. After rechecking stuff, there was a lot of play in the driver's side axle. Eventually, I found that the thrust button deal in the middle was basically stuck. A good whack with a dowel and hammer freed it. I had to turn the adjuster _way_ farther in to set end play. It still makes noise- it seems the axle bearings got hosed in the process.

So I needed to change axle bearings. I grabbed the axles from the 70 Charger housing, slapped on some MP sealed bearings from Summit, and those suckers won't fit. They're about 1/4" too long. Hence- the questions above. My car has been so molested over the years that I have to wonder if I have some wacky rear end going on to begin with.

Any info is appreciated.

 

[Powerflite]

1. Yes, by a small amount, like 1/2" total but I can't remember. The '65 rear is even shorter.
2. Yes, No
3. Nay - my opinion. I like the originals.
4. Yes.

I would replace the bearing on the original axle. A word of caution though. Most shops will cut the old bearing off and really gouge up your axle. Take it to a shop that will press them off instead.

 

[Kern Dog]

The 742 case was phased out in midyear 1969. That 70 Charger housing had the 3rd member from an earlier year.
Thrust buttons? I have them in every 3rd member I have. I also have NON adjustable bearings in my 70 Charger and my bro-in-laws 72 Duster with a '68 Coronet axle. "Green " is a brand name, not a type of bearing.
I'm into cornering, so I'm thinking of swapping back to Timken tapered bearings. I had to replace my first set of the the non adjustable bearings after less than 3000 miles. They really aren't designed to take side loads like a tapered bearing can. I'm currently running Mopar Performance bearings and they have 1300 miles on them so far. I'll probably ride them out until they show signs of failure.

 

[1moreproject]

I don’t know the history on how the green (ball) bearing thing came about but it's never made sense to me. For an axle shaft, a tapered roller bearing beats a ball bearing in every respect.

 

[Cranky]

Yes, the 66-67 rears are a bit shorter like PowerFlite said. I've measured many and they are always a tad shorter.

The axles from a SureGrip vs a non SG are a bit different according to the manuals but I've never measured them but the manuals do state that the adjuster has enough adjustment to handle them.

Ball bearings have been used in rearends for a long time in other makes but the tapered roller is a better bearing. The Greens came about as a drag race deal because because ball bearings take a bit less horse power to turn. The Green bearings have become to be associated with a ball bearing set up.

 

[1moreproject]

The Greens came about as a drag race deal because because ball bearings take a bit less horse power to turn.

Possibly a nano-bit less!

 

[dpstark2]

Thanks for all the information. This is very helpful. I'm hoping to get the bearings swapped tomorrow and see how things stand at that point.

 

[Meep-Meep]

Because the 66 / 67 housing is slightly shorter than the 68-70 housing the 70 axles won't fit.

I think the Green bearing was an answer to simplifying the installation process and providing a less costly solution in terms of manufacturing. Fords use a sealed ball bearing in the 8" and 9" rear ends and they seem to work, but I will agree there's nothing like the load carrying ability of a tapered roller bearing. The OEM MoPar stuff (set 7) is the best solution. Another thing to note is the factory style adjuster hardware kit with the foam and steel gaskets has been discontinued for over 10 yrs and the only option, if your original plates are bad, is going to the green bearing. The Greens have superseded all the old factory stuff.

As far as HAVING to remove the thrust buttons in a power lock style SG unit because you choose to run the Green bearing may be false. It just doesn't make sense from a serviceability standpoint having to remove the third member to remove the buttons just because you have to replace a bad axle bearing.

I'm running Green bearings in my 69 GTS with a power lock SG but I can't remember for sure if it has the buttons. And the only reason I went with the greens is because that's what was on the car when I got it, hence no adjuster hardware. I did cut apart the failed Green bearing and found it has a plastic ball retainer. This could be true on the Ford bearings as well but I'd feel a bit better with at least a steel ribbon style retainer.

Removing old axle bearings requires a blend of brute force and proper technique to not damage the puller fixture, adjuster plates (if equipped) or the axle.

 

[Cranky]

Possibly a nano-bit less!

It's more than a nano-bit....and if you don't believe me, read this and if you don't believe that, do some research. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ball_bearing

Because the 66 / 67 housing is slightly shorter than the 68-70 housing the 70 axles won't fit.

I think the Green bearing was an answer to simplifying the installation process and providing a less costly solution in terms of manufacturing. Fords use a sealed ball bearing in the 8" and 9" rear ends and they seem to work, but I will agree there's nothing like the load carrying ability of a tapered roller bearing. The OEM MoPar stuff (set 7) is the best solution. Another thing to note is the factory style adjuster hardware kit with the foam and steel gaskets has been discontinued for over 10 yrs and the only option, if your original plates are bad, is going to the green bearing. The Greens have superseded all the old factory stuff.

As far as HAVING to remove the thrust buttons in a power lock style SG unit because you choose to run the Green bearing may be false. It just doesn't make sense from a serviceability standpoint having to remove the third member to remove the buttons just because you have to replace a bad axle bearing.

I'm running Green bearings in my 69 GTS with a power lock SG but I can't remember for sure if it has the buttons. And the only reason I went with the greens is because that's what was on the car when I got it, hence no adjuster hardware. I did cut apart the failed Green bearing and found it has a plastic ball retainer. This could be true on the Ford bearings as well but I'd feel a bit better with at least a steel ribbon style retainer.

Removing old axle bearings requires a blend of brute force and proper technique to not damage the puller fixture, adjuster plates (if equipped) or the axle.

I remember when the Greens showed up on the playing field and were advertised as another way to reduce the horse power draw on the drive line and the -7 sets were still readily available at the time. And I've seen ball bearings fail no matter what cage they used from brass to plastic.