Aluminum Vs Steel Driveshafts

[tpodwdog]

Originally Posted by tpodwdog
with the horse power of a 440...do ya REALLY think 20 pounds makes that much of a difference? with the juice my 440 has...i would not trust anything but steel.



When you lose half the weight of the shaft Stl vs AL you can expect .007 to .010 of time loss in acceleration, and you'll gain rpm and mileage.

Stl to AL is 99.9% always at the least half, in some cases it is even more weight loss depending.
If you have a 20 lb shaft in stl it'll be 10 lbs in AL which is a lot of weight loss in the driveline and pounds lost in the driveline are equivalent to 10's lost carrying, so losing 10 lbs is like losing 200 lbs carrying.

I don't use anything but AL in my performance stuff, and trucks are far heavier than your car and making more tq than you, and i have many race boats on AL which are far more abusive than cars and trucks.
I have AL shafts in heavy 3700 lb cars doing in 8.0s and cars in the 1.1teen 60's and even adrl pro cars in the .9 area.
AL is not weak.

CF shafts are as light and in some cases a little lighter than AL, but CF unlike Stl and AL have no flex at all within the tube, and if they break and they are designed right they will kinda rag and splinter, if they are built for far more than they need to and break by having something contact them they can keep there form.

thats all well fine and good if i was racing any of my cars, but i dont do that. i can fully understand the weight thing and how its important to those that do race. i did that years ago and got my YA-YA's out back then....now i just drive them and terrorize Camaros (vomit). thats WAY more fun than racing was!:headbang:

 

[Supershafts]

on reflection, I really cannot remember. I know the yokes were aluminum. I just don't remember there being an alumium shaft there at all.....approachin 30 years ago so I really do not remember.

Yeah they are .065 wall AL 4" tube thruout and just have the CFF wrapped around and bonded at 8" from the welds at the end.

I have to remove all the CFF when guys use them for there cars.

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thats all well fine and good if i was racing any of my cars, but i dont do that. i can fully understand the weight thing and how its important to those that do race. i did that years ago and got my YA-YA's out back then....now i just drive them and terrorize Camaros (vomit). thats WAY more fun than racing was![/COLOR]:headbang:

OK you only read what you wanted to see to justify your comparison.

When you lose half the weight of the shaft Stl vs AL you can expect .007 to .010 of time loss in acceleration, and you'll gain rpm and mileage.

No matter how you want to compare it, whether it's racing or mileage the lighter shaft always wins.

I put AL shafts in my shop truck and then further lightened that and increased the mileage simply lightening the driveline in one area, and picked up better acceleration.
. There is no downside to losing weight in your driveline.
.

 

[tpodwdog]

LMAO.... my 440 gets 4.5 miles per gallon......ill let you take it from there... thank you!

 

[Cranky]

No matter how you want to compare it, whether it's racing or mileage the lighter shaft always wins.
There is no downside to losing weight in your driveline.

True dat!

 

[Supershafts]

LMAO.... my 440 gets 4.5 miles per gallon......ill let you take it from there... thank you!

Well if you get a lighter shaft you may very well see 5.5 mpg, you need to fix that though 4.5 mpg is horrible

 

[tpodwdog]

Well if you get a lighter shaft you may very well see 5.5 mpg, you need to fix that though 4.5 mpg is horrible

LMAO...thanx but im NOT buying a driveshaft.....gotta commend ya for tryin tho !

 

[Supershafts]

Im not trying to sell you one, but as the post is asking just keep in mind if you come across one it won't hurt

 

[Jeff_383]

"LMAO.... my 440 gets 4.5 miles per gallon......ill let you take it from there... thank you!"


If your 440 only gets 4.5 mpg, there's alot more you need than a lighter driveshaft then.

 

[68 HEMI GTS]

That sounds a lot better than $500 or so for one from Denny's Driveshafts. I've got a junkyard a few miles down the road so it's worth a shot to me. Thanks for the info!

In one of my old High Performance Mopar magazines their test mule car is very close to mine, only it's a '67 Dodge B Body. They did a back to back strip test and found that the aluminum driveshaft was worth a 1/10 in the quarter. Every little bit helps. If I can get another tenth off for around another $100 and a little bit of my time, I'll do it.

i remember that article. i went from a steel drive shaft to an aluminum in my dart with the automatic. absolutely no noticeable difference in ET. its been 10.34 with both. figured at the time it was worth exploring.

 

[RustyRatRod]

Im not trying to sell you one, but as the post is asking just keep in mind if you come across one it won't hurt

Just outta curiousity, what would a drive shaft run approx for my car? 65 Coronet 2 dr hardtop, 383, 727 and 8 3/4. Thank you drive through.

 

[Supershafts]

Stock or ??? hp, length, redline rpm, trans, cars weight are the most important factors to know, then mostly cruising and some drag here and there or mostly drag or road racing.
Say you are in the 800hp area 50/50 street/drag they'll run around 350 to 450 depending on location.
Here in NY a AL shaft to put up with 800hp to 1200hp if the length doesn't exceed 62" which will keep it from going to 4" and can remain at 3.5" joint to joint would run around 375/395 dependent on joint series, if it needed a slip yoke than that additional 65 to 140 or more depending which slip or stlye.
Your local shop may be right in there or a bit cheaper, i have seen some places beyond that i guess it depends on area and what and who they're using for the shaft parts and shipping. If you see AL in 3.5" cheaper than 320 be weary it could be china stuff, and always ask no matter who you deal with to leave the china on the shelf. ( even if god is making your shaft, ask him is this china copies or genuine)

 

[RustyRatRod]

We don't have a shop around here that knows their *** from a hole in the ground on drive shafts. Atlanta is closest and I would trust you before goin up there to that hell hole. 800 HP? From a 383? lol Anyway, if mine gets helf that, I'll be happy. I suspect it will be 425 or so. I DO have plans for maybe a 451 later on down the road, but it'll never see 800 HP. Mostly street maybe strip three or four times a year. And whatever a stock Coronet weight. 3500? Maybe a tad less?

 

[Photon440]

Aluminum also has a reduced shock loading effect on the drive train. the slight flex in it can dampen some of the jolts. I have some some fully twisted tho. So I guess that I'd be looking at a custom one from a drive shaft maker with a warranty on the power it can take.

Carbon Fibre is really strong, but becomes brittle and will shatter when you hit the point of no return. Can't say whether thats earlier or later then a steel / ali shaft failing, but it is something to keep in mind.

You're right, Carbon Fibre shafts are strong. Dan Gurney used them for racing 25 years ago. Manufacturers claim they last more than three times longer than aluminum under heavy duty use. And yes, they may break, but unlike a steel or aluminum shaft that leaves a hunk of metal pounding your chassis or dropping down for you to pole vault with, the CF shafts disintegrate into a ball of fluff after you exceed their failure point.

I'd be interested in finding out about the police shafts as well...

-=Photon440=-

 

[moparstuart]

View attachment 101743View attachment 101744View attachment 101745View attachment 101746View attachment 101747View attachment 101748View attachment 101743View attachment 101744View attachment 101745View attachment 101746View attachment 101747View attachment 101748i just got mine in

its set up for the viper six speed 30 spline yoke

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View attachment 101743View attachment 101744View attachment 101745View attachment 101746View attachment 101747View attachment 101748View attachment 101743View attachment 101744View attachment 101745View attachment 101746View attachment 101747View attachment 101748i just got mine in

its set up for the viper six speed 30 spline yoke

 

[RustyRatRod]

Will you stop showin your shaft off? ewwww

 

[Supershafts]

lmfao , i've never seen a shaft posed in cardboard before, usually people just just lay it out

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You're right, Carbon Fibre shafts are strong. Dan Gurney used them for racing 25 years ago. Manufacturers claim they last more than three times longer than aluminum under heavy duty use. And yes, they may break, but unlike a steel or aluminum shaft that leaves a hunk of metal pounding your chassis or dropping down for you to pole vault with, the CF shafts disintegrate into a ball of fluff after you exceed their failure point.

I'd be interested in finding out about the police shafts as well...

-=Photon440=-

The cf shafts don't always disintegrate.

The only time a shaft will break and pound your car or cut thru your car and kill you or break everything on one side of your body is if it wasn't spec'd correctly and or you ignore any slight warnings you get before a joint fails.
Or if you have to much angle and let it ride that way.
In all my years the worst i have ever seen as for a shaft pole vaulting is a shaft push the pinion into the carrier, never seen a car/truck pole vault they all usually wind up folding in on themselves

 

[moparstuart]

left the card board on it to keep the u joint caps in it till got it home installing it this weekend

 

[Malicious]

Ya know, I'd have a VERY hard time keeping myself from polishing that driveshaft! haha 8)

 

[70Gtx]

Moparstuart, Where did you purchase your Shaft? I like it! Will you be Polishing Your Shaft after each outing on the road?