Topic: axle truss

[hi on lux]

when welding a truss on axle housing, does it have to be fully welded, sealing the cavity? or stitch welding only?

[Burl]

Don't do a full length weld, you will end up warping the axle most likely.  Tack weld it really good on all the major corners, then stitch weld on opposite alternating sides and location to prevent overheating and warpage.  After the stitch welds have sufficently cooled you can go back through and re-stitch the unwelded portions for a fully sealed truss.  I personally left mine stitch welded.  

[OOPS]

The less welding you have to do, the better off you are. Try to weld all the spots where there are no gaps, metal to metal. Like a top-notch fabricator that I know (he also welds pipelines) told me "I have seen more Toyota housings bent from people welding parts on them to make them stronger so they will not bend" IMO all you need are the ball gussets, because that is where they bend most of the time.

[yjay]

I agree with OOPS. All the stress is outside the leaf springs. I think a top truss is in the least stressed part of the axle. I warped one myself and only did small stitches at 1" of weld in every 3". Wrecked it. Pretty sweet when you are all done with your rebuilt axle and can't get your birfs in. I won't be doing a truss on the '85 axle I'm currently building. Just cut and turn, diff armor, and lower ball gussets.

[hi on lux [OP]]

I just didn't want to be overzealous, I took advantage of the time that the front was still not yet been refreshed and off the truck yet, we stitch-welded the upper truss, upper and lower ball gusset before dis-assembly... now that it is almost
"refreshed" but still not mounted on, diff armor will next be welded.... stitch again too? In your opinion.....

@ yjay.... cut and turn? for the knuckle ball?

[Nimyad]

you coulda done a tube truss so then you really wouldn't have had enough heat when welding to warp the axle.
diff armor doesn't really matter cause it's not gunna warp anything, but do leave a place unwelded so water can get out

[yjay]

Yup. To add caster angle and eliminate any chance of death wobble and improve road manners as well as to set pinion angle.

[greg_k113]

Can you use a stick welder or should you use a mig?

[zippo]

Can you use a stick welder or should you use a mig?

Doesn't really matter. I have fully welded them, just do small 1" 1/2" welds over time. flip side to side and let it cool between each weld.

[Outsane]

Can you leave the the axles/diff in or do they need to be taken out?

[superyota]

leave them in. no need to remove them.