Topic: axle truss

[richard head]

hey guys just wanna get some opinions on trussing top of front axle on an 85.is it really nedded and how careful do you have to be welding it on without doing damage?any opinions will be appreciated.

[DTB]

hey guys just wanna get some opinions on trussing top of front axle on an 85.is it really nedded and how careful do you have to be welding it on without doing damage?any opinions will be appreciated.

some say its not really necessary. The knuckle ball will bend before the axle tube in most cases. If it is a later style axle it already has a bottom gussett. Most people do it just for aesthetic reasons. Definitely gussett the knuckle balls though. If you do weld the top truss on, weld in one inch segments on opposite ends and let it cool completely before welding the next inch.

[MiniSimp]

This is all you need...

[croberts]

when i put my truss on i just tacked it in place and welded the piss out of it. My housing didn't warp or bend, at the time i didn't even think about it. Maybe i just got lucky but if i did it again i would weld in smaller sections amd allow cooling.

[gtoyonrocks]

The bottom line is these housing will bend, the trussing does help. What it comes down to is how hard will you be wheeling this thing??? I plan to truss the hell out of my front and rear, my front is about half done, I havent' started on the rear. I don't want a warp housing.

[bigarms23]

I would buy a front diff protection

[gtoyonrocks]

for sure!!!! That is a must if you plan to get into rocks.

[83LotsOfun]

Gonna throw this out there too.  If you wheel in alot of rocks sand, it is a good idea.  If your like me and are forced to go through some bloody mud holes to get to the fun stuff then don't do it.  It acts as a freakin plow and ends up halting your progress.

[MiniSimp]

I would buy a front diff protection

8" weld on pipe cap cut in half works perfect.

[DCabTaco]

8" weld on pipe cap cut in half works perfect.

Where would you get one of these? 

[dirtchicken]

A plumbing store?

[jimbo74]

Where would you get one of these? 

a hardware store

[Saber]

I thought about the truss too, but if you have an '84 or '85 axle with the full length truss along the bottom, it's hard to say whether you need one on the top too.

Like MiniSimp said, Marlin's knuckle kit is super sweet and probably all you need.  I also made some multi-purpose guides to protect my u-bolts from getting trashed.  They also add some extra strength on the bottom.  I fabbed some solid steering stops for the cool factor, figuring you can't have enough welds and steal on the front.  Every little bit helps.   




I also figured the diff could use some protection and went with Sky's cover.  You can kind of see it here:

[DTB]

marlins kit comes with steering stop caps

[gtoyonrocks]

That looks pretty sweet. I like those gussets.

[Saber]

marlins kit comes with steering stop caps

I actually used the stop caps that came in the kit to make semi-solid stops.

[DTB]

thats pretty sharp saber  but then u only ended up with 2 total stops right?  the kit comes with 8 stop caps

[Goose]

Wow, now thats a nice'n'shiny axle
Good work saber! 

[Saber]

thats pretty sharp saber  but then u only ended up with 2 total stops right?  the kit comes with 8 stop caps

Thanks for the kind words.  Kit does come 8 caps and I made 4 stops altogether (2 caps for each).  The middle pieces are 1/4 (smaller) cutouts so I could weld the hell out of 'em and grind it smooth...