Strength of the S-10 rear axels

[mikesplumbing]

Any of you guys running the S-10 axel set-up? Are you happy with it? My first thought was to just call Moser or Currie and have them build me an axel but after doing some reading it seems folks use the S-10 quite a bit. Are they pretty tough, keep in mind i'm going to have an inline and the HP will be kept on the low side. It's pretty easy for me to just go out to the scrap yard and get one and then I could start fitting some of the parts together without spending a fortune. Anyhow, just wondering what you guys would advise me to do.

Mike

 

[bobscogin]

You'll be fine with that rear end provided it's the correct width. The same 7.5" ring gear unit was also used in F body and G body V8 powered GM cars. The S10 rear is 54" axle flange to axle flange, and the G body is 58". Not sure on the F bodies but I'd think it's over 60". Is it a bullet proof unit? No, but in a light car with moderate power it'll work great --- and they're cheap!!

Bob

 

[Keeper]

If you can find one out of the "ZR2" model they are the 8.5(94-97 w drum brakes) or 8.6(98+ with discs) and come stock with 3.73 and limited slip.

I am running one with 33x12.50 trXus mud tires and its holding up just fine.

 

[bobscogin]

Keeper, what wheel lug pattern does the ZR2 rear have?

Bob

 

[benT]

I'm a big fan of the S10 7.5" rears for T-buckets. Here's my Top 10 reasons why:

1.They are very plentiful and cheap
2. The widths of the std S10 works well with 23's and the S10 blazer width is right for '27's.
3. In a light car they should handle 300-350 HP.
4. They are fairly symmetrical, so you don't have a huge offset pinion.
5. The spring pads come off easily and they clean up with out having to grind alot of stuff off to add your brackets.
6. You can swap out the diff unit for a posi unit out of a Camaro or Firebird..again cheap!
7. You can find good gear sets from 3.08 to 3.73 easily. The 4cyl sticks tended to have the 3.73's and the 6cyl autos tended to have 3.08 or 3.23's
8. Bearings, shims, crush sleeves and such can be had reasonably from local parts stores.
9. Brake parts such drums, backing plate, shoes, spring kits, etc. can be had from Autozone reasonably.
10. Did I mention cheap and plentiful?!

 

[mikesplumbing]

That sounds like a winner to me! Really good information on this thread, I wrote it down and maybe next week i'll have some time to go to a few scrapyards and see what I can come up with.

Thanks guys, especially the Dave Lettermanstyle top 10 list.

Mike

 

[donsrods]

I've had the same concerns about the one in my T, but every once in a while I forget and do a hard launch with the slicks churning. So far, so good.

Don

 

[mikesplumbing]

Hey Don, I got my wife and kids starting to appreciate the small vintage style wheels and i'm thinking that's what i'll be running. I see you like that style also and i'm guessing here but using really wide steamrollers should make it harder on the rear end right? By using the skinny vintage type and letting them spin a little actually protects the rear end, this is just my uneducated guess.

Mike

 

[Hotrod46]

Try to get one from the mid to late 90's. Somewhere in there I believe they went to a 7.625" ring gear on all units instead of the earlier 7.5". Not a lot of difference, but every little bit helps. The later units also have 28 spline axles where the early ones have 26 splines.

Mine is out of a 1999 2-wheel drive S-10 and is just about the perfect width. The 4-wheel drive rearends are wider. Disk brakes are available on some axles. The bolt pattern on all of them I have seen is 5 lugs on a 4 3/4" circle.

I dropped in an Auburn limited slip diff out of an old Camaro/Firebird rearend I had and it seems to be a good match for a T.

My car wieghs in at about 2400 lbs with me in it and my engine is just north of 300 HP. So far, no problems and I do get on it pretty hard. There are alloy axles available from places like Moser. There is also an aluminum cover with side bearing support built in, also to help with durability.

Remember that the Z28's and TransAm's came with this same basic size rearend (and weigh about a half a ton more than most buckets), so GM must have considered it strong enough for that application. If you go with the 6 and the skinny tires, I doubt you will have enough power or traction to hurt it.

One mod I made to mine was to swap over to a solid spacer with shims between the pinion bearings instead of a crush sleeve. I did it mainly to make setup easier, but it is supposed to help keep the axle together. Who knows?

Also, I modified 82 Caprice wheel cylinders to fit on the S-10 backing plates. They have 15/16" bores compared to the stock 3/4" bore. The mid 90's Astro vans have a 7/8" bore and bolt on the late model backing plates, if you don't want to do any machine work. I think the larger bores make a difference. The early S-10's use an unusual wheel cylinder mounting setup, while the later brakes use a standard 2-bolt mount.

Mike

 

[benT]

I second the Hot Rod 46's note about the wheel cylinders. The early ones had cylinders that had a clip to keep them on. It is a pain to replace (I know!) the later ones are much improved. Either way, they are dirt cheap at Autozone, so if you get a smoking deal on an early one, no biggie.

 

[mikesplumbing]

Awesome post Mike, that's a big help for me. i'm feeling real confident about the S-10 set-up.

Mike

 

[donsrods]

Hey Don, I got my wife and kids starting to appreciate the small vintage style wheels and i'm thinking that's what i'll be running. I see you like that style also and i'm guessing here but using really wide steamrollers should make it harder on the rear end right? By using the skinny vintage type and letting them spin a little actually protects the rear end, this is just my uneducated guess.

Mike

Yep, no question that fat tires equal more traction and more strain on the rear end. I just gravitate toward skinny wide whites because that is what I grew up with. It's surprising how good 8:20 x 15 bias plies will hook up though. I'm redoing my 27 that has been sitting for 9 years, and that is what I am running on the back.

Don

 

[mikesplumbing]

Geez Don.....that thing is bitchin!!!!

I just love the tires, rims, and caps

Mike

 

[benT]

Mine aren't super wide (275/60/17) but they are fairly tall. With the C4 and the 3.73 gear, it hooks just fine!

 

[Keeper]

Keeper, what wheel lug pattern does the ZR2 rear have?

Bob

5 x 4.75 standard chevy

 

[mikesplumbing]

Nice ride Ben, did you make those pipes? Very nice, they look

Mike

 

[mikesplumbing]

So I don't get taken to the cleaners, what do you guys think is the most you would pay for a late model S-10 rear axel set-up from a salvage yard.

Mike

 

[benT]

Thanks!

Yep---probably the one piece of my car that make me the proudest. I always loved the look of the early lakes pipes that ran down the sides. To build these, I bought flanges with stubs, the tapered cones and a bunch of u-bends and straight pipe. There is an auger muffler welded in the 3" pipe just before the turnouts. They were alot of work as each pipe is made from 12 individual pieces welded together to a length just over 6 feet long! There is a support at the end that is almost hidden so they appear to just float. Once they were tig'd up and ground I ceramic coated them. They sound awesome and look great--

 

[benT]

No more than a $75 to $100 for a good clean one in decent shape. You should be able to find one for 1/2 that though. S10's are probably the most prevalent vehicle in most yards. Make sure to pick up a driveshaft at the same time. I used a Camaro one that I had cut and the ford front yoke welded on.

 

[mikesplumbing]

It's stuff like your pipes that make street rods so nice. I was thinking the same thing, they appear or at least have the look of floating. Can't wait to get to that part of my build, I would like to do something similar to what you did. Gotta love the lakester collectors............

Mike