Shaving and Plating a 14 Bolt...

[freerider15]

Yeah, read, searched. Think I read every possible 14B shave thread out there...but still need one question answered by those that have done it. For those that have done it (shave and plate the bottom), how did you make sure that the plate on the bottom sat flush (or flush enough) with the mounting face so that the cover would seal? Did you have it machined, get as close as possible using a straight edge and a grinder, or just weld it as flush as possible? I know RTV can take up some imperfections and surface inconsistancies, but not THAT much

Oh and would anyone have a working file of a 14B cover? All the links I found from searching were dead, wrong file, etc. I've got Autodesk Inventor and ProE at my disposal. I know I could go trace it and shit, but would rather not have to...

[BigWoodyWag]

Grinder, straight edge, RTV

[uglyscout]

My one sugestion is to not waste your time trying to mig it togther, I tried and-- mine leaks like crazy... Spend the time and do it right with the correct rod (or mig wire if you can find high nickel wire).

I made sure my plate had a little extra sticking out -- then ground it square. And used lots of RTV!

[MUCHADO]

same as bigwoodywag's

[Rocco]

I welded my plate inside, out and on the seal face. i then machined .010" off the entire face. I also run a 3/8" thk. cover with a machined face. Never had them leak.

[jbdbloh7]

When I had my 14B shaved I had the same concerns. I did not want to have a leaker that I had to RTV constantly, and overall strength was a concern. I had 2.5 inches taken off initially by a member of my club at his work. His quality execution on the initial cutting of the cast was the reason the whole idea worked well.



Since the cut was so aggressive, we determined that I would need the inside of the 1/2 inch plate clearanced to allow the ring gear which was slightly ground to additional room as well. My fabricator also used his hydraulic press to put a slight (very slight) bow in the bottom plate before he fit the two together.



Next step was to create a matching rear cover which started with the beefy version from GLO (Not at all happy with the initial fit, but that is another story and not important to this thread) and a lower cover receptacle was made to allow the cover to slide in and be pinched closed. A lot of work was put into modifying the cover to match up perfectly with the new lower section and remain a closed/leak proof unit. This was not your typical grind and run job.


This will provide additional pressure on the now compromised lower of the cast housing and make the seal tight



One additional note was that the housing was brought up to temperature to make the welding structurally sound and also slowly cooled for the same purpose.

Here is a finished pic:



and one with a measurement for those interested:



Special thanks to Lucas at Kessler Machine who performed the cut and Bob at Bay State Offroad who fabbed the rest of the work on the axle.

[rcurrier44]

Originally Posted by freerider15

get as close as possible using a straight edge and a grinder,

That's what I did... I even welded it with a Mig and it has done just fine. You're not building the space shuttle here....

[pipehitter155]

porta-band to the lip....grinder and a flap disk to smooth it out...works well for me....

[blacksheep10]

I did bigwoody wag's and muchado's. I have the file on my burn table of both of their cover rings. thing about shaves that kill me it that most people put the plate perpendicular to the cover face. um, my cover doesn't sit straight up and down. pinion is rolled way up. therefore, the plate needs to be considerably around the bend towards the rear cover to get max effect. I actually had to grind the top inside of the housing to get the carrier out because the plate is so far around the corner. most that brag they got X" out of it are measureing from the skinny of the plate. now put it in, roll your pinion where it goes and measure from the ground. diff story. anyway, I brake a plate for the bottom a flat one just doesn't fit. Period. you can gap it, shave less, roll less, etc, but it isn't the best. I made a "hat" that sits inverted under the ring gear and then goes up either side to the housing. more clearance, and the inverted dome is stronger to upward forces than a flat plate.
if you want the file, or if you want me to burn you a ring out of 1/4" or 3/8", I can do it and send it your way. how much do you want to go? for woodywag's (first reply pic) I shaved the ring 1/8". for muchado's I just shaved and plated and made a cover. I have a file for both.

[freerider15]

Appreciate the responses mucho

Originally Posted by jbdbloh7

When I had my 14B shaved I had the same concerns. I did not want to have a leaker that I had to RTV constantly, and overall strength was a concern. I had 2.5 inches taken off initially by a member of my club at his work. His quality execution on the initial cutting of the cast was the reason the whole idea worked well.



Since the cut was so aggressive, we determined that I would need the inside of the 1/2 inch plate clearanced to allow the ring gear which was slightly ground to additional room as well. My fabricator also used his hydraulic press to put a slight (very slight) bow in the bottom plate before he fit the two together.



Next step was to create a matching rear cover which started with the beefy version from GLO (Not at all happy with the initial fit, but that is another story and not important to this thread) and a lower cover receptacle was made to allow the cover to slide in and be pinched closed. A lot of work was put into modifying the cover to match up perfectly with the new lower section and remain a closed/leak proof unit. This was not your typical grind and run job.


This will provide additional pressure on the now compromised lower of the cast housing and make the seal tight



One additional note was that the housing was brought up to temperature to make the welding structurally sound and also slowly cooled for the same purpose.

Here is a finished pic:



and one with a measurement for those interested:



Special thanks to Lucas at Kessler Machine who performed the cut and Bob at Bay State Offroad who fabbed the rest of the work on the axle.

I *kinda* have access to the machine shop here at Colorado State University, so maybe I could talk to the guy who runs it (who I've taken a class under), if he'd be willing to help me drill, tap, and mill the surface. If not I figured the straight edge and grinder method would work.

Those who have welded theirs with MIG, how have they held up? Uglyscout I know you said not to waste my time with it, but I was thinking about MIG'ing the inside (so I can get the axle setup), then taking it somewhere or to a freind in Boulder to have them TIG or Stick the outside.

[freerider15]

Originally Posted by blacksheep10

I did bigwoody wag's and muchado's. I have the file on my burn table of both of their cover rings. thing about shaves that kill me it that most people put the plate perpendicular to the cover face. um, my cover doesn't sit straight up and down. pinion is rolled way up. therefore, the plate needs to be considerably around the bend towards the rear cover to get max effect. I actually had to grind the top inside of the housing to get the carrier out because the plate is so far around the corner. most that brag they got X" out of it are measureing from the skinny of the plate. now put it in, roll your pinion where it goes and measure from the ground. diff story. anyway, I brake a plate for the bottom a flat one just doesn't fit. Period. you can gap it, shave less, roll less, etc, but it isn't the best. I made a "hat" that sits inverted under the ring gear and then goes up either side to the housing. more clearance, and the inverted dome is stronger to upward forces than a flat plate.
if you want the file, or if you want me to burn you a ring out of 1/4" or 3/8", I can do it and send it your way. how much do you want to go? for woodywag's (first reply pic) I shaved the ring 1/8". for muchado's I just shaved and plated and made a cover. I have a file for both.

If you could send me a file for the more clearanced one that would be great! . I will probably be taking a 1/2-3/4" off the ring gear. Would you happen to have and pics of how you did it? Trying to picture it as you were saying, but not exactly able to see it

[kidkrawler]

Posting for reference of your shave, great job. What was the clearance gains? I cant read that ruler.

Edit: My wife read it, better eyes than me

[Okie Terry]

Sorry, it's not a 14b, but my front 60.
Same concept, though.




Cut it.


Welded in the bottom, oversized about 1/8".


Made the ring for the cover.
Sprayed appliance epoxy over the welds on the inside.


Ground it close enough for the ring to bolt down flush.


After bolting it down, I shined a flashlight from the inside to find glaring leaks.
Then filled and ground like most of the others.


Finished the cover and didn't really need much rtv.
No leaks.




HTH

[Matt'sXJ]

I've been working on mine this week.

Bought a $100 14 bolt. Need a shave.



precision cutting tool set at 15 degrees for pinion angle.


freshly wacked


recessed 1/4" plate in opening and welded inside and out and ground smooth outside

[Matt'sXJ]

Update today:

Pretty much finished with modding the housing.


Cut the bottom off of stock diff cover and put a 1/2" thick piece on the bottom to hold up against the elements. Back of the diff cover sits 1/16" higher than the housing to help keep it from hanging up. It's now a 13 bolt.



inside cover


Ring gear has 1/4" clearance with 3/4" taken off the diameter.



The bottom of the diff is 5 1/2" from the centerline of the axle. My 60 is almost 6 1/2".

Lot of work but worth it in my opinion.

[freerider15]

Very nice! How did you take 3/4" of it, lathe it?

Thought about chucking it up in a lathe, but already had the carrier assembled and ring gear bolted to it. So im using the real precision method of using an angle grinder then flap discs, as well as the carriers natural turning ability to hone it down

[Matt'sXJ]

A friend took it to his work and used a big ass sander to take the first 1/2" or so off. Then he put it in a lathe and used a tool they cut bearing races with to finish it off. He did 2 of them for me in less than 30 minutes. He used my 4.10 one to see if he could do it and then did my new 5.13 gears. I'm impressed.

[Devil Dog]

pretty much did the same for mine.. but used 1/2" plate for the bottom.. i have seen the 1/4" stuff bend and take out ring gears... just welded everything up inside and out then used a flapper disk to smooth it out.. it will leak a little after a few trips... but i just went to a rubber gasket.. and will see how this holds up...

[BigWoodyWag]

The cut should not be perpendicular to the face.

If you do cut perpendicular to the face it looks good on the table, but throw it under the rig and rotate your pinion up to where it needs to me. You have hardly shaved anything off your diff to ground clearance.

[blacksheep10]

those of you that took over 3/16" per side off your ring, why do you have a 14 again? because its strong? no so much with 1" less ring gear and tooth. wow, that's a lot. if you are running a 22r, go for it.

I used an old carrier half and chucked it up in an old lathe with the ring bolted to it and spun it while I ground.