Dana 35 axle shaft will not come out

MagnumV8

MagnumV8

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I am trying to remove the driver's side axle shaft in my Dana 35, but it will not move in or out at all. I just did a super 35 conversion 3 months ago, so the shafts, e-locker, and bearings are all new. The passenger side came out just fine, but the driver's will not slide in so I can remove the c-clip. It seems like the splines are stuck in the carrier gear splines. I tried hitting the end of the axle with a mallet, but it did not budge.

Any ideas what I could try? It it possible that the splines could have twisted slightly?
 
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Here is what it looks like. I do not see any damage inside. Everything still looks new.
20210725_170228.jpg
 
mrblaine said:
Not possible, 100% that is the problem. The good news is if you drive it in far enough with a sledge hammer to get the clip out, you won't get it back out.
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Is it not possible that he has one of the subpar shafts that allow the bearing to wear down into the shaft, hanging him up there instead of at the splines?
 
machoheadgames said:
Is it not possible that he has one of the subpar shafts that allow the bearing to wear down into the shaft, hanging him up there instead of at the splines?
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I got the super 35 kit from Ricky @ 4Low parts. He couldn't get the Revolution axles, so he sent me G2 axles, but he said they were the same.
 
MagnumV8 said:
I got the super 35 kit from Ricky @ 4Low parts. He couldn't get the Revolution axles, so he sent me G2 axles, but he said they were the same.
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They should be the same thing besides the sticker on the hub stickout. I'm just surprised you have spline issues already unless something was defective out of the box. But knowing the shafts are the same as Revolution, I'd be surprised to see the bearing wearing into the shaft also. So really I guess I don't have a suggestion other than keep trying to move the axle in so you can pull the shaft and then hopefully not have a nightmare getting it back out after that point.
 
machoheadgames said:
Is it not possible that he has one of the subpar shafts that allow the bearing to wear down into the shaft, hanging him up there instead of at the splines?
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It is possible but I would hope he would mention that there is a lot of up and down play at the flange end. That is also not a short term thing, it takes some time typically.
 
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MagnumV8 said:
I got the super 35 kit from Ricky @ 4Low parts. He couldn't get the Revolution axles, so he sent me G2 axles, but he said they were the same.
Click to expand...

I agree with the others... it's either the axle splines are slightly twisted or the bearing is holding the axle shaft in place.
When you grab the axle flange does it have a very sllght amount of play or none at all ?
So.... who did the installation ? You, your friend or a shop ?
IF it was a shop.... then consult them to see what they recommend...
 
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CharlesHS said:
IF it was a shop.... then consult them to see what they recommend...
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There is no magic here that a shop will have. It is either stuck on the spline twist or the bearing. One is easy, the other not so much.

There is a 3rd option but it would be so obvious that you couldn't miss it. If the housing is bent badly on that side, it will bind up the splines in the carrier but you wouldn't miss that and beating it inward would move it enough likely to get the clip off.
 
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CharlesHS said:
I agree with the others... it's either the axle splines are slightly twisted or the bearing is holding the axle shaft in place.
When you grab the axle flange does it have a very sllght amount of play or none at all ?
So.... who did the installation ? You, your friend or a shop ?
IF it was a shop.... then consult them to see what they recommend...
Click to expand...
I didn't notice any up/down type of play, but I will check again when I get home tonight.

I did the install myself, and it only has about 300-400 miles on it and 6 days of wheeling during TJ Fest.

A little more back story...

The last day I wheeled in Moab, I came off Top Of the World and had a driveline vibration. I found that the upper rear control arm mount had broke off on the passenger side. When that happened, the axle shifted some and apparently destroyed the outer pinion bearing.

I trailered it home and have just now had time to start working on it.

I was taking it apart to replace the pinion bearings and inspect everything, when I ran into this axle issue.
 
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mrblaine said:
See if the bearing end is the problem. If it isn't, then the button has to come off to get the axle out. Or, drive it in far enough to get the clip off and then get in from the other side and drive it out with a long steel rod.
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These are the 2 options I thought of, but thought I would check here to see if there was some other way that I didn't think about.
 
MagnumV8 said:
I didn't notice any up/down type of play, but I will check again when I get home tonight.

I did the install myself, and it only has about 300-400 miles on it and 6 days of wheeling during TJ Fest.

A little more back story...

The last day I wheeled in Moab, I came off Top Of the World and had a driveline vibration. I found that the upper rear control arm mount had broke off on the passenger side. When that happened, the axle shifted some and apparently destroyed the outer pinion bearing.

I trailered it home and have just now had time to start working on it.

I was taking it apart to replace the pinion bearings and inspect everything, when I ran into this axle issue.
Click to expand...
With this additional information your problem is to be more involved than just not being able to remove the axle shaft.
With only 300-400 miles; the R&P gear set is not even broken in.
Take a level or straight edge and place on the axle tubes; check for a damaged axle tube as @Mr.BLAINE posted above.
 
Update: there was no play in the axle bearing. I was able to drive the axle in with a sledge hammer and remove the c clip, then drive the axle shaft out with a long steel bar.

The splines on the axle were slightly twisted, but the carrier seems to be fine. I put the good axle in the carrier to test, and it slides in and out fine.

So it looks like I just need to find a driver's side axle shaft.

20210726_174849.jpg


20210726_174825.jpg


20210726_174451.jpg
 
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you been beating on that rig pretty hard to do that already to a brand new, chromoly super 35 shaft?
 
MagnumV8 said:
I didn't notice any up/down type of play, but I will check again when I get home tonight.

I did the install myself, and it only has about 300-400 miles on it and 6 days of wheeling during TJ Fest.

A little more back story...

The last day I wheeled in Moab, I came off Top Of the World and had a driveline vibration. I found that the upper rear control arm mount had broke off on the passenger side. When that happened, the axle shifted some and apparently destroyed the outer pinion bearing.

I trailered it home and have just now had time to start working on it.

I was taking it apart to replace the pinion bearings and inspect everything, when I ran into this axle issue.
Click to expand...
Just saw this thread. Guess Team America wheeled fairly hard at Moab. Glad you're getting it sorted.
 
Apparition said:
Just saw this thread. Guess Team America wheeled fairly hard at Moab. Glad you're getting it sorted.
Click to expand...
Seems to have happened coming out of top of the world. My upper rear control arm mount broke and the axle shifted. I didn't notice anything while on the trail. I think that washboard road coming out broke the weld on the mount.
 
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