Help Identifying This Rear End?

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Help Identifying This Rear End?

Postby gearheadmike » Fri Jan 11, 2019 10:16 pm

So i was looking for a rear end for my current project and found this. The guy said it was from a vega but i kept thinking they had the 2 trailing arm's/Track bar and the torque arm.
This has a normal 4 link. Any info on this would be great. Thanks
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Re: Help Identifying This Rear End?

Postby Smiley » Sat Jan 12, 2019 4:12 am

Early Vega 6.5" rear end 72-75. 71 had different lower shock mounts,76 and up had the torque arm(Cosworths in 75).
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Re: Help Identifying This Rear End?

Postby gearheadmike » Sat Jan 12, 2019 5:50 pm

Thanks. Anyone know if this would be durable enough behind a 120hp GM 2.2 and 5spd trans??
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Re: Help Identifying This Rear End?

Postby Smiley » Sun Jan 13, 2019 12:12 am

It may hold up fo a little while depending on how you drive.
I would look for a 7.5 or larger rear end.
Is it going in an early Vega or something else ?
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Re: Help Identifying This Rear End?

Postby gearheadmike » Sun Jan 13, 2019 10:35 am

It's going in something else my 1950 Crosley. I thought it was the 7.5 when i bought it but i didn't know the early vega's had a smaller rear axle. I like it tho as its got the same 4on4 bolt pattern as my car and i want to keep wheels small on this. As the fronts are 12" and vega's were 13". I also got to narrow the rear end to fit under car. It's just a weekend driver and a 1400 mile round trip once a year to nationals.
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Re: Help Identifying This Rear End?

Postby Smiley » Sun Jan 13, 2019 2:47 pm

If you have to narrow it you will need new axles, at that point I would use a different rear end.
How wide does it need to be ?
Does that car use leaf springs for the rear suspension ?
Old 2WD postal Jeeps had a 4 lug rear axle about 5" narrower than a Vega.
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Re: Help Identifying This Rear End?

Postby gearheadmike » Sun Jan 13, 2019 6:40 pm

The car has 1/4 optical leafs in the rear and used a torque tube to keep it center. I think going full leaf would make it easiest i don't need a great performing suspension. Unfortunately where i'm located it's really hard to find anything like that. Junk yards want $200-250 for rear ends here. The original rear from outside of flange to flange is 37" wide This one is 49 7/8"
I see Moser does axle resplining for $125 A pair.
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Re: Help Identifying This Rear End?

Postby Smiley » Sun Jan 13, 2019 11:19 pm

Most GM axles are undercut where the splines end so they may not be able to respline them.
GM axls use C-clips to retain them in the carrier re machining the C-clip grooves may be an extra charge and a more exact length to fit into the axle.
8" and 9" Ford axles are not undercut so they can be shortened and resplined.
They also have pressed on wheel bearings to retain the axles instead of C-clips, less machining and axles can be cut to fit plus or minus 1/4" after the housing is shortened.
8 inch Ford rear ends were used in the 70's with 4 lug axles in 4 and 6 cylinder cars.

is the original rear gone ?

Where are you located ?
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Re: Help Identifying This Rear End?

Postby gearheadmike » Mon Jan 14, 2019 1:48 am

I'm located in upstate NY 15 min of canada and vermont. I have the original rear end but it is no were strong enough.
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Re: Help Identifying This Rear End?

Postby gearheadmike » Mon Jan 14, 2019 10:15 am

These axles i noticed taper down a the spline so if i'm cutting 4-6" off there should be enough meat there to respline. I just called Moser and asked if they respline c-clip axles and he said yes.
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Re: Help Identifying This Rear End?

Postby Smiley » Mon Jan 14, 2019 3:02 pm

I would start with a 7.5" Monza rear end or larger. Early S10 rear ends are 7.5" and you can swap in 26 spline Monza axles. you may find someone who has the parts left over from putting putting S10 axles in their H-body to get 5 lugs.
The other swap when narrowing a housing is a late S10 housing that uses GM 28 spline axles, you can use small Ford housing ends and 28 spline 8"/9" 4 lug axles
6.5" 4-link rears failed even in 4 cylinder cars the axles splines are smaller, ring gear and spider gears are weaker too.
I broke two 6.5" rear ends but they were cheap and easy to find at the junkyard then.
Are you narrowing the housing yourself or farming it out ?
Just for cruising to car shows with a 4cylinder and small tires it may do the job for you.
Other than cutting the brackets off most people doing a V8 swap have no use for 4 lug 6.5 rear ends.
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Re: Help Identifying This Rear End?

Postby gearheadmike » Tue Jan 22, 2019 4:01 pm

Stupid question whats with those rectangular weights? On the upper control arms?
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Re: Help Identifying This Rear End?

Postby Smiley » Tue Jan 22, 2019 6:26 pm

To reduce noise/vibration, they hung a weight off the back of the transmission too for a few years.
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Re: Help Identifying This Rear End?

Postby Smiley » Sun Feb 03, 2019 10:46 pm

Post some pics of it after you get it narrowed and when you start putting it in the car.
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Re: Help Identifying This Rear End?

Postby cammerjeff » Thu Feb 07, 2019 7:32 am

gearheadmike wrote:Stupid question whats with those rectangular weights? On the upper control arms?


From what I have been told it was to reduce wheel hop that was common with the early 4-link Vega rear suspension. I don't know what year they started putting them on but both my 75's had them. In 76 they went with the Torque arm rear suspension so they eliminated the upper control arms.
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