Re: Holding in the Rear Axle

["Joseph M. Shaw, II" <MikeIIDC@domain.elided>]

SLarsonIH@domain.elided wrote:
> John, you would have, if you had been riding with me on that fateful night. It
> was about 2 1/2 years ago, coming home from work at 11pm. I was on the freeway
> doing a little better than 55, probably better than 70, when I heard this
> thump. The right rear corner of my 74 Scout II seemed to drop a little, and I
> noticed (remember, it's at night and it's dark) this thing rolling/bouncing
> down the freeway along side me. It was my right side rear axle, brake drum and
> tire, still attached to each other, I found out later.

Steve, et. al:

I also had this happen, though not at the speeds that you did, nor as
dramatically.
I was returning to Taos, NM from the Denver airport a few years back.  I
began to hear this funny thumping from the right rear, and something
definitely "felt funny"!  The fact that I could hear it makes pretty
good testimony to the solidness of my old T'all!  I certainly couldn't
hear a thing going on outside of my Scout, though the outside is very
similar to the inside, at this point!
Anyway, I pulled over, couldn't figure out what it was, and got back in.
Even starting up at about 10 MPH I could tell something was seriously
wrong.  Called AAA (had triple A plus or whatever-fifty miles free tow,
thank God!).  Driver couldn't figure out what it was either, but I
started to pull away and he heard it too.  He rear-towed me to the dirt
road that my mechanic lived on and couldn't go any further (too muddy!)
It was also too muddy to walk on, so I started driving it down to
Jesse's house.  I got about 2 of the 2 1/2 miles down the dirt road to
his place and it got really loud and "weird."  I got out, walked, and he
brought back his home-made tow truck.  We crawled around for a while,
trying to see what it was when he finally noticed that the right rear
axle had worked its way about two inches out of its housing.  He told me
to try to drive it while he watched.  I moved about ten feet and he laid
on the horn and stopped me.  It had slid out about another three inches
as soon as I moved.  He rear-towed me to his place, and believe me, on
his road in the condition it was in, this was a miracle.  I believe that
truck was a '64 he had welded a tow rig onto.
Apparently, or so he hypothesized, the centrifugal pressure of the
cylinder spinning against the inside of the axle shaft kept the thing
from spinning outward in the shaft at highway speeds, but not at low
speeds.  Either way, it didn't actually quit on me until I had help with
me.  This was yet another time that the thing refused to leave me
stranded.  That old truck really loved me!
This was how I found out that the later model T'alls had a slightly
wider base, as I got a rear axle from another old IH, this one a 3/4
ton, and it was wider than my truck (I think it was about two inches on
each side) with wider mounts.  Had to find anoither one to fit my rig! 
Probably could have had him do some home weld work, but was very into
"original" at the time-as I still am!!!
It had mangled up the axle pretty good right at the edge, and I fear
that much more driving and the thing would have come out or broken off.
Anyway, I think the reason we don't see this is because our loving IH's
refuse to let something like this happen!

I wouldn't sweat it too much!

Michael