Advice on sourcing new axle casings

Hi Community - some advice please.

I want to refurbish my axle casings on my series 3. The existing ones have clunky reinforcement sections and are in poor condition so I though I might source new ones from eBay, etc. to repaint/powder coat. I’ll have the diffs done by Ashcroft. I can then swap them out and keep the car off the road for as little time as possible. In terms of sourcing new axle casings, anything to look out for in terms of warning signs? They all look like mildly rusty lumps of metal but are there any particular clues to finding a good donor part - quality of studs, putting, etc? Any help much appreciated. Tom

thspeller said:

Hi Community - some advice please.

I want to refurbish my axle casings on my series 3. The existing ones have clunky reinforcement sections and are in poor condition so I though I might source new ones from eBay, etc. to repaint/powder coat. I’ll have the diffs done by Ashcroft. I can then swap them out and keep the car off the road for as little time as possible. In terms of sourcing new axle casings, anything to look out for in terms of warning signs? They all look like mildly rusty lumps of metal but are there any particular clues to finding a good donor part - quality of studs, putting, etc? Any help much appreciated. Tom

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Not really known the casings to be a problem. So long as they haven't rusted through, they will go on for a long time.
The diff pans are a common cause of problems, they are made of thin steel, and can get dented or holed on a rock when off roading.
Which is why diff guards are often fitted.

Can you post some pics of the "reinforcement sections"?
They might actually be diff guards, or some other interesting modification.

This isn’t them but it’s like these much runs almost up to the swivels. The issue is getting underneath them to strip, paint, etc. I don’t have a welder.

thspeller said:

This isn’t them but it’s like these much runs almost up to the swivels. The issue is getting underneath them to strip, paint, etc. I don’t have a welder.

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They certainly aren't diff guards.
I don't know what they are, can only assume they are a home made effort. Not sure what they are trying to achieve either, to be honest.

You could just carefully cut the welds with cutting disc in a grinder, and paint up your existing casings.
Shouldn't be a long job, just blast or wire brush them off, wash down, leave to dry, and spray them up with chassis black.

I have seen similar but as a flat bar, I think home made.
It’s a stiffener that is not needed for normal /off-road. I am pretty sure you couldn’t get rough enough in a standard form to need them.
Take a grinder to them as^^^^.
Or drill more holes in them so they can be blasted and painted inside.

But don’t see the point in buying new axles.

J

marjon said:

I have seen similar but as a flat bar, I think home made.
It’s a stiffener that is not needed for normal /off-road. I am pretty sure you couldn’t get rough enough in a standard form to need them.
Take a grinder to them as^^^^.
Or drill more holes in them so they can be blasted and painted inside.

But don’t see the point in buying new axles.

J

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Good shout.

But if people are driving hard enough to bend axle cases, I should think they would be better spending the money on a psychiatrist!

Turboman said:

Good shout.

But if people are driving hard enough to bend axle cases, I should think they would be better spending the money on a psychiatrist!

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& an osteopath

Turboman said:

But if people are driving hard enough to bend axle cases, I should think they would be better spending the money on a psychiatrist!

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Working on a LR is a form of therapy though.

Tests your sanity that’s for sure.

J

They look a bit like a kit Raptor Garage fitted to a rear axle on their 110 overlander theyre building...

Any thoughts on powder coating vs painting.
And what do you need to do to the inside in respect of cleaning up? A wash out with old Petrol?

Tom

thspeller said:

Any thoughts on powder coating vs painting.
And what do you need to do to the inside in respect of cleaning up? A wash out with old Petrol?

Tom

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If you go the powder coat way you have to make plywood caps to bolt on to the openings cause you dont want the grit blast getting inside the casing...I went for wire brush rust stabaliser then oxirite paint then a couple of coats gloss black...

First pic was rust treatment this is gloss topcoat..

thspeller said:

Any thoughts on powder coating vs painting.
And what do you need to do to the inside in respect of cleaning up? A wash out with old Petrol?

Tom

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Paint every time, although personally, I wouldn't bother to take it all apart, I would just clean it up and paint it in situ.

Turboman said:

Paint every time, although personally, I wouldn't bother to take it all apart, I would just clean it up and paint it in situ.

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That is what I did on the series. Wire wheeled in place and then rust converter, red oxide, and black machine enamel brush painter. still holding up 4 years later.
I would also second the just carefully cutting off the reinforcement you have to access the tube if you only have a standard vehicle. they were sometimes added to uprate the axle strength (similar to fitting a Salisbury) but should not be needed in daily or off-road use.

dag019 said:

That is what I did on the series. Wire wheeled in place and then rust converter, red oxide, and black machine enamel brush painter. still holding up 4 years later.
I would also second the just carefully cutting off the reinforcement you have to access the tube if you only have a standard vehicle. they were sometimes added to uprate the axle strength (similar to fitting a Salisbury) but should not be needed in daily or off-road use.

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I have painted the whole chassis of a Ninety with minimum parts removal.

I put the front wheels on ramps, jacked up the back and put that on tall axle stands, the whole thing was high enough to sit under the back on
a chair.
Then, wearing a boiler suit and goggles, I used a wire wheel in a 4 inch grinder to remove as much of the paint and rust as possible, and washed it down with a hose.
Then two coats of red oxide primer, and a coat of black gloss.
It took about 3 whole days to do it, but the time saved in not dismantling anything is huge.
It is a pretty filthy job in the prep stage, and you need a bath every night.

Obviously, you can't do the top of the chassis, because of the body, but that would not apply to an axle.

Grind it off. Turks head with a mixture of tar and diesel. Job done.

Bog brush and petrol for the inside. Keep your fag away from the pig straw in the back.

thspeller said:

Any thoughts on powder coating vs painting.

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Yes, Paint every time - Bonda primer is very good IME, and tractol paints are also very good.

Powder coat is, sadly, IME, just a decorative coating, and much like underseal if damaged ... it traps water and provides a perfect place for corrosion to make a mess - I.E. - to turn steel into "bran flakes" .... not good .

S2 chassis wire brushed and painted just done brakes and bearings today...u- bolts were a bloody pain and Paddocks sent front shocks not rears their problem to sort down here in Portugal...

I replaced my rear casing last year, cleaned up old one and tested thickness using hammer and nail , it went through too easily and following comment on here I got a new one from PA Blanchard reasonable price along with a load of other bits. You can buy the straighteners to weld on if needed but really all it needs is a good inspection and good judgement

Those axle case stiffeners were often found on military Land Rovers of the 60's70's and on forward control models and some One Ton models.
For normal use as others have said just remove.