how to fit rr axles to lightweight
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V8jon
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It can be done,i put them on my 2a but its not as straight forward as you may think......
Dr_evil
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Go on then enlighten us 
V8jon
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You'll have to wait till later as I'm back on the road again in a min,all will be revealed later
Dr_evil
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I'm putting disco axles on mine when I get a chance, have kinda figured it out from his pics but not entirely sure although having full access to a workshop I might even be able to fettle them to fit better than Jon once the basics are done
V8jon
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Basically you need to get rid of all the coil mounts so your left with a bare axle
Then you need to either buy or make some spring seats for the leafs,all I did was grind them off the series axles and weld them on the disco ones.
The front is the tricky one,because the steering track rod is at the rear on a coiler axle so when its on a series it hits the springs when its in the right position for the castor angle.
People have come up with all sorts of theory's but I found the easiest way was to move the axle up away from the springs by using deeper spring mounts,this allows the axle to be rotated down at the diff end to get the right castor angle.
I sat the spring mounts on the leafs,sat the axle on top and made sure it was lined up,double checked my measurements and castor angle then held it all in place with the u-bolts and tacked the mounts to the axle case with the welder. Then took them off and welded them up properly on the bench.
More to follow..........
Then you need to either buy or make some spring seats for the leafs,all I did was grind them off the series axles and weld them on the disco ones.
The front is the tricky one,because the steering track rod is at the rear on a coiler axle so when its on a series it hits the springs when its in the right position for the castor angle.
People have come up with all sorts of theory's but I found the easiest way was to move the axle up away from the springs by using deeper spring mounts,this allows the axle to be rotated down at the diff end to get the right castor angle.
I sat the spring mounts on the leafs,sat the axle on top and made sure it was lined up,double checked my measurements and castor angle then held it all in place with the u-bolts and tacked the mounts to the axle case with the welder. Then took them off and welded them up properly on the bench.
More to follow..........
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V8jon
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For the castor angle I had to guess it as I've not got the tools to set it,so what I did was look on my disco and worked out that when the suspension was sat in the normal position one of the bolts that hold the swivel on was right at the top (12 o'clock) so I set the axle on the series the same.
The next problem is the u-bolts on the drivers side front,because the axle casing is bigger near the diff than a series and the fact that the casing is tilted slightly (see pic above)a normal u bolt won't fit as its not long enough and needs a bend in it at the back. You used to be able to buy extra long u-bolts but couldn't find any when I did mine but luckily I had one in my shed so used that with a bit of modification (big hammer!) It also helps if you have parabolics fitted as they aren't as thick as standard springs so you have more length on the u-bolts.
Next was the steering,because the coiler axle is 3" wider either side the hub where the drag link goes is also 3" further away,obviously. The series drag link ( the bar that goes from the steering idler in the chassis the the hub) would go on but because it was too short it gave full lock one way and only half lock the other so that was no good. Then I thought fit a disco one as that's longer and is set up for that axle..........wrong!
The disco steering box is in a different position to a series steering idler so it was too long and gave the same effect as the short drag link but the other way round.
So what I had to do was get the disco drag link take the track rod ends out and cut 3/4 of an inch off each end where the track rods screw in,recut the slots for the clamps and refit the track rod ends,it was the right length then and steering lock was equal both ways
Next problem,although I ran mine like this for a year until I modified the shock mounts,is the front shockers. Because the coiler axle has the steering bar at the back of the axle and the shockers are at the back of the axle on a series,when you put it in full lock the bar moves towards the axle and hits the shocker so it doesn't get full lock,you still get more than a standard series but with the shocks moved out of the way the steering lock is unbelievable.
Any questions or if you want more pics just let me know
The next problem is the u-bolts on the drivers side front,because the axle casing is bigger near the diff than a series and the fact that the casing is tilted slightly (see pic above)a normal u bolt won't fit as its not long enough and needs a bend in it at the back. You used to be able to buy extra long u-bolts but couldn't find any when I did mine but luckily I had one in my shed so used that with a bit of modification (big hammer!) It also helps if you have parabolics fitted as they aren't as thick as standard springs so you have more length on the u-bolts.
Next was the steering,because the coiler axle is 3" wider either side the hub where the drag link goes is also 3" further away,obviously. The series drag link ( the bar that goes from the steering idler in the chassis the the hub) would go on but because it was too short it gave full lock one way and only half lock the other so that was no good. Then I thought fit a disco one as that's longer and is set up for that axle..........wrong!
The disco steering box is in a different position to a series steering idler so it was too long and gave the same effect as the short drag link but the other way round.
So what I had to do was get the disco drag link take the track rod ends out and cut 3/4 of an inch off each end where the track rods screw in,recut the slots for the clamps and refit the track rod ends,it was the right length then and steering lock was equal both ways
Next problem,although I ran mine like this for a year until I modified the shock mounts,is the front shockers. Because the coiler axle has the steering bar at the back of the axle and the shockers are at the back of the axle on a series,when you put it in full lock the bar moves towards the axle and hits the shocker so it doesn't get full lock,you still get more than a standard series but with the shocks moved out of the way the steering lock is unbelievable.
Any questions or if you want more pics just let me know
Spunka
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How are you gunna make it better than that Doc.
Nice work Jon and nice picture tutorial
Nice work Jon and nice picture tutorial
mark-d
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I was thinking the same thing
Dr_evil
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Was thinking of a slight movement of the steering track rod, essentially so you get better clearance for the spring. So rather than jacking up the axle so much I was thinking of modding the bar, turn out a full HD one on the lathe (end wise on sizes) and then mill out a bowed section in the centre so it moves over the spring or bend then reinforce it
Essentially more work but I've got the tools and time and from what I presume on that you've sacrificed a little front end height by jacking up the axle ?
Essentially more work but I've got the tools and time and from what I presume on that you've sacrificed a little front end height by jacking up the axle ?
Dr_evil
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This was the point I was trying to make, surely it creates a 1" drop ?
Because you raising the axle upwards by pushing the spring down ?
Because you raising the axle upwards by pushing the spring down ?
Dr_evil
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makes it unstable having spring over axle, a lot of work too IIRC
theres an article about it on expeditionlandrover
theres an article about it on expeditionlandrover
V8jon
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I think it's about 1 3/4" which is about 1" more than a series but can't quite remember as its 2 years since I did mine,I will check when I get home on Saturday.
Correct,I lost about 1" but its not made much difference as mine was about 3" higher than standard anyway and this is what it's like compared to a standard series
It would be worth fitting longer shackles if you've not already got them as they increase the height by about 1 1/2" so take off the 1" you will lose by fitting the axles and in theory you will still be 1/2" higher than before. They must be fitted before you mod the axle because they alter the angle of the springs a fair bit so if you set the castor angle with standard shackles and then fit longer shackles the castor angle will be out.
You could also fit parabolics which gain a few inches over standard springs but again need to be fitted before the axle mods,or a simple way to get back your lost inch in ride height would be to fit taller tyres.
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Hybrids were once cool and what you did especially when even the worst defer in the world was £8k but a old leafer and rangey were a grand the pair.
But they aint P C to do any more
Dr_evil
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Mines lifted like yours too (running military shackles and paras) but I'd still like the keep the ends even hence the thought
V8jon
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I spent months looking into this to find a way to do it but in the end I just pulled it in bits and got on with it. I made the rear spring seats the same height as the fronts so it sits nice and level,I don't really notice that its a bit lower and the benefits outweigh it anyway.
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