I think my 8 ¾ housing is toast.
So, is the housing toast, or is this something that I could fix?
You could probably fix it, provided the dented portion of the axle tube can be moved back into position for rewelding of perches. I'm sure there is a way to do that. I had similar issues, although the dents were from the U-bolts.
In my case, the housing axle tubes were bent banana shaped, so much so that my tires rubbed the forward portion of the rear tire opening. My first clue was someone's comment that smoke was coming off my tires as I went down the track. When I looked at the housing, I was amazed that it indeed was banana'd with twist marks indicating the pinion angle had changed.
I had moved the springs inboard (002/003 SS springs) without narrowing the rear end. I figured this left a bigger moment arm allowing the tube to more easily bend.
Long story short: I took the housing to a guy in Pennsylvania I read about in Mopar Muscle (or something) who could straighten the housing. He had a "gage" which he used along with a press to straighten. I brought that "gage" home with me. I can now tell if a housing is straight any time I want to mount that "gage".
I subsequently back braced my housing and extended the conventional brace shown in this thread to the tube end. I added some support around the perches, shimmed the pinion angle, and have not had a problem since. So, I think it could be fixed if you desire to do so.