Curious About an Additional Weld Line on a Narrowing

[El Viento]

Good day fellow enthusiasts! ! ! I hope all's well as can be with you cool cats out there ! ! ! I have a question about a Weld line that I honestly believe is a SERIOUS hookup from Moser Engineering in this Narrowing job.......background, Axle Housing (8.75) was exactly 59.125 Outer axle housing flange to outer axle housing flange when I sent it in....

M.E. called when they received the Housing to confirm what was being done to it.....spoke to the actual Tech that was doing the work.....this is all after an email correspondence with an Advisor from M.E....everything was ultra smooth.....now, as I figured it, about 3.230? Or something, can't remember, would be taken out of each side and using the original ends....that was done, and the Welds are awesome.....but there's a curious weld line on one side of the axle that I THINK might be due to straightening the housing ? Any welders out there or others that might like to give a gander as to what this additional weld line is about ? I'm not upset about the job.....I think it was an awesome job and I am BEYOND satisfied mates ! ! ! I just wonder what that other line might be about.....anyways, pics or it didn't happen right ? Check the one side up near the center section ......a hook up in straightening the housing maybe ?

 

[El Viento]

And here's the business.....I'm no welder but these look LEGIT to me......next up, the one side with an additional weld line....now, keep in mind, originally the end of the housing to the original spring perches were like 4" away before (it was I that removed the perches and ground down the remaining weld....yikes), and you'll see how they are now brought in to normal a Body width. I can see the ends were brought in, but how about the other weld line ?

 

[El Viento]

And here's the pic to check out in detail....
On one side of the housing there's one weld line between the housing end and the remaining housing length....on the other side is the same thing, but there's another line up near the center ...any guesses ?

 

[TheGrateRonzini]

Some people narrow the housing by removing a section closer to the housing. It appears they shortened the tube there and welded new ends on. Ugly where the perch was IMO. He also could have been trying to keep the old perch location the same distance from the drum and had to shorten that tube to get your measurement

 

[Dana67Dart]

Is your last photo all the way around the tube?

I would not be too happy with that.

Straightening should not require the tube to be cut IMHO

 

[Dana67Dart]

IMHO I don't think they did a professional job.

There is a guy I know who narrows 8 3/4" and you can't tell.

 

[El Viento]

TheGrateRonzini, that makes sense indeed. I'm not a Welder so I wouldn't know a good one from a not so good one......so thanks for the replies everyone.....

In fairness to Moser, I myself took off the Spring Perches and "ground" (or I tried to at least) the remaining weld down....this housing was from a post 72 truck or van as the perches were originally on the top of the axle housing and the vent tube block is down the housing arm and not up on the center section area as I understand 71' and earlier are ?........

I should also say, this was JUST a narrowing job. I thought maybe that additional weld line near the center section was part of a straightening job they may have discovered and fixed for me or something.

I'm definitely satisfied.....%1000....the measurement is spot on so I'm good .....clean it up, spray its new color, an Anthracite Gray and we roll.....I gotta learn about welds....SMILE....

 

[El Viento]

Is your last photo all the way around the tube?

I would not be too happy with that.

Straightening should not require the tube to be cut IMHO

Yes it is, that weld is like that around the tube.

I assumed that weld line up near the center section may have been part of a straightening job .....but yeah, it'll fit....

I saw a different thread where the job went like Antarctica South so yeah....I'm happy but wholeheartedly appreciate the true more experienced eyes take on it.

 

[Dana67Dart]

There are several ways to narrow a rear.

One is to cut off the OEM ends, narrow the housing and machine the ends back to a point where they can be welded back on.

Another is to cut off the ends narrow the housing and weld in new replacement ends

Another method is to cut a section out of the tubes and weld the tubes back together, preferably with an inner tube for reinforcement.

The first method maintains the oem ends but you sacrifice the oem shape formed when the housings were formed. A basic chamfer.

The second method you loose the OEM chamfer but you gain ends that MIGHT be better for seal install and fit the bearing fit.

The third you maintain the oem ends and chamfer and when done right is undetectable from the outside

 

[Oldmanmopar]

We narrow rears.. They screwed up on the length and already welded the end on. Cutting it back off and saving the end impossible. Not knowing where the perches were going they had no choice but to cut it in far enough to mis there location. They owe you a housing. That is junk without a back brace. You could not imagine how much those housings flex. Main reason for the back brace is the flex causes the axles to crack the carrier caps on a hole shot with sticky tires.

 

[Desoto291hemi]

I disagree with these assumptions .

Do y’all remember the guy here several months ago with the housing that had been narrowed and one end was so far out of line that it was almost the material thickness ?
Looked awful !
But the housing tube was bent and they rewelded the end back on correctly,,,even though it looked awful ?

If this housing was bent much like that,,,,they could have cut the tube,,,,cut the notch to realign the tube,,,and welded it all back up .
The rear looks great,,,,other than the extra weld bead .
But he’s got to dress down the old welds from the previous perches anyway .

If he’s racing with slicks,and a lot of power,,it needs a back brace added anyway .
Which will usually warp the housing some ,,,from the added heat .

I remember seeing many Dana 60s with both new tubes welded in at the center section .
New tubes,,,but original center .
No failures there .

But I don’t think they owe him a housing,,,,that is pretty good looking work .
Good looking welds,,,,they should have dropped him a note about the added weld and explained that .

Good communication can solve a lot of issues .

Tommy

 

[Royal Pain]

I would call Moser and talk to them, they have always been straight up and honest with me. They may have found something that was missed in the first inspection.

 

[Lefty71]

I would call Moser and talk to them,

This should have been in post #1. Maybe they would give him one if hes unhappy with the work, who knows....

 

[El Viento]

This should have been in post #1. Maybe they would give him one if hes unhappy with the work, who knows..

Right right....I too saw that thread where things with the narrowing (and straightening maybe) went due South as part of my research when looking for who to narrow the housing.......(including just getting a Dr. Diff's package but its been sold out for a while)....I came pretty close to buying one of 666cuda's (?) and just selling this one off....but the dates of the Ring Gear, the housing age, the case's age - all line up with when I was born basically so it had to stay.....

So yeah folks, I tried explaining that I'm VERY VERY VERY happy with the Job....Not at all dissatisfied.....I don't feel there's a need to have that extra weld explained by the Tech or Moser - I'm sure they're busy enough..........I saw it as something they found and fixed for me originally.......I was just curious, nothing more....I'm running that axle housing....It's a total street car-no crazy HP at all....just wanted to get rid of the 7.25 that's there IN CASE I wanted more and I came across a 8.75 out of pure luck....and needed it "fixed" to work for me.....

 

[El Viento]

Oldmanmopar.....A question for you if I can ? This car won't ever see anything past 85 MPH, and even that is a STRETCH......do axle housings see flex under normal driving conditions ? I'm honestly not sure.....heck, if I were on a Million Dollar game show and the final ?uestion to win that Millsky was to define a "hole shot with sticky tires" mannnnnn, I'd have to look at the Wifey and say, "sorry Babe, we're leaving with whatever we came with because I have no idea as to what that means".....so yeah, under nonracing conditions, is there much flex to where the housing is no good ?

 

[Oldmanmopar]

It always helps to Know people. Getting info and going back and looking at your pictures . Take a close look at your second picture in post #2. Tells the whole story why they cut the tube. How about a picture of the complete housing.

Everyone makes mistakes . But they should not have let this go out the door. Their claim the housing was bad? Why didn't they see that and call you before they did anything. Not only did the new guy weld the end on offset. Do you think it could have been clocked wrong? The weld is not evenly tied into the axle end. The new guy Fuuged up and you paid ror it.

You asked about doing hole shots with sticky tires. That would be the least of my worries. What about everyday driving under harsh road conditions. A pot hole at slow speeds or under acceleration welds break, Especially welds placed where they should not be.



Sometimes it only takes one weld to ruin a road trip.

 

[El Viento]

Good day fellow enthusiasts ! ! ! I wanted to drop an update regarding that Weld Line I've been most curious about......I did get in touch with Moser and they were able to have the actual Tech that worked on the Housing explain the Weld up near the Center Section, and rather than paraphrase, I'll just paste the exact reply.....



D***** this is S****

Sometime when a housing is bent so bad that the housing end would fall off center from the tube so far it wouldn’t work out so we slit the tube and pull it where it needs to be to be strait. Also, for brackets lining up as well wheel base and such. Does that answer your question? Thank you



That's the explanation directly from Moser......Im still on the fence about it....I was offered an another Housing at a neighborhood friendly price if I want to exercise that option so I don't know.....still thinking about it.....I've only read of 2 breaks along Weld Lines that Moser performed a narrowing job on over the last 13 Years and they were both more race circuit cars, so I don't know.....out of all of this, my Wife came up with the best line of reasoning that I've taken from this experience which may mean a "go ahead" to get a new housing and that was, "well - if you're worried about that part breaking under stress, shouldn't you be equally as worried about those other 2 parts possibly breaking ? Just go with one that's not ever been fixed.... that's easy....., you don't need me to tell you that" ! ! !

So yeah, I'll take that as permission to go with the offer for a new Housing......but will I ? ? I'm still on the fence about it honestly.....

 

[Oldmanmopar]

The welded on flanges at the end have much less leverage . Also why is the end off center if they straightened the housing before putting the ends on?
They will never admit what they did or why they did it if they screwed up. The main thing is they didn't contact you and tell you that your housing was bent. They are saying its their way or the highway. They should have given you the opportunity to send them another housing. You didn't ask them to repair your housing you asked them to narrow it. But this would have shown the housing was straight to start with.

Looking at your pictures the end is still welded on offset. So didn't they straighten it enough? Or did they slice it so they didn't have to cut the end back off that was welded on wrong? I would never trust them now. we have housings A,B,C and E. And many of them . Not a one bent one in the house. You just so happened to buy the rare bent housing to narrow. Cut me a break.. You Pm'd me and I gave you our number to call. You didn't.

I under stand your frustration and don't want to accept that you got had. Some of these places have reps that could sell ice to an Eskimo.

Like if you would send a block here for a .030 bore and a tool would break boring it. Then I would tell you we had to sleeve it because it was cracked. But it was magnafluxed and pressure tested before any machine work was done. I hope you were wearing boots when the gave you that line of bullshit.

THEY SHOULD HAVE CONTACTED YOU BEFORE ANY WORK WAS DONE IF IT WAS BENT. Now your stuck with your thumbs up you *** and the only proof you have is the end is still off center. I wouldn't accept that weld on my Housing no matter what their excuse is. I am so glad you posted this. they just lost me as a customer. I'll never buy anything Moser again for any customer. They should admit they were wrong. even if it is for not contacting you and refund you money.

 

[mopowers]

Sounds like the housing was bent (they all are to some extent) and they needed to straighten the tube enough to give them a place to weld the end to. Sounds like a reasonable explanation to me. I wouldn't have any problem running it.

Maybe try bolting up the center chunk and slide the axle in. Notice how it easily it slides in.

 

[Dana67Dart]

I have 4 A body 8 3/4 rear ends One of them had been welded on. 2 of the 4 did not need straightening 2 did but only slightly and that required pulling pushing and perhaps a little heat BUT not one was sliced like that. IMHO a weld is strong in its as welded configuration. once you start removing weld to smooth it out it is no longer as strong as it was originally.

IMHO #2 buy another housing and have it checked locally where you can see it before sending it anywhere.

Side note...

The reason I have 4 A body 8 3/4 housings is because the first one that had a perfect outer surface had been crushed by round U bolts and a calibrated arm on the end of a wrench. The second one was really good on the outside but the locating holes were elongated, The 3rd was a bit more pock marked but the rest was good, The 4th was great externally and no other issues.

I learned on each purchase, I was more picky as time went on. Had I been able to see them up close before purchase I probably would not have bought 2 of them. But now I have 2 extra Housing I can sell down the road that have been fully repaired and are ready to run. AND NO THEY ARE NOT FOR SALE!

 

[El Viento]

Oh yeah, this is a perfect scenario of Fool Me Once-Fool Me Twice ...I'm not getting fooled again......I have no idea what replacement Housing might arrive and in what condition......the Rep' said a New Moser Housing but I'm not falling for the Banana in the tailpipe again ! ! !

I contacted Moser to allow them an explanation and what I got is ummmmm, kinda like a bunch of who shot John.....and when I saw strait was spelled like that < and NOT STRAIGHT, I was done reading....I've always learned that to expect a resolution at least requires the offending party to explain their side-which ultimately helps guide the forthcoming resolution.....

Now, if I contacted Moser and said, "you guys made an additional Weld/cut and I want " x " for the problem WITHOUT giving them at least the chance to put themselves under further (or offer a legit explanation) -Im swinging Left handed with a right handed Bat and never making it to base.........I haven't been very successful at getting a resolution when operating under those terms you know ? Whichever way it goes, I've learned a thing or two......

But one thing I'd like to make very clear....getting your pants pulled down when you don't KNOW all that's involved is more an example of getting taken advantage of...now if I KNEW what a good Weld looks like, and if I KNEW what properties makes up a good Weld/narrowing job AND still accepted it all, then I'm a dumbass.......But learning FROM getting taken advantage of is a whole different thing and is something I can actually learn FROM......I felt I did everything right....
I did my research and went with what I thought is arguably a reputable Company....getting shafted by that same Company says more about them than me.....


If I tried all of this on my own, Id be getting bombarded with "have some respect and care for others you're out there driving with", or, "this is something that's NOT for novices because you can hurt wayyy more people than just yourself", and, "you should really let the pros handle something this serious"...

All of which I'm down with ! ! ! I tried doing it the right way and I'm instead bombarded with "yo-you got had by Moser and you paid for it"....I can and will agree that I've been perhaps had, but I'm certainly not afraid to admit it......I'll just make corrections and move on.....it's not the end of the Dart by any means.....mannnnn, I have 2 Children, 2 Cats, 2 BIG dogs and 2 Hedgehogs to worry about...

Dealing with a 47 Pound paperweight is the least of what I worry about these days.....

I actually worry more about the average Republican all of a sudden wanting to speak Russian and having a Villa in Gaza 2.0 than I do this stuff, so yeah, that's where my worries lay....

 

[mopar head]

Throws out his tds

 

[weedburner]

This rear of mine has similar welds in both tubes, been that way since the mid 90's. Lots of 1.30 60's dead hooking on radials...

It would still be in the car, except for a near head-on with a Tundra...

The tube and axle were bent bad, but where the tube was welded together held up just fine.

Grant

 

[NC Engine Builder]

There is zero issues with that housing, it will run forever.

 

[Dana67Dart]

.....the Rep' said a New Moser Housing but I'm not falling for the Banana in the tailpipe again

I believe the Moser housing is a Ford 9" shaped housing but with an 8 3/4" hole and bolt spacing for the center section.

I'm really sorry your in this mess, and I bet you are sorry you asked