Pretzelized 8.75 housing

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superprotyrn

superprotyrn

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My 73 Dart Sport has been a drag car since the late 80s started out as back half ladder bar w/floaters and leaf springs small block car with 14-32 rubber. I purchased it in 1991 as roller added my 440 and 727. In 2000 I removed the leafs and installed a coilover kit for weight reduction raced it for 17 years that way and had common breakage issues along the way several gear sets and 2 sets of 30 spline axles 1 Strange 1 Moser. Car weighs 3170 ran 6.90 at 100 4.56 gear.Late this summer I built a 499-440 car runs 6.30 at 107 w/1.36-1.37 60 well it 4 nights of racing it has turn my old 8.75 into a iron pretzel.It twisted the housing and toed the right side tube inward 5/16". I'm torn which direction to go I have two fairly fresh center sections with strange yokes and new strange chromemoly driveshaft looking for suggestions dana or 9in ford.Thanks
 
Dana. If you can find the correct gear ratio. The Dana is as strong as the 9 and takes less power to drive when the gear ratio is 3.73 or lower.



Edit: I forgot to mention to sell all the 8.75 stuff and use the money to build the Dana.
 
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You already have an investment in center sections. Get a new housing and properly reinforce it
 
Running a strokes big block?
Only one answer!
DANA and be done.
 
Strange Dana 60....you already spend more then a dana cost on the 8 3/4 and even with it braced it will still eat the ring and pinion..

Call the Doctor....Doctor Diff...
 
I'm going to go against the grain here and recommend building a 9". My Dart has a Strange S-60 and if I were doing it over I'd build a 9", better selection of gears and brakes, another plus is that used aluminum center sections can be found pretty cheap.

I'm not sure I buy the power loss deal, or at least it's very minimal. Go to any of the big heads up races and check their rear's, even Ma Mopar used a 9" under the DP cars and a power glide too. Blasphemy!!
 
20180916_145306_zpsbv76k1gl.jpg


This is what's going in my drag car...

9" for the win!
 
justinp61 said:
I'm going to go against the grain here and recommend building a 9". My Dart has a Strange S-60 and if I were doing it over I'd build a 9", better selection of gears and brakes, another plus is that used aluminum center sections can be found pretty cheap.

I'm not sure I buy the power loss deal, or at least it's very minimal. Go to any of the big heads up races and check their rear's, even Ma Mopar used a 9" under the DP cars and a power glide too. Blasphemy!!
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That is the big Dana killer is gear selection. Used to be you could get anything you wanted within reason. Now, not so much.

I do know Dr. Diff is making some 3.23 gear sets IIRC for the D60 and if they sell maybe he will look into other ratios.
 
justinp61 said:
I'm going to go against the grain here and recommend building a 9". My Dart has a Strange S-60 and if I were doing it over I'd build a 9", better selection of gears and brakes, another plus is that used aluminum center sections can be found pretty cheap.

I'm not sure I buy the power loss deal, or at least it's very minimal. Go to any of the big heads up races and check their rear's, even Ma Mopar used a 9" under the DP cars and a power glide too. Blasphemy!!
Click to expand...
I'm leaning toward a 9" like you mentioned the availability of parts and the ease of gear changes not to mention my 2 racing buddies I run with are ford guys and they have a narrowing jig for the 9in and an abundance of parts.
 
superprotyrn said:
I'm leaning toward a 9" like you mentioned the availability of parts and the ease of gear changes not to mention my 2 racing buddies I run with are ford guys and they have a narrowing jig for the 9in and an abundance of parts.
Click to expand...

Another plus is if you happen to break one at the track most of the time there is someone there with an extra third member to loan you. keep in mind this is not a good idea if you run a 727 unless you take it apart and inspect the sprag.
 
Back in the 80's my friend had a 440-6 727 coronet R/T and he put solid motor mounts in it, so he had to test then out so with the hood on the roof he brake torqued it to about 2500 RPM then it had a bad vibration, so bad you couldn't go
15 MPH. Found the pinion pointing at the floor so we thought it broke the welds on the perch's. Not so it twisted the tubes on the housing, I couldn't believe it was possible to make that much torque to twist it but it did. I have no doubt you bend and twisted it up, I would go with a Dana 60, I have done a lot of them and never seen any one bend one, all you need special is one billet cap for the left side and you can abuse it all you want.
 
70aarcuda said:
Strange Dana 60....you already spend more then a dana cost on the 8 3/4 and even with it braced it will still eat the ring and pinion..

Call the Doctor....Doctor Diff...
Click to expand...
A couple things that have recently been brought to my attention about the strange Dana is that only the strange Dana has the threaded adjuster to set the backlash. The moser apparently does not have that feature. Also the welding of the steel axle tubes to the cast iron centre section is done the proper way when buying the aftermarket Dana 60.
 
Yes..we change gears in the Strange dana 60 and my friend did it....and he has a Moser dana...and remarked how simple the Strange was with the adjusters...and no shims..
 
Yes I did 1 strange Dana 60 and it was great to work with, if you have ever done one that diff with a ring gear gets heavier every time you take it out to change the shims.
 
The side adjusters and therefore no need for a case spreader is the reason I bought Strange over Moser.
 
Don’t the late model E350’s have the side adjusters in their Dana’s?
 
They are 60’s. I found one on eBay.
 
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