hp loss

[Jim Davies]

On Sat, 13 Mar 1999, Greg Hermann wrote:

> 
> A twelve bolt and a Dana 60 both have about half of the pinion axis drop
> below the centerline that the Ford 9 does. Guess would be that a 12 bolt
> ring is nearly as strong as a 9, Dana 60 is a BUNCH tougher--but neither
> has the nose bearing for the pinion--which adds a LOT of stability to the
> gear mesh under load. (If you doubt the significance of the nose bearing
> for taking heavy torque loads well, check out the design of any heavy truck
> or heavy equipment center section, Rockwell, Eaton, ZF, anybody's1)
> 
The pinion nose bearing is a feature of many medium duty axles [as is a
bronze thrust block for the back of the ring gear, another good idea] but
in the Ford 8-8 3/4-9-and 9 3/8 inch axles, it is needed to offset the
weakening effect of the very close placement of the pinion bearings, IMO.