Posted by Don in Missouri on Monday, June 21, 2004 at 12:41PM :
In Reply to: Re: What's the shortest intermediate driveshaft you can build? posted by John Foster on Monday, June 21, 2004 at 10:11AM :
I don't have any confidence that I could mount the gear boxes precisely enough to put a rigid spacer between them. They would probably be pre-loaded from my crooked installation, not to mention what will happen when the frame flexes. I'm glad to hear you've done it in case I am left with no other option.
Considering my admitted lack of precision, I probably wouldn't notice the virbation of an single u-joint, but I'm gonna try to run two u-joints so they cancel each other like they are suppose to. That's why I liked the idea of a cardan joint. I was counting on it acting like a tiny drivehaft with the accelration of each u-joint canceling each other out. I negelcted to consider the cardan joint won't allow forward/back movement.
What If I took two transmission flanges, cut the splines off, bolted them back to back (with a spacer if needed), and put u-joints on each side? Would that be like a tiny driveshaft?
Could I leave the big nut off one of the transmission shafts and let the yolk act like a slip yoke on the transmission shaft?
If not that, maybe I could put a rubber spacer between the flanges? I've never seen a rubber spacer as you describe. What applications use that?
I understand nothing of that quote Mark posted about cardan joints. Maybe I will understand if after I read more into that web site.
If I use original intermediate shafts shortend to 7" my final driveshaft to the rear diff will be 11" long. I haven't looked at my pinion and driveline angles yet, so I have some more geometry to do. Whatever complications I go through to shorten up the intermediate shafts will net me a longer final driveshaft length. Those are my trade-offs.
Mark, can you identify the flanges pictured in your post below. I'm wondering if M37 flanges will make it easier to insert shorty intermediate shafts.
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