Posted by Cheyenne Dave in St. Louis on Thursday, September 26, 2002 at 8:15AM :
In Reply to: axle breakage and differrential centering posted by Ryan McNabb on Thursday, September 26, 2002 at 8:02AM :
Everything being equal, the short shaft (right side) has less length in which to distribute a twist, and more likely to break. You are less likely to break an axel shaft in a centered rear diff. The sacrifice is ground clearance...an off-center diff, has a slight ground clearance edge over a centered unit.
Having said all that, axel shaft breakage is likely to occur with abuse. Say, you've got 3 or 4 thousand pounds of cargo on and your right rear wheel drops into a badger hole while you're powering along. Snap! We have seen no problems in the most severe terrane if the following rule is followed...Easy Does It!
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