Help with axle identification

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nathanglasgow

Active Member
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374
Bought a front and rear axle today as a source of spares really for my own series 2a swb restoration.Not necassary to have but might come in handy i thought.Advertised as suitable for series 2/3 so i presumed the front would at least would be the same(the rear is a salisbury,but i knew this when purchasing).On closer examination its different.For a start the brake drums and linning are bigger.The brake shoes are 3" in width and the ends of the shafts at the hub end have 24 splines,which is more than my exisying one has.The diff looks different as it has a flat section on the bottom of the casing whilst the origionals have a curved secton.Numbers on the diff are 26 A 8
RC1948CA
JW S8 27
ROVER
So any ideas anyone what it origionally came from?
 

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Most likely a later model 'One Ton' Land Rover, they had double Salisbury at one point then changed to front Rover diff (which that is). 24 spline would indicate post 1980 or so also. One ton models had the 3" brakes. Although a poke about the net says they stopped in 1977?

Or.....maybe an ultra rare pair of Stage one axles as I think they had 3" brakes too, and cv joints instead of uj's. That would also have a 3.54 Salisbury diff at rear. To test for that hold one axle end still and turn diff nose, if you need to turn it 1.75 turns to turn the free axle end once, that's a 3.54 diff which I'll swap for a chip butty.
 
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Thanks, It was the 3 inch wide brake shoes that puzzled me.The ol' Haynes manual I have only list rear shoes as 2 1/4" wide for a series 3 lwb, but thats only the 4 cylinder as manual doesn't cover the 6.
 
Late 'rationalized' series 3 axle had diff drain plug offset to one side, not directly underneath. I think from the photo's that rules that one out
 
With a bit more internet detective work and the input from other forum members looks like they are from either a 101 forward control,stage 1 V8 series 3,Series 2/3 2.6litre 6cyl LWB or a 0ne ton.Anyway the brake parts are massive and way too big to be of any use to me as is the whole axle assembly.Probably going to strip the axle down to its component parts to make it easier to move about and then stick the lot on that well know internet auction site.
 
nathanglasgow said:
With a bit more internet detective work and the input from other forum members looks like they are from either a 101 forward control,stage 1 V8 series 3,Series 2/3 2.6litre 6cyl LWB or a 0ne ton.Anyway the brake parts are massive and way too big to be of any use to me as is the whole axle assembly.Probably going to strip the axle down to its component parts to make it easier to move about and then stick the lot on that well know internet auction site.
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11x3" brakes on the front of an 88" would be really nice powerful brakes, i run 11x2 1/4 on the front of mine (rear backplates making SLS brakes) nicely powerful and light and simple to maintain with a really good lifespan out of the brake shoes

you really do need to know which vehicles those axles are from as a few landrovers had a wider track than others (longer axles)

Stage1 front axles had CV's as already explained but i also think the swivels are slightly different to accomodate the cv's

as already said Stage1 was also 3.54:1 ratio diffs

i suggest a little measuring to check the length of the axle tubes and compare against standard (known) lengths

i "think" the 101 axles are a bit of an oddity, from vague memory the swivels are welded to the axle tube, not bolt-on as per normal landrovers
 
Most likley an early 6 pot series axle simply because its not the later flat bottomed axle case. Very unlikley to be a stage 1 as they were all flat bottomed. Easy check of the diff hold one hub still and rotate the pinion if the pinion rotates 1.75 its got the 3.5 ratio diff in it if it rotates 2.3 turnes then its a 4.7 diff.

But it does beg the question that someone may have put the later ends on an old horrible axle with less ground clearance.

If its a stage 1 I'd be seriously interested
 
I had a 67 6 cyl station wagon, think the axle was like that one. Certainly it had the 3" brake shoes, the brakes were excellent, they had an inline Clayton servo and very powerful. They would really upgrade the brakes on yours.
 
Turboman said:
I had a 67 6 cyl station wagon, think the axle was like that one. Certainly it had the 3" brake shoes, the brakes were excellent, they had an inline Clayton servo and very powerful. They would really upgrade the brakes on yours.
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Confused tho because 24 spline wasn't an option until later which makes me think someone has swapped bits around
 
jai_landrover said:
Confused tho because 24 spline wasn't an option until later which makes me think someone has swapped bits around
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Your probably right jai, lot of stuff ive seen has been mixed up over the years. Im not certain my 109SW had the axle, its a few years back, but the brakes were fantastic by old lr standards.:)
 
Thanks for the input guys.I have stripped the axle down now.Has the normal UJ's on the drive shafts.Its a 4.7 diff but in great condition.Not measured the lenght of the axle casing yet.Has bolt on swivels so nothing special there then.But still the brakes on it are massive compared to the standard ones on my 88".I'm going to keep the standard set up.Might not be a total wasted purchase as the swivels are in better nick than what's on it just now so will use these if they are compatable when I rebuild the axle and plan to keep the diff as a spare if its compatible.Will probably try and sell the Salisbury rear axle that came as part of the package or weight it in for scrap.
 
Yup shame you are miles away from Glasgow.Would probably have swapped it for a decent bottle of red.Its got to weigh over 100kg so posting is out of the question!
 
well definitely DON'T throw away those 3" backplates, someone will want those and they are postable (got drums ?? )

i wouldn't mind them meself but skint at present (jobhunting :( )

they'd possibly be a bit of a laugh on my 88"
 
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