Rearend

[Crisjr14]

OK fellas need some advise from you I want to know if I could use the rearend out of the 54 dodge meadowbrook I bought that had a v8 motor in it to swap out with the rearend I have in my 53 meadowbrook as far as the ratios and other valuable info would be greatly appreciated thanks also if someone can give me the dimensions for the stock radiator for the 53 please the aftermarket one someone put in they cut up alot of the mounting frame ro make it fit thanks alot 

[moparfun]

Take  measurements on the width of each rear axle and find the difference if any, in the Hollander it shows that 1953 and early 1954 are the same. The gear ratio is stamped on the carrier.

[Crisjr14]

Thank you moparfun and the carrier you are referring to where the stamp is at is this part here in the picture circled correct?

[Veemoney]

Check this thread with pictures of where to find the gear ratio marked. They can be easily missed.

 

[Loren]

Usually the ratio is stamped on the flat under the filler plug.

The exact location, orientation and size of the stamps does vary as they were hand stamped.

[Crisjr14]

Thank you Loren for the information going to try and find them stamps on both rearends today 

[Crisjr14]

OK so I got the ratio from both rearends so the 3.9 is on my 53 and the 4.1 is on the 54 so next question would be could I still use the 4.1 ad a swap and if someone could explain to me the pros and cons I guess you would say on this issue thank you 

[moparfun]

I'm not sure I understand your question. The 4.11 is a lower gear ratio than the 3.91, IMO the 3.91 with stock size tires will get you down the highway with the motor purring, the 4.11 would be for more around town.

[Booger]

make sure the the carrier and bolt number are the same to axle ' some are 10 some are 11

[Sniper]

Did you grab the speedometer pinion gear from the donor?

 

Different gear ratios will affect the reading on your speedometer.

[Crisjr14]

Moparfun I was asking if the 4.1 off of the 54 will work on my 53 that has a 3.9 in it. Booger I have no clue as to do that measurement you are saying. Sniper the speedometer pinion gear has me stumped as well so friends I'm not that mechanical just trying to learn as I go 

[Los_Control]

I think someone somewhere can give you the exact answer .... Long story short, you just need to try it & see.

@Booger makes a good point on counting the the bolts to see if they are the same.

Another issue could be the axle shaft diameter & spline count ..... Possible your axles will not fit this hogs head.

 

I remember back when I was 25 years old, swapping one out in a hour or so on a 1960's dodge truck without a tapered axle in a hour or so.

Only suggesting it is very likely it will work because how close they are .... small chance it wont work .... in 1 hour or so you can find out.

 

No idea why you want to change them. 4.1 is what my truck has, great around the town or farm, 50mph probably top speed stretching it. Good for a race car in a 1/4 mile track.

The 3.9 is better for highway use .... maybe 60 mph? .... I dunno but more highway friendly then a 4.1.

[Crisjr14]

Los Control thank you for the info I should be more specific the 53 that I want to change the rear end only has the flat 6 in it and also the leaf springs are messed up as well as leaking oil and I'm getting ready to get rid of the 54 I bought for parts and just want to see if the rearend would be good to save for later issues I come across 

[Booger]

absolutely save anything you can

[Los_Control]

How much storage space do you have? ???

If the brake drums are any good you want to save those, any decent hardware, springs, shoes. Good chance the axles will interchange if the rear ends are same width.

The drums for new replacements are $400 each ....

Springs and brake hardware are kinda unique .... you can order online new ones at a premium price. .... Never know when you need a axle.

 

Too be honest with you, depending what your end goal is ..... When my rear end gives me issues, I'm going to replace it with either a jeep cherokee or ford explorer rear end.

I want 3:73 gears for highway, I will have modern brakes I can buy at any local parts store, I will change the u-joints & drive line to fit.

My current u-joints on my truck are hard to find & $80 each.

 

I'm just saying, if the hogs head was bad on my truck I would not mess with installing another just like it, I would swap the complete rear end.

So I would not bother storing it. Good brake drums ... yes ... small hardware, springs & shoes ... yes. A axle .... maybe.

 

The leaf springs throw me off. .... They generally are vehicle specific.

If they are bad on your car you want to build .... I have no idea if the ones from your parts car will fit.

There is a really good chance they can help you repair yours ..... if you take both spring packs apart and assemble with good springs ... no idea if they just bolt on.

I would save those if yours are a issue.

[Loren]

Here we have lots of opinions all have some merit. I personally favor keeping the stock rear end. Its a good design and changing it won’t give you more power or reliability. I just saw a fellow asking for help figuring out what kind of brakes his car had because no one told him when he bought it.

On axle ratios if you are going to drive highway speeds you’ll want the lowest numerical ratio. The lowest numerical ratio in the stock rear axle is 3.54 ( I have heard of a 3.23 but have never seen one ). The 4.1 ratio you have usually came in cars with an Overdrive transmission. That is a super desirable item so take a real good look at that car. Overdrive with a 3.73 is a real good combination.

If anyone is looking for a 3.54, French Lake has one in a 56 DeSoto on ebay. You might ask if they have an Overdrive as the last one I bought from them was $250 plus $95 shipping.

Anyway that’s what I’d be doing.

Overdrive transmissions should be left in gear out of Overdrive when parked and the parking brake kept in good condition. I found a solution to the iffy parking brake issue. Speedway Motors has a special valve that gives you 4 wheel parking brakes. You push down on the brake pedal and pull on a knob that holds the brake pressure.

[Crisjr14]

Thank you Loren but I am a little confused everyone is saying that the 3.9 I have in my 53 daily driver that has a flat 6 vs the 54 I bought for parts which the emblem on the hood looks like it says v8 so that would mean more power on freeway but comments are saying that the 4.0 would be slower on highways vs my flat 6 with the 3.9?

[Sniper]

11 hours ago, Loren said:

If anyone is looking for a 3.54, French Lake has one in a 56 DeSoto on ebay.

 

Shipping is insane on that, pretty sure it is the entire axle, not just the center section though.

[Loren]

Yes it is the whole thing.

I don’t need one so I didn’t investigate further but one could ask if they could ( for a fee of course ) send you just the differential carrier.

They seem to want to work with their customers.

I spotted a rare 6 volt positive ground Delta Mark Ten CDI in a photo and inquired about it. They set up a buy-it-now auction and emailed me when it went live so I could buy it and not violate ebay rules.

A carrier should weigh about what an O.D. Transmission does and the shipping for me was only $95.

Bottomline, stuff is out there if people will look for it.

What I have seen is crazy ads for odd parts, yet they show you the whole car from several views. The idea being to start a dialog with buyers so they will inquire about other parts.

You’ve got to love this hobby!

[Bob Riding]

On 3/18/2023 at 7:19 PM, Loren said:

Yes it is the whole thing.

I don’t need one so I didn’t investigate further but one could ask if they could ( for a fee of course ) send you just the differential carrier.

They seem to want to work with their customers.

I spotted a rare 6 volt positive ground Delta Mark Ten CDI in a photo and inquired about it. They set up a buy-it-now auction and emailed me when it went live so I could buy it and not violate ebay rules.

A carrier should weigh about what an O.D. Transmission does and the shipping for me was only $95.

Bottomline, stuff is out there if people will look for it.

What I have seen is crazy ads for odd parts, yet they show you the whole car from several views. The idea being to start a dialog with buyers so they will inquire about other parts.

You’ve got to love this hobby!

Check out these guys: Pirate Ship. I've used them a few times to ship heavy parts and they are significantly cheaper than UPS, FedEx or USPS. No fees to join, just set up an account.

[Booger]

I cant find anything on years/model 10 bolt pumpkin vs 11 bolt. I suspect 53 on up

Anyone?

Edited March 20, 2023 by Booger
spel

[Dodgeb4ya]

The 1953 Dodge six cylinder car would use 16 spline axle shafts in a 11 bolt carrier.

1952 and back cars use 10 splIne axle shafts excepth for Crown Imperial Chryslers.

 

[Sniper]

57 minutes ago, Booger said:

I cant find anything on years/model 10 bolt pumpkin vs 11 bolt. I suspect 53 on up

Anyone?

I bet if you looked up the carrier gasket in the parts book you'd know what had the same bolt count.

 

Carrier itself changes tween 1950 and 1951.  The gasket is the same 1941-1954

[Dodgeb4ya]

Eight cylinder cars,long wheel base  8 passenger and station wagon six cylinder cars except Plymouth use 10 bolt carriers through 1952.

8-3/4" ring and pinion.

[D35 Torpedo]

I'm bringing this thread back because I'm researching axles. My 50 dodge has 373s and a driveshaft with universals. The 52 plymouth has what I believe is 39x and an 11 bolt pumpkin with a trunnion driveshaft. I wasn't able to find stampings like the samples found online. Below the plug it says 039  8760. They look almost cast in, not stamped. Anyways, in order to run universals, are the flanges different? What models have the parts? Any other info to add would be appreciated.