Front Drive Shaft (4406) question

[SWIGIN]

A Link would be nice but I think I seen that before.

 

[Turdle]

2 stock skid plates welded together.

The mounting holes will need to be enlarged a tad to get both sets of holes lined up but this was easily done
Then, you shove some rubber in between the transfer case and skid plate, attach however you can.You can jack the transfer case up about 1/2 inch then let gravity pinch the rubber in between. Hopefully it will stay there-

 

[Anticitizen1]

For those who have converted to the AVM style manual hubs, how well do they hold up over time? I don't see many new retailers of these but do see a lot of the Rugged Ridge ones for sale...but I read some reports of the plastic components in these style hubs failing prematurely. Thanks!

 

[delexploder]

The rugged ridge ones and even the mile marker and warn brand are all the same made by AVM , for normal use they are fine , the key is get good hub bearings like moog or timkin , the circlips are kinda hard to find but tasca ford has them , like i said fine for normal use but i wouldnt go rock crawling with them

 

[Anticitizen1]

Ok thanks, I will probably go to this solution if I cannot resolve the issue with my truck. My issue seems to definitely be the driveshaft itself, as I tried the old school hot rod trick and put hose clamps on the front slip yoke for balance against a high spot I measured with my dial indicator, and the vibration did in fact change. Not to say the driveline angle couldn't be a source of the issue as well. If I could avoid manual hubs I would prefer to, mainly to have the ability to just throw the shift knob down and have 4x4 action. My trucks's theme is a lot like the Ramcharger from Lone Wolf McQuade, basically a truck that is decently quick for what it is, handles well and has good on-road 4 wheel drive capability. Mostly for light terrain and snow, probably little to no actual trail offroading.

 

[ahodges]

I assume your vibration got worse when you put the hose clamp on the drive shaft?

 

[Anticitizen1]

I assume your vibration got worse when you put the hose clamp on the drive shaft?

It varies depending on the position I put it on, I believe a weight came off the front yoke of the shaft before I bought it. How the driveshaft shop didn't catch that I don't know, but it is to the point where it only becomes a mild hum above 85 mph or so. I also have the trans mount shimmed 1/8" up, but I don't think that made a lick of difference so I'll probably be removing the shims.

 

[98GreenLimited]

I'm having the same issue as delexplorer - the front driveshaft from a 4.6 F150/expedition is a little bit too long. Wondering why it works for some and not for others? I read somewhere that the later explorers had the engine/trans set back a little further. Is that true? I have an early 98 (11/97 build).

I thought I might have ended up with a shaft from a 4.6 F150 that had an E4OD (the transmission behind most 5.4's, while most 4.6's have the shorter 4R70W - hence the shorter front driveshaft), so I went back to the junkyard and pulled another front shaft from a 4.6 expedition with a 4R70W. It was the same length as the one I already had! Checked another 4.6 expedition (before pulling it this time), and it was the same. As a sanity check, I measured a 5.4 expedition front shaft and it was a good 4 or 5 inches longer, so I'm pretty sure I have the "correct" 4.6 front shaft, but it is a little bit too long to fit in my 4406 swapped explorer. Check out the picture:

The flange on the transfer case end was fully seated and the shaft was fully collapsed when this picture was taken. Looks like it is at least an inch too long. Not sure I can trim it enough to fit like delexplorer. How did you trim yours? Seems like you would have to cut off the part with the dust seal?

Before I took the front flange off it measured about 35 3/4 flange-end to flange-end when fully collapsed. The length of the tube itself is about 29" fully collapsed. Can anyone measure their 4406 swap front shaft? Wondering if I might find a shaft that is an inch shorter if I keep looking, or if the issue it with my explorer?

 

[Dono]

that's strange. Its too cold, and I'm too old to want to roll around on the ground right now,

4406 Front drive shaft length

Rockauto tells me you can use any of the below vehicles with the 4.6l motor. I must have been one of the lucky ones that the shaft worked for me without any issues.
FORD F-150 1997-2004
FORD F-250 1998-1999

 

[Turdle]

http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff269/jtsmith1362/Puff/004_zps225403da.jpg~original

 

[CDW6212R]

So about 34" end to end, I forgot what that measurement was.

I just checked the one I had made, it's 32.5" compressed end to end, and over 34.5" expanded. That should do it I hope.

 

[98GreenLimited]

Thanks Jon! Thanks Don! It looks like mine is at least an inch longer than yours, Jon. Mine is 35" fully collapsed, but yours must be a little shorter than 34" collapsed to get it in there.

Looks like there are two different sizes of 4.6 front driveshafts. The one I have is from a 97 or 98 F150 XL 4.6. The one I pulled today was from a 97 Expedition XLT 4.6. I'll have to go back and double check that it wasn't just an inch shorter, but I'm fairly certain that it was the exact same. Maybe the front driveshaft was an inch longer in the early years?

The ones I pulled seemed like they were too long for the F150/Expedition to begin with, as they didn't collapse far enough to come out easily. I had to pull the crossmember that holds up the back end of the front diff to get it out. That was after 5 minutes of wiggling it around and swearing, trying to get it out.

- Kyle

 

[98GreenLimited]

Don, did you have yours made from a 1st gen shaft?

 

[98GreenLimited]

I took a pic of the door sticker so I could double check the VIN and trans code, to verify that I'm not crazy. VIN 8th digit is W -> 4.6 motor. Transmission code U -> 4R70W.

 

[CDW6212R]

Don, did you have yours made from a 1st gen shaft?

Yes, I took my old 93 shaft and had it rebuilt to the length I learned from others here. It was very expensive to get done, so try hard to find one that is already the right length.

 

[delexploder]

that was in a 99 mountaineer i had to do that in , i had to get it apart and i cut some from each side , i then used the old rear driveshaft rubber boot for a dust cover , my V8 sport i used a first gen shaft with the dbl cardon to flange adapter

 

[98GreenLimited]

Good to know, thanks. I'm debating on the first gen double cardan shaft VS the F150 single cardan. Do you have a preference?

 

[delexploder]

the first gen is a better fit on the front diff end, its already tight in that area and the f-150 shaft is big , but i also did manual hubs ob both so i dont ride around with the front ds turning all the time , i never really have had to worry about vibration ,

 

[boominXplorer]

I'm running either a double cardon first gen shaft or a Jeep XJ front shaft with adapter on my ranger. It has a superlift so the double cardon is necessary. The XJ shaft is about an inch longer I believe but the same specs as the 1st gen shaft. I grabbed both from the junkyard and now I can't remember which one I used.

 

[CDW6212R]

Good to know, thanks. I'm debating on the first gen double cardan shaft VS the F150 single cardan. Do you have a preference?

The likelihood to have a vibration seems to be random, some people have an issue, some nothing at all. The two ends should all be the same, being fixed in place(shaft angles related to each other), but it looks like there are slight differences between trucks. Just a small amount off with the angles, and a vibration will happen, and the joint type isn't the magic answer.