Differcntiats 25 | front of four-wheel dr.iveaxles.

It's essentiallya mirror image hypoid desigrywhere the pinion is above dre centerlineof the ring gear instead of be1ow.In addition, the teeth are cur.vedin the oppositedirection, so the pinion, which turns in the opposite direction in front-drive applications, dlives on the stronger convex side of the teeth (more on this in a bit). What are tl.repractical differences? The spiral bevel design is noisier.and has more backlash than the hypoid design, but it runs cooler and createslessfriction. The hypoid design createsmore frictiory becausethe gear teeth actually slicle acr.oss each other as they mcsh. Hypoid offset, or the distance lrom the pinion centerlineand thc ring gear centerline,is variable. The advantageto a hypoicl design is

1/1/31-Ringand Pinion Construction Details

The ring gear, also kr-rownas the "crou,n" gear,and the pinion gear come in severalvariations. In curent times, three general types are common in car and light truck tealns-spiral bevei, hypoid, ancl reversecut (a.k.a."high pinion" or "reverse rotation"). In the simplest terms, they differ in that the centerline of the pinion is at the center'line the ring gear on a of spiral bevel design and belotv the centelljnc for a hypoid design. A variant of the hypoid is the reverse-cutling gear, which is designed{or.the

Ringand pinionsets come in everysizeand configuration. Here's Ic$,from DanaSpiccr a and one fromAMC. t-oplql: DanaSpicer (7.7sinch),DanaSpicet (7.12inch),Dafa Spjcer (/.12inch),DanaSpicer 2s 27 l0 fr_ol jf+], Danaspiccr44 (B.sinch), AMC 20 (8.88inch)DanaSpicer (9.2sinch)and DanaSpiccr60 s3 _4] -(9.: l'l 75 irrlhL I generJl,thc lrrser the rinSgcar,the stourer Lrntt. rhe Thatstatement doesn,t alwaysapp y io o)d vs ne$,The DanaSpicer hd! a smaler ringgcarthanthe DanaSpicer for exampte, the 30 is ilronger J0 25, but in everymeasurableway.NotealsothedilferencesinthelinongeJreSurnerreleqcni.rIindicatingalow( i . " l \ \ r 8 l r . l i o O n p a d r p J r B pr o , " i r g , ' g h r . - r r p r i ,I r o , r . o .

26 | DiJ.ferentials that the pinion is larger in diameter and provides greater tooth contact, which means the load is spreadout over a larger areaof the teeth. ]n More steelmakesfor a stronter gearset. additiory a larger hypoid oflset changes the load angle on the pinior1 teeth, whjch also adds to gear strength.More or lesshypoid offset results ir-r morc or lesstooth contact,but there are some in disadvantages terms of friction and parasitical More offset is often used in hear'y-duty drag. axleswhere 1ow gear ratios are needed, Thc leverse-cutring geal was designedfor in front axles,whjch totate in the opposite use direction of the rcar.Prior lo this, rear axleswere used up fiont, which meant they were ddving riJe of the ring gc.rr. on the coast (concave) Using it this way makes it flom 15-30percent weaker when driving forward. To give back the lost sbrength,the reversc cut ring gears were dcsignedso that they drive or1the convexside of the geal. The pinion is usually above the ring which may also be an assetto gear centerJine, driveline ang)esin some modified 4x4 setups. Not all manufacturersadopted this desigq but many Ford, Chevy and Jeep 4x4s are so equipped. ln recent years, the amboid gearset has beendevelopedfor large trucks.This type places the pinion abovethe centellinebut in a standard rotation. Arvin-Meritor (formerly Rockwell) is currently using these gearsetson tandem axle applicationsto reduceddveline vibration due to driveshaft angles.We may somedayseeamboid in gearscts light-duty vehicles. The gearratio is determinedby the number of teeth on the ring gear divided by the number of beethon the pinion geal. For example,a ring gear with 43 teeth combined with a pinion that has 13 teeth iesults in a 3.31:1ratio. The variety of ratios is not infinite, but axleswith larger ring gears tend to havc a wider range. There are strengthand size issuesinvolved in too many or too few teethon eitherthe ring or pjrliongears. The ring and pinion gears are constructed of a hard a1loysteelmaterial,most often an SAE 8620alloy that is heat treated to spec according to eachmanufacturer'sstandards.The quality of the 8620steelmay vary as will the heat treating, so there is a quality gap in some cases. There are "Race OnJy" fing and pinions that are made of 9310and the heat treatment is different.They are softer than a standardR&P to be better able to absorbshock loadin& but they wear out much more quickly. For a race car that gets only a few hundred miles per year or an wear is not an issue. overhaul after every season, A streetcar is another story.Unlessyou racetl-re vehicle,stay away from thesegearsets. The designand diameterof the pinion shaft and the method of attachingthe driveshaftyoke is important to strength.Lefs stad with pinion mountings. A pinion that has no support bearings at its gear end is said to be overhung. Most for cut ls The reverse fing gear(right) designed use in the T r r n - ' n . , t s H differentials use an overhung pinion. Higher t , o r n r ( n r- \ h p , l d r l e d p n r i o r . l l o r q u e u n i l . . o m e l i m e " f e a t u r ea r l r a d d l e built to drjve off the stronljerconvexs de of lhe reeih.This avoids a Loss strengththat comes from drjvjng on the oi mounted pinioq which means they have an side coan (concave) of the rifg gearwhen the axle is used a d d i l i o n a l- u p p o r l b e d r i n Sa t t h e g e a r e n d . be on couLd up froni.Depending whomyoutalkto, thalloss Well-known examplesof straddle-mountedpintrom 15 to 30 percent. anywhere

Diffen tiLlts |

)7

In sonre nslanccs/ spilccrs Ltsecl lhc alternrarkct arc by lo nomoloBate carricrb a numberof clilferenl fg gcar ofe I thickfesscs. wofks,anclsot'nct I mes is necessar),, we DUr Lhinkil's af inelegant 5oluliofthal lntroduces sorncprob, l \ ' , 1. e . o l r l r . r l . I r p . : 1 8b , . r L"t r "io , . ., ."rr E o ,- -^r,.,. ,r t. .r. t,t^r ., hp, , . .. t ,. (.1,. .,. to , o exressive gea rlrnoutarld redrctio| ir Lhcc amprg ring a cfleclthat is th. primary ffeansol holding gearr ghrlt thc aganstthe I lange.
i1 :.1r.r'i i88a.-uiir: .,. r,r,'."r'r.

ions t'ould include the Ford 9-inch dropout and the older versjon of the GM/Saginar//AAM "L4-bolt" full-floater These designs 10.S-inch also feature a removablepinion bearing retainer housing. As with axle shafts, the larger the pinion, Lhc more lnput torque the unit can handle (assumingthc rest of the axle is up to the same spec). to splines, same As the rulesapply aswith axles. More splines increase the minor spline cliameieranclmake for a sh.onger piece. Gear ratios actually affect rint and pinion gear strength. The lon'cr (rumerically higher.) you go in a gearsetwith a ring gear of a given diarnetet the weaker the gearsctbecomes.you can make tl-reratio lou,er by having more teeth on both the gears,but you will have to make the teeth smaller and weaker.The ncxt possibiljty is to decrease the number of teeth on the pinion. This reduces tl'te amoultt of tooth conrac, so rnor:estressis being put on less material. In a high ratio gearset,there may effectively be two or more teeth irr nesh wjth the ring gear at any given moment.As the pinion gear getssmalleL the contact may be reduced to the point where you have only one tooth in mesl-r any gtven at time. In the leal world, manufacturers reduce tooth size and number to raise strength,but it,s better io upgrade to an axle with a larger.ring

Here are very cear visual definitions for ',carrier brea(.,, Because p nion gcargeh srnaller arger Inc axterato the or as changes, location the ring gearface cranges. the you can of compensaie simplt making ringgearthickJr thinner, by the or o b 1^.ir- 1." ,g ga" rorr.i].r' ,,g ur rl-.," i,. '.,14-- boh \.,\, r h. \F{.r n \^T. ,orfJ|i .l-,\dec .l-..1 they preferLosavethe re ativey expensive 8620 al oy i,rB"'r' l",.,rlalr. np
O'tF oTUd t.-. ,Loo..1. to oTp i.dra tlei

by ma<nB and invcntorying several ianiers for each axle

I t. r^*

18 I

ofiset thirn b go to a and,/or rrorc h)'Poic1 Eiear an supel loiv ratio or-r irxlc \\'ith a snall rillg gear' fhe method of attaching the ring g,ear hl the cafriel is 1\'o1th.rfew \vofds. lbda\i viltr-1al b\. 11, everl unit is attachecl bolts ln the not too Eiihel \\'i]\', distant pilst, rivets \\ere also Llsecl. colrlr(\'tionf|1)nr thesepiecesnle pirrt of a clircat the fing qe.rr io the calrier and acceptthe tolque b)'lhe gcar latio Thc! thrt has bccn mr,rliiPliecl Their nLrnllrer arc usuall)' Ell.rLlc,b(tls, or Lretter' .lr1cl sizc is clctcrmirrcrlLrl'thc tlialnetcl ol the line gcaf and ihe nmount of lor'qllc tlle ilxle is clcsignetl io hi'ttrcllc.

l ) r , I r ) ( r ( ( ( i r r r ( 1 l i . r rl r Lr r ,r\ r ' rr ) l r L r1 r , l r r ) r5 5 1r) r ) r1 r r , r | * r , r , r s r ,\ ( l r : . 1 ! ( , l , r L (l1 ) l l r ( l ) l I , r r r I r ( ' \ / ( ' 1 i L r I l L l o f L \ u s r r o r i l r { ' ( l i ! ( ' s l r , r: l , r r r ( 1r { . / ( ' , r r ( l l l l x o r r ( < l r r o r r r r , r r I l r r l r r ' ! i r , r r r t r LrL r l ,i,i,,', ,,,., ,,r' r , , , , l , , " 1 , , r r . r r k r l L r : r 'l ( , , L , r i i r r r ( )s L \ ' ( ' r r r | l n r , r r r ' ,,, l l r ( L l ) , , 1 1 r ' l ( ' L r, r r 1 1 i l r ( ' \,lr ) L ! x ' \ f l r r ' l i r r I i r r i t \ srr' Lil'L l)l)l L!ir'\ , l,Lirullr fri,r,,, I(''\l)r1r1) L!! ( L r l ) 1 ! , L r k l\r ( ' L r l ) i1 ! ( r ) l i { ' rI r, rr rlrrrr L ,,i ri(\ 11, L ' , L t r s L. r r \ ! ( \ ' r r r r r l j r L | r r r r ( j I r ! ( ' r , r \ ! r L r',',', t ( l l \ L l ) r L i r , ! rI r ' ( , i r 1 L r ( ' , , r r ' r r r r | , r l \ r i r r l ' r , r r rl r . rr 1 r ' r , i , , i r L , , l n , r i r r r { 1, r L ( , r l l t L r L ( ) r i n | r ! i l ) r , rllr r j i l ) L r l . r 1 r , c r r r , r ' l r I r , L ) , , 1 ! 1\ i / , 1 \' ! ! , l ! 1 1 llr\ r \ t r 1 )l i t r ( '

1/1 /3K- Differential Construction Details

r s L l i l l ' t ' r e r t t i cr l) t t s i s t ( ) l n l l L l n l L ) co f r( r l i l l ' f f ( ' r l t i , lrrl , l sh ) L r ( ' A \ p . r r i s . s x n . r s s t ' n r b 1L'l,l c if's slouI be..rLrsL' ihr' io(ltlc corlrlc.li(]llbcl!{c('n l L h cr i r r gg , r ' . r r . r nttlll c . r r l c s .I i c n l c n r b e r , r l s tL lra t Ltrlvt h c f i r r g. r r l . l h t l r i sl { r f r l u c r s b e e r rn r L r l t i P l i L ' g c r| [ r i i o . pini()n fhc aarricf is i c.lsi of 1(rrgL'd l)lcce l() il l r l ! l i l . ( ) r l l ; 1 i r r s r ! h i c h i h c r i n g g c a r 1 sr t t n a h c c singlc piccc, thc tlil'fcrcniialgcals. lt's r.rsrrallv,r that Lrolt Lnl sL)lIccarricrsdlL'of rrlultiPlcPjc'cc's icrgcilrc.r'. rc rliffcrcntill Pirlions, of "sPrder ' L i r l . . | | . | . . . ,I r . r t , t l r " . lr' ' Lritr i.'r " r ' l .l ifiL'r'er1or "spiclel sh.ii." \lost stanll.fcl oPen iials car|v t$ro pinjorls, u,hilc hcavv clLriv.ules morc spoceln tht'calwith l.lrge ring geals (arrcl '' '1 ' i . r . ' f l .r r . r f ) "' In I llrc. -\'. r1 .'i Lrestout and ihey arc folgecl,heilt trcaied, high made of Irigh Ihc crossshaft is .t1so qu;r1itv stccL. clualitv allo,v sieel thirt is surfacc haldcnccl. The side geals arc splinctl to the arLesancl ale of ihe samc matefial ils tllc pilliolls 'l'hc

,F

t l ' e r h . t r sh e L r s L. . f n f r l o r b e t \ r r f r L r e d i ! u s h n i t a n r t ; q i o l ' . eL , i t ' * , n n t e dr . rr g e sm . ii f i ( r r a s t r oq ' , ' , r o i i e no n a t e r . o . l e l F o r l r ! . l L r 1 s , r r . li n l r o ' T r . l

i h . r r r r i o l r s l h e ' o n r ' l n o r i l i f , q e f o ! s l o u tl r o l c . r n . lt h c c . r1 1 l lrss':ofr no rll ce-'f . rrr runr ) I g"'r r "ee\rc'i\!erfd f e d r o rn ' o L P o oi n iierent.lt veqhiil I r ' 8 r ' f \ "L r f q rl r r r e e l