C-Clip eliminators
 

I'm ordering all the rear end stuff I need right now and since i'm going with rear discs, is c-clip eliminators something that would be benificial in my application? It's a 10 blt. with 2.73's and I'm probably leaning towards the Eaton posi unit for it.....thanks. Also, I've done a little searching but is there a comprehensive website where I can get all the details of rebuilding the rear?
:cool:

Ok...so I found a good tech site here and I'm pretty sure I don't want to get c-clip eliminators since the car will autocross a few times with light street use and I'm reading that they are prone to leaks. Does anyone have an opinion on this either way? Thanks again...

Several of my friends use them, and yes, they do tend to leak.

Since you're going to run disk brakes, you have a poor man's (yeah right, lol) C-clip eliminator setup. Unless the axle breaks at the hub, the rotor should keep it contained in the housing. All the axles that I've seen break, have failed at the splines.

Anyone else?

bah!!!

You don't need them as they would be redundant. Spend the money on more shiny parts!!! :D

Personally, I would not spend any money/time upgrading the 10 bolt; step up to a 12 bolt or 9 inch especially if you plan on running a lot of power through it and ever plan on running slicks. The 10 bolt is sort of a "dead end" in my opinion.

That being said, the BEST way to do the c-clip eliminator conversion (regardless of 10 or 12 bolt) is not to use the bolt on eliminators, but to have the factory ends chopped off the axle tubes and have Ford style press-on bearing ends welded onto the factory axle tubes. Much stronger and no leaks. It may be hard to find a shop that can do this properly, as they will need a jig to keep everything nice and square when they weld it. If you find a shop that hasn't done it before but "think they can" I would turn tail and run. Find an experienced shop to do this job! If they don't get the ends on nice and square you are looking at rapid bearing/axle wear plus driveability issues as the tires won't be pointed properly (toe and camber issues.)

Aftermarket 12-bolt housings are available with Ford style ends already welded on for you; Moser and KTRE come to mind.

My personal favorite is a 9" housing with a 12-bolt carrier; you get press on axles, an easily removeable carrier, and the decreased frictional losses of the 12-bolt gearset. Basically a Ford 9" housing with 12-bolt gears/carrier in it. A little odd sounding, but a very good setup!

Troy

Cool, thanks guys!! As weird at it sounds, my rear is a 8.5" 10blt vs. the "supposed-to-be" 8.2" in the car. For the application, I think doing a beefy 12 or 9 will be unneccesary as a strong 8.5 has proven itself well for the 10 sec budget racers. I'm running an auto with freeway gears and the car will only see the 1320 and autocross track a few time for numbers and dialing-in. Other than that, it's just going to be cruised and enjoyed on road trips and shows.
Troy- I definitely appreciate your input on this and the 9" w/ the 12 blt carrier seems ideal for the next project I'm designing right now! Thanks for the advice. :cool:

So it's a B-O-P 10 bolt? Agreed, they are stronger than the Chevy 10 bolts, in which case I'd keep the thing. I wish you luck in finding a competent shop to weld the Ford-style ends on the tubes, it may be a difficult search. Hopefully someone can chime in with a recommendation.

Troy

I sold my 12 bolt for a huge chunk of money, it almost paid for my Currie 9" with aluminum case. Getting rid of the C-clips was part of the decision to go with the 9". That great advice that Troy gave.

Scott, I envy you Camaro (aka leafspring) guys as you can run those super-trick Currie aluminum center sections. I can't run one as they don't have provisions for the 2 upper links of my factory 4-link. I suppose I could weld brackets on there myself, but having some brackets welded to cast aluminum as a very important structural piece of my rear suspension scares me more than just a little.

I also hear you on 12 bolt prices. They are going for CRAZY amounts of money. I got my 12 bolt for free about 5 years ago, ran it for a while with the original 2.73 pegleg, then put new gears/carrier/axles/bearings in it. I could probably sell it as it stands now without the brakes for ~$1700, and even with 2 sets of gears and bearings through it I'd still come out money ahead!

I have my eye on a Fab-9 housing with an aluminum 12-bolt carrier, but since I have either a 3-link or IRS in my future so I'm not going to be buying the Fab-9 until I make up my mind; my 12-bolt will do just fine for now.

Troy

It's probably a Chevy 8.5" ten bold. The early 10 bolts where 8.2", then they switched to 8.5". I'm not sure when they did it with the Chevelles. But for the Nova's they did it in '71. This rear end will swap into a 1st gen Camaro, and is a nice upgrade. I did it on my '68.

My '70 Nova has the 8.2", :( .