26 NOVEMBER 20194-WHEEL & OFF-ROAD 4WHEELOFFROAD.COM
ROCK ON, ROCKWELL, ROCK ON!
SOURCES
BOYCE EQUIPMENT
800.748.4269
boyceequipment.comEATON
877.386.2273
eaton.comPSC PERFORMANCE STEERING COMPONENTS
817.270.0102
pscmotorsports.com6
Here in the inside of the boot you can
access the inner boot clamp (already loose)
and get at the pull tab on the zipper to remove
the boot. We’ll clean up the old boots and use
them for our post-apocalyptic warrior Hal-
loween costume. We can now remove the last
seals from inside the axlehousing and clean up
the gobs of grease inside the knuckles and on
the a x lehousing. W hat does one do w ith t wo
quarts of used grease?7
For the rear a x le we w ill have to remove
these 12 rivets per side to remove the drum
backing plates. We tried cutting a few rivets
with the oxy/acetylene torch, tried drilling
out a few, and finally learned that the easiest
way to attack them was by grinding off one
head and knocking them out with a drift and a
hammer. This was probably the least fun part
of tearing these axles apart so we can load the
diffs with lockers—or maybe scraping up all
that grease was the least fun part. Either way,while things are heavy (use an engine hoist)
and there are many spindle bolts and rivets (be
patient), everything came apart as expected
on our axles without much fight at all.8
With the axleshafts removed from the
housing you can drain the differentials,
remove the nuts retaining the axle’s centersec-
tion (four of them require some slow work w ith
a box end wrench), and then use an engine
hoist to lift the centersection out of the axle.
You may have to tap the housing with a ham-
mer or pry with a screwdriver to get the center-
section to separate from the housing.9
The Eaton NoSPIN differential is what we
would call a locker. Like its more familiar
brother the Detroit Locker, this is an automatic
differential locker. Installation requires remov-
ing the differential carrier from the centersec-
tion, splitting it in half, removing the spider
gears and thrust washers, and of course install-
ing the NoSPIN. The procedure is similar to that
of a GM Corporate full-float 14-bolt axle. Leave
that bolt through the middle of the locker in
place until the two halves of the centersection
are reassembled.10
Assembly of the axles is the opposite of
disassembly with new gaskets and seals.The new replacement knuckle boots from
Boyce Equipment lack zippers, which is just as
well because the zippers on the old boots were
a weak point for sealing. We’re not going to
fully assemble our Rockwell axles at this point
because we are still waiting on some upgrade
parts for this project before installing them in
a truck , so keep your eyes on these pages and
fourwheeler.com for more big axle tech.11
We’ve hinted at this fully hydraulic steer-
ing system from PSC for the Rockwell
axles before. It includes just about everything
we need to make the big a x le steer. We w ill al so
fabricate a ram mount and get this steering
system all sussed out on the front axle in the
coming months.69 10
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