aluminum driveshaft/ single piece

148705 Views 133 Replies 64 Participants Last post by Rhotpursuit, Sep 24, 2020

zerogravity58

Discussion Starter · Aug 7, 2005 (Edited)

this is for all of you ext cab guys who want an one piece driveshaft or for you standard cab guys who want to switch to aluminum. While i was in the process of building my truck i want to ditch the 2 piece shaft and put in a single piece steel. While i was thinking about this i found out that newer 2500 chevy pickups come with 4" aluminum driveshafts. for $50 i went and took one out of one in a junkyard. The driveshaft is about 68 1/2" long and will have to be cut down for almost everbody. I had to take 4" off mine. I just wanted to let everyone know that if you want to change to a single piece or upgrade you can pull one out of this truck and have it shortened for a few bucks. The rear U joint fits both the 8.5 and 7.5, the only thing you will have to do is have the tranny yokes changed. These shafts are strong with all welded joints (some have crimped ends)
Just wanted to let everyone know. Pm me if you have any questions.

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rixtrix1

· #61 · Mar 20, 2008

Re: aluminum driveshaft/ single piece TOO Fast

zerogravity58 said:
This is true you do have to clearance the floor as stated above...plus if you hit the aluminum and dent it then you are pretty much done..Im running a single piece 5" and my truck is lowered 4" all the way around and i havent had any problems with it. With a single piece over a 2 piece there is less drivetrain loss. I dont understand how a car is to fast for a single piece driveshaft?

Too Fast means that due to the design and metalllurgy of driveshafts, there is a design limitation on how long one can be for a certain RPM, without the rotational harmonics of a u-joint causing it to fail. Everytime a u-joint rotates 90 degrees, it acts like the differential in a rear axle. The trunnion(cap) on the inside of the angle slows down and the outside one has to speed up. As the RPM gets higher( and there is a limitation on the length of the driveshaft, too), one gets closer to exceeding the modulus of elasticity of the design and the shaft distorts, twists or breaks. Ever see a long delivery truck , or a school bus, with a one piece driveshaft. The loading on the individual pieces is much lower than if it was a one iece shaft. This is why the new Mustangs(UGH!)have a two piece shaft. Clearance is an issue, but so is reliability, as long as the shaft angles are correct, a 2 piece is great.

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rmason256

· #62 · Apr 16, 2008

I am running a aluminum shaft out of a trailblazer in a 1st gen regular cab and short bed. the shaft was the about the same size as the factory one. Maybe a half to a inch shorter which is good for lowered trucks. Did not have to cut just installed. works great

Robert

RazorS10

· #63 · Jul 22, 2008

zerogravity58 said:
no if they shorten it and its out they can rebalcne them. it cost me like $125 to have it shortened with new U joints.

What year truck did you get the driveshaft out of?

zerogravity58

Discussion Starter · #64 · Jul 22, 2008

i pulled it out of a wrecked 02 chevy 2500HD

fbodyguy86

· #65 · Jul 23, 2008

my dad has a 2500 and he needed a new driveshaft for (caps were messed up on the rear)and took it to a driveshaft shop around here they said they couldnt do it on those bigger (4in) shafts cause they have an internal torque tube and wouldnt be able to rebalance the shaft once it was rewelded back together or they couldnt weld the inner tube back on or something so he got one at a salvage yard for $60

george

joshuaT

· #66 · Jul 28, 2008

So by doing this alloy mod what increases will I get? How much lighter is it overall? I want to make my blazer a little lighter due to my speakers and box.

chadzx11

· #67 · Sep 5, 2008

Guy at work has an 03 regular cab long bed with a 2.2. One piece aluminum drive shaft. Is this the same length as an extended cab drive shaft? That long ass frame looks wierd with no crossmember.

ineedboost

· #68 · Sep 11, 2008

zerogravity58 said:
this is for all of you ext cab guys who want an one piece driveshaft or for you standard cab guys who want to switch to aluminum. While i was in the process of building my truck i want to ditch the 2 piece shaft and put in a single piece steel. While i was thinking about this i found out that newer 2500 chevy pickups come with 4" aluminum driveshafts. for $50 i went and took one out of one in a junkyard. The driveshaft is about 68 1/2" long and will have to be cut down for almost everbody. I had to take 4" off mine. I just wanted to let everyone know that if you want to change to a single piece or upgrade you can pull one out of this truck and have it shortened for a few bucks. The rear U joint fits both the 8.5 and 7.5, the only thing you will have to do is have the tranny yokes changed. These shafts are strong with all welded joints (some have crimped ends)
Just wanted to let everyone know. Pm me if you have any questions.

Which yolks did you have to change? I would prob have to change my yolk in my rear, its a stupid 4 bolt flange. If I got a shaft out of a truck that already had a 4l60e I should be good with the front yolk. Where did you get your shaft cut at? Im in DE cant seem to locate a place , but I'm right on the MD/DE line.

dimerunner88

· #69 · Sep 14, 2008

btw alot of the OBS fullsizes had aluminum shafts aswell,mine has the 4 inch one.

RazorS10

· #70 · Sep 22, 2008

zerogravity58 said:
no if they shorten it and its out they can rebalcne them. it cost me like $125 to have it shortened with new U joints.

Whats the stock lenght of a stock 2 piece driveshaft?

zerogravity58

Discussion Starter · #71 · Sep 22, 2008

im not to sure what the stock length is. Its been awhile and i cant remember

RazorS10

· #72 · Sep 23, 2008

If i cant get a one piece its no need to do my swap.

RazorS10

· #73 · Sep 23, 2008

i have an 03 zq8 5spd

supercharger01

· #74 · Oct 21, 2008

I have a 2 piece driveshaft on my '91 standard cab long bed would i have any clearance issues if i got an aluminum drive shaft from a newer full size? :dunno:

idriz

· #75 · Nov 24, 2008

any one have pics of there drive shafts and notches in the cab?? thanks

AnnDee4444

· #76 · Feb 5, 2009

I'm dropped 3-4" in the rear. The scratches on the driveshaft were from testing (too soft of a spring and shock combo) and occured under WOT, so it's probably a tad bit unbalanced.

Note the big-ass notch i had to put in the subframe and the hammered section of the rear cab. Also I had to cut the cab floor parallel to the driveshaft, directly above it.

I'm still having pinion angle issues, but the entire shaft weighs 17lbs vs. the 45lbs stock...

I think it did more for power than pulleys, intake, or headers (mmm rotational inertia) but was offset by my wheels

.

oh and the notch is an old section of pipe that I cut up

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S15vortecpwr

· #77 · Feb 11, 2009 (Edited)

sorry did not read the entire thread about the driveshaft. just skimmed thru it

I was looking thru the newest 4x4 offroad mag and seen that IEDLS.COM has an advertisement for 1 piece aluminum DS that replace the 2 piece dual cardon shafts. went to their website, and no info on that shaft or any other DS.

ridered600

· #78 · Apr 23, 2009

Yep, i'm digging this thread from the grave. Hit the boneyard this morning and found an '01 ZR2 ext. cab aluminum driveshaft.

I have an '01 ZQ8 reg. cab 5-spd. I didn't see an answer to this, but has anyone done this swap yet. Direct fit (??) or cut/weld?

Thanks in advance.

2separate

· #79 · May 15, 2009 (Edited)

Pardon me cause this is old shit, but with the cardan rear half I still could never seem to dial in and be vibe free. I found a way lighter driveshaft from the wreckers just to see if ditching the cardan would help. Cost me $150 to shorten/ balance with new joints, even the slip yoke had the same splines.
Well....after swapping pinion/yoke flange I took it for a boot and just as I get to 20ks it shakes rattles and rolls up until about 40k.....but there's never vibration pushing 80-120k at any height, like the cardan did...for me.
I purchased Jagsthatrun...2pc alighnment kit and did my best to align this thing with a silly string. After all this typing and the actual work involved, at full ride height there's no vibes at any speed except when it's an inch off the ground and then it pulls an elvis on me. then goes away.
Ok......thanks.

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darkpunk

· #80 · Oct 4, 2009

Sorry for digging this old thread up again!!

I removed my 2 piece driveshaft brought it to a local shop to have them press out the u joints and remove the cv ball.....in this whole process they snapped the ears off between the flange and the front u joint!!!! So we were thinking of getting a aluminum shaft instead of that piece of artwork. My truck is not lowered! if anything i will lift it will a 5' aluminum shaft work for me? I got bigger tires on right now but im going to install my 2' lift springs and lift the back with shackles. What do you guys think?

Matt

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