hi guys is it all right to cut a tail shaft in half

for what purpose?

yer thats how we made my tailshaft for ca gearbox to 1200 diff

Quote:

did go "BANG" !!,
i wasnt to sure in cutting it, im cutting it down for my ca18det box, using R31 diff...............so is it ok to cut down

u can cut down but you have to balance it again

YEP i new that be on the cards........cheers

If you are doing it yourself,make sure your two cuts are dead straight!!with a slight shampher(with a file)before re welding.This is on the assumption you are very competant with a mig or tig.Then off to get it balanced

It really should be cut in a lathe. Very important that the Universals are perfectly re-aligned when welding back together too. Must run perfectly true when welded.

You don't want a driveshaft breaking or whipping around bearing in mind the speed they can end up spinning at.

I'm a reasonable welder yet I'd be going to a machine shop to get the job done including rebalancing. Mine didn't cost too much.

nah.....im just cutting enough off for dubbo diff & driveline, they can do the rest

keep enough of the tube nearest to the universals, that can fit in a lathe. Because that's how they'll reuse the unijoints. Two inches should be plenty.
This should save you some money. If you don't do this, they will have to supply new universals, which they might do anyway if the uni joints are not the 'serviceable type'.

Try not to cut the tube in the middle, because you don't want a weld in the middle of the tailshaft. It creates a weak spot to shear around the edge of the weld.