Would you buy axle out of truck which was sitting for a long time?

[Mattchu60]

Hey all,

Im always on the lookout for a 14 bolt rear end. Found one sitting in a truck, its parked in a grove on a farm, looks like it has been there a long time - at least 20 years. Would you run away from this? I assume everything would be horribly rusted....

 

[RetroC10Sport]

I'd pop the cover off and see what the inside looks like but I wouldn't be afraid to run it after new seals and all new brakes.

 

[towjoe]

same here I'd pop cover off and if looks good I'd reseal it and new brakes. I've sold axles out of pile I've had laying out 10-15 years

 

[crazy4offroad]

My axles had been sitting out for a long time, brake backing plates and dust shields were gone, drums in bad shape which is why I went with rear disc brakes right away. It takes a lot of work and money to bring them back to functional but if you get a hell of a deal it might be worth it. The 14 bolt I got was $125 I think, and the Dana 60 front was $700. The front was DRW so once I got the hub assemblies swapped for SRW for around $550 I still had the price of a nice shape D60 if one was to be found. All said & done I had around $400 in the rear, around $1500 in the front.

 

[marks86]

like everyone said pop off cover see what fluild looks like

 

[MrMarty51]

Back lash and condition of gears.
Some rust and pitting where the gears was above oil level will be expected.
I have run gears in this condition with success if they are not too bad.
If back lash between the pinion and ring gears is too great then, a total teardown and new bearings { which should be replaced any way } would be expected.