George Womack
Y-Block King
johnnyx said:Rather than start a new thread about axles and breather tubes, here's one that may or may not be new but got me wondering.... The D44 I just bought (SOA from a S800) has some sort of hole (a breather hole maybe) in the axle tube itself. The hole is not at the top of the tube, rather at the 90 degree mark so it would be at the most rear-facing point on the tube when the axle is in place. Is this common? good or bad? Perhaps just a mounting hole for the brake line?
I haven't opened the axle up yet, but am thinking it's a strange place for a breather hole...otherwise there is NO breather on this axle. (Keep in mind I'm a complete newbie this is my first time doing something more than just changing the diff fluid. Gotta learn this stuff if I'm gonna play the game. )
Also, on a side note, I was looking at my current D27 brake lines and the HARD lines at the front axle lead to a "T" and up to the MC. This line up to the MC is also HARD (though very long and winding...) but, shouldn't it be a soft line since the axle is moving all over the place? This seemed REALLY strange to me. Metal brake lines bending repeatedly seems like a bad thing.
Many Scout 800s have NO vent on the rear axle.
The early Scout 80s had three brake hoses up front--one at each wheel end connected to a hard line, and then another hose from a tee in the center of the axle up to a hard line on the body. Later 80s and 800s went to a two hose setup where each hose goes directly up to the hard lines at the inner fenders. An early 80 can be set up this way to eliminate the expense of a third hose. Sounds like a previous owner set yours up wrong. You're right; you need a hose or hoses between the axle and body. A brake failure is imminent with your current setup.