GM 10.5-inch 14-bolt differential: Difference between revisions

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Revision as of 19:48, 17 January 2008

10.5” Corporate 14 Bolt Differential is a heavy duty differential that is used by Chevrolet and GMC. This differential is of the full floating design and has a ring gear with a diameter of 10.5 inches. As the name implies, this differential has 14 bolts holding on the differential cover. This is a very heavy differential that weights in at around 550 lb depending on the brake options and axle width.

Applications

The 10.5” Corporate 14 bolt differential has been used in Chevrolet and GMC trucks and vans since 1973.

10.5” Corporate 14 bolt compared to other GM truck differentials

8.5” 10 bolt semi floating rear differential has a torque rating around 3,800 ft·lbf
9.5” 14 bolt semi floating rear differential has a torque rating of just less than 5,000 ft·lbf
10.5” Corporate 14 bolt full floating rear differential has a torque rating 6,242 ft·lbf
11.5” 14 bolt full floating rear differential has a torque rating 8,321 ft·lbf

Full-floating vs. semi-floating

The 10.5” Corporate 14 bolt differential is of the full-floating design. The full-floating design is used in heavy duty applications as opposed to many of the lighter-duty differentials that are semi-floating. A full-floating differential can be identified by the large hubs that stick out the end of the axle and have the axle shafts bolted to them. These axles are able to carry more weight then a comparable semi-floating differential due to the fact that the hubs on the ends of the axle have there own bearings and carry the load of the vehicle. The semi-floating design carries the weight of the vehicle on the axle shaft, there is simply one bearing on the end of the axle tube that carries the load from the axle and that the axle rotates through. In the full-floating design the hubs carry the weight of the vehicle while the axles are only used to transmit torque and rotation from the carrier in the differential to the hubs on the ends of the axle. Full-floating axles are held in place by bolting a flange on the end of the axle to the hub. With a semi-floating axle, the axles they are held in place by c-clips that are in the differential carrier. If an axle or c-clip ever breaks it is possible that the wheel of the vehicle could leave the vehicle. The full-floating design do not have c-clips but can break axles, if this happens the wheel will not go any where being it is bolted to the hub.

First design/second design

The first design was produce from 1973 to 1985. The first design remained unchanged until 1986. This design had drums that were held on by the wheel studs and had a smaller diameter pinion bearing than the second design. The second design was produced from 1986 to present. One change that occurred in the second design was that on some models the brake drum could be removed without having to remove the hub and axle shaft. Additionally, the pinion received a larger diameter bearing while the pinion stayed the same diameter, which increased the durability of the pinion.

Brakes

All of the 14 bolt differentials typically have drum brakes except for the newest models which have disk brakes. The first design of this differential had three different diameter brake drums. At first the differential was released with drums small enough to fit 15” wheels. Then after a few years a larger drum was standard on the ¾ ton along with the even larger drum on the 1 ton. This is an area of the differential that is commonly modified by the enthusiast and converted to disc brakes with all the conversion kits available and information regarding it on the internet. It is estimated that a disc brake conversion can take around 70 lb off the weight of this differential.

General specifications

1.5” diameter axles
Axles are 30 spline axles
Axles are different lengths from side to side
10.5” diameter ring gear
1.590” diameter shank on the pinion
Pinion supported with bearings on both sides of the teeth which minimizes pinion deflection
Removable pinion support

Ratios

The ratios that are available for this differential include: 3.42, 3.73, 4.10, 4.56, 4.88, 5.13, and 5.38. There are two different cases for this differential depending on the gear ratio of the differential. For gear ratios of 4.10 and lower case number 6258336 is used, while for 4.56 gears and higher case number 6258340 is used.

Advantages

Strong 10.5" ring gear and pinion
Strong Axles - 1.5" diameter, 30-spline
Stout Housing - large 3.25" x 0.5" tubes
Additional bearing on end of pinion for support
Removable Pinion
Easily converted to disc brakes
Common to find with 4.10 and 4.56 ratio
Easy to changes gears
Built in carrier preload adjusters
Cheap and Plentiful
Can be shaved to increase ground clearance by about 2"

Disadvantages

Heavy - around 550lbs.
Low ground clearance
Lack of aftermarket parts that are available to other differentials
Large, heavy brake drums
Gearing only available down to 5.38

External links

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 ==Ratios==
-The ratios that are available for this differential include: 3.42, 3.73, 4.10, 4.56, 4.88, and 5.13. There are two different cases for this differential depending on the [[gear ratio]] of the differential. For gear ratios of 4.10 and lower case number 6258336 is used, while for 4.56 gears and higher case number 6258340 is used.
+The ratios that are available for this differential include: 3.42, 3.73, 4.10, 4.56, 4.88, 5.13, and 5.38. There are two different cases for this differential depending on the [[gear ratio]] of the differential. For gear ratios of 4.10 and lower case number 6258336 is used, while for 4.56 gears and higher case number 6258340 is used.
 ==Advantages==