Axle shaft

[kevin32]

Looking for left rear axle shaft for 1932 Buick series 50 coupe any ideas where I could find and seals also thank you very much 

[Mark Shaw]

I may have one from a 1931 Model 57 that could be the same.  Please post dimensions...

[Robert Engle]

PM me, I think I have some spares on the shelf.  Will double check tomorrow.

 

Bob Engle

 

 

[Robert Engle]

1932 50 series axles are the same, left and right.  late 31 50 series cars use the same axles as 1932 50 series.  Early 31 series cars use different axles.

 

Bob Engle

[Robert Engle]

I thought I would share some experience with 32-50 rear axles.  They are made from forgings.  The general surface of the shafts are really rough and you can often see occlusions into the shaft.  The axles are held in place with a C washer inside the differential gears.  With the high gear ratios on these cars the axle can be subjected to torque spikes and the axles will stress crack.  The entire wheel can then exit the car.  The other design feature is that the outer roll cage bearings are inboard of the wheel center  line, so the axle will  flex and this also can lead to axle failure.  

 

The brake drums are held in place by means of a tapered axle shaft and a key.  If the brake drums are not tightly torqued  onto the axle, the drums will work loose and wear the taper on the axle and drum.  The key will be the only thing keeping the wheel from spinning on the shaft.  The key will fret and wallow out the keyways.  This means finding new axles and drums.  Many jackleg repairs were made with shimstock and step keys in an attempt to keep the cars on the road.  

 

On the grease seals, the good news is that you can find modern seals that will fit in the seal retainer.  If any of the above failures occurred, the seal retainer has probably been damaged and will need replacing.  

 

Bob Engle