Jetstar 88

It turns out a bad axle bearing ate down on the old axle, ruining it. Are there
A) Any sources of reproduction axles?
B) Any other axles that would interchange?
Or, C) Does anybody have an axle they could part with?

jaunty75

I had the exact same thing happen to my '64 Jetstar 88 20 years ago. I found another J-88 in a junkyard and took the axle out of it.

I would think that any full-size '64 Olds could donate an axle. I doubt very much that anyone is reproducing them.

copper128

I'm pretty sure the axle from the other full-size 64's would be very different.
Didn't the 64 Jetstar use a version of the 8.2" 10-bolt instead of the old-style drop-in Pontiac/Olds rear the other big cars used?

jaunty75

You could very well be right. I really don't know.

copper128

I'm guessing here, based on my knowledge of small block 65-70 big cars, that the axle shaft would likely be the same for '64-66 Jetstar 88's only.

I believe the '67-70 330 and 350-powered 88's would be dimensionally the same, but have the 5x5" wheel bolt pattern instead of the 5x4-3/4".

copper128

I had a thought here, but check with monzaz on this for confirmation:
I believe aftermarket 28-spline BOP (bolt-in) axles are available in extra-length cut-to-fit versions which just may work for your application. I don't think the big car rear ends are all that much wider than an A-body.

Found this link: http://www.yukongear.com/ProductDeta...px?ProdID=1429

Long enough???

507OLDS

Can you get some dimensions,and the bearing that is used for that?I have a few odd shafts.Maybe I can match one up.

copper128

Brian, I don't have any firsthand knowledge of the 64 Jetstar axle, but I checked several parts sites and they all show the regular RW507CR (one eBay listing had an NOS 507BR). I'll be interesting to see if the number on the originals verifies that.

copper128

After some moe research, I found this is not correct.
67-70 small-block B cars use larger diameter axle shafts than 64-66.

507OLDS

If it is indeed an RW507CR,then there is hope,as I have a few shafts with that bearing.Then we need the length.I do have one particular axle shaft that is odd,and I do not know what it came from originally.It is very thick,until it gets to the spline,then it steps down.I got it with some parts,so it's originality is unkown.

Rickman48

If push comes to shove, you could have it welded and re-ground to your bearing size.
Biggest problem might be finding a shop to do it!

joe_padavano

OK, folks. First, the rear axle on the 1964 J88 is unique to the 1964 J88. NOTHING else interchanges. The axle on other 64 full size cars is completely different. The shafts from the A-body cars are different. The 65-66 axles are different. Your two choices are 1) have the original axle welded and ground, or 2) have a custom shaft machined by Moser.

jaunty75

So I was right. I WAS wrong.

Jetstar 88

We got the axle back today. Turns out the bearing wore an almost-perfect groove on the shaft, which is shallow enough to be of little structural issue. I'll send the axle out to a machine shop to have it welded/reground, as that looks like the only option available. Thanks for the help!

copper128

Joe, can you tell us more about this axle?
Is the differential the 8.2" Pontiac unit or something else? How do the axleshafts differ and do you know what bearing they use?

I have kind of a perverse interest in these oddball big cars. I enjoy trying to figure them out. I guess because I own 2 small-block Delmonts and sometimes can't understand why Olds did stuff the way they did.

Glenn

joe_padavano

Glenn,

Essentially, the 64 J88 rear axle is the same 8.2" center section used in the A-body cars with longer axle tubes due to the wider track width of the car. Naturally this means that the axle shafts are a different length from the A-body shafts as well.

copper128

Thanks Joe. I gather form what you posted here that the differences between the 64 and the 65-66 axle would be dimensional and housing-related due to the change in body/chassis from 64 to 65. Is that correct?
That would seem to make sense. I had kind of forgotten about the totally different chassis between these 2 model years and was assuming the rearend would be the same except for the suspension bracketry on the housing. We all know what happens when we assume...