Ds-404 axle housings

Maybe @wore out could say.

 

the only difference should be the suspention mounting points. my mack run ds404's as well the mounts are not welded to the axle. everyone that iv known that has had cracking issues with the eation housings welded them and put them back in service.

 

i think how long the welding repair last is going to depend a lot on who is doing it. a proper weld repair will be stronger than original. if you just squirt some metal over the crack with a mig gun your going to have problems again.

 

yeah twisting someones arm into doing a repair there not comfortable with will almost certainly end in failure. the origional housing is stamped steel welded together you could cut out a entire spider cracked section bend up a new piece and weld it in. but at that point your probably best off replacing the housing. they probably made the right call on that one.

 

To do a crack repair the crack should be stop drilled at both ends, omitting this step is why cracks reoccur.

Steve

 

Welding them depends on how bad it's spider webbed. Also prep is key, as said drill the ends and vee them out so that the first pass penetrates all the way through. Lots of preheat to make the oil run back. Not red hot just preheat. I have the best luck using a 7018 in a stick machine but mild steel wire in competent hands is equally as good