Welding Spiders

[dom]

I know this topic has been talked about a hundred times over, but with all of the searching around I've done I can't seem to find a simple set of directions to weld up spider gears. I've got a 14 bolt FF rear end with 456 gears and an open carrier. I've done my homework on spools, and decided that a full spool would be the best option for me. With that said, they're a good chunk of change, and I think that I've got good enough stick welding skills to do the job myself. My problem is that I can't seem to find plans for exactly what to weld to what. Has anyone been through the process, taken pictures along the way, and is willing to walk me through it with some simple directions? I would really appreciate the help...

Thanks in advance for any help, and again, I'm sorry for bringing up an old subject.

[old school truck dude]

No need to apologize for wantin to do somethin the right way. Theres a bunch on here that will answer that for ya

[Blazin40s]

Check out pirate 4x4s 14ff bible.  Pretty sure it tells u there.  But basicly pull carrier, remove ring gear, and weld side gears to carrier, and to spiders.

Just google 14 bolt ff bible

[betterbeaters]

weld the spider gears to each other

[mutt truck]

when we welded my 70 i didnt pull any gears! just lift the a$$ end up to spin it around to weld it.  I think a spool only runs about 150$ but ya welding is faster. i am going to be changing the fluid in mine soon so if you have not gotten to it by then i will take some pics and post em here for ya and hopefully that might give you a better idea as to what ya need to do.

[tntmud]

Its been a while since I did mine, but we split the carrier   welded the spiders to the carrier   and then once you put it back together I believe there is 3 holes around the outside of the carrier, We welded the holes shut also. My truck gets the S#@T beat out of it   and the carrier has NEVER failed.    Hope this helps

[bigmud44]

my spiders are welded to each other plus the carrier 700+ horses .im not a welder friend that did it used lots of brake cleaner

[Blazin40s]

Yeah clean it real good....then clean it again

[Hammerlane]

little added info:

the gears are tempered.. when you weld them they become brittle (don't worry) I placed a bolt or piece of square rod between
the spider gears and the axle shaft gear, weld the spiders (they're actually called planetary gears cause they rotate like planets and thats the action your trying to stop)
and the axle gears together with the rod in between the teeth.. you do not need to make a huge ball out of your setup.. just good welds..
bench top works best unless your really good at vert./overhead with a stick welder.. (just an opinion)

drop the cross (which is what you'll end up with) into one side of the carrier and flip the assy. over, you will see little windows in the carrier, rotate the gear set until they are in the window.. weld them in place.. now.. the carrier is cast.. best to use nickle rod to weld this but you don't have to.. either way.. when your done welding.. DO NOT cool it with anything (the carrier may crack) let it air cool ONLY.
weld these windows completely shut and don't be shy with the rod.

I have done several this way (sorry no pics) and they are very strong and as long as you don't weld up a huge ball it's lightweight by comparison.
be more than happy to talk you thru it.

[Jjay78]

when we did mine we just filled in a couple teeth on teh spiders and put em back in, that way if we needed to for some reason we could put diff spiders back in and it'd be streetable again, only took a can or 2 of brake clean and a few seconds per spider

[Captn. J]

when we did mine we just filled in a couple teeth on teh spiders and put em back in, that way if we needed to for some reason we could put diff spiders back in and it'd be streetable again, only took a can or 2 of brake clean and a few seconds per spider

x2   thats what i did