GM 14blt rear axles?

[manimal]

Well, I still think I would rather have the readily available 14blt and all its aftermarket support instead of looking for a good sterling to start off with....but this turned into a ******* contest over who's is bigger. I just asked if anyone has swapped one in.

 

[crash-harris]

Lots have done it on PBB and FSB. A lot of the rock crawler guys like them.

 

[typ4]

Interesting comments. I can tell you in my 37 years of wrenching that the 14 bolt is damn tough. I put one behind an 8.2 Detroit, Allison combo for a heavy cargo tow tractor. Was still going after 10 years at DFW.
I did maintenance for a tow truck co and they had an all Chevy fleet, did pallets of sm465 Trans for them. Only one diff swap due to water damage.
If I was needing a rear for any of my trucks and had nothing, a disc brake 14 would be my choice.
I'm not a Dana 60 fan for heavy pickups, ring gear side bearing takes a crap under high load. Sterling and Dana 70 use the same carrier bearings.
A straddle pinion is stronger for gear deflection, 14 bolthas a great pinon structure.
I have concluded that when a diff runs out of oil it doesn't matter what brand it is.
Just my dollars worth. Lol

 

[towcat]

I personally wouldn't Chevy has weak rear ends(what year or you looking at?)

FUD.
your opinion is contrary to just about every pro builder.
I'd like to see pics behind your story on how you broke a GM/Corp 14 bolt rear.

 

[crash-harris]

@dieselboy (I thought he was on here too) ate a 10.25" with his turbo'd 6.9 while crawling.

I always felt that the 2 are about comparable under a Ford truck. Just depends on your build.

 

[IDIoit]

FUD.
your opinion is contrary to just about every pro builder.
I'd like to see pics behind your story on how you broke a GM/Corp 14 bolt rear.

right?
experience outweighs all.

i have NEVER broke a 14 bolt.
ive destroyed d-60's lots and lots of 10 bolts, a 12 bolt,
and a sterling 10.5.

in my 25+ years of wrenching, i dont think ive ever had to open up a 14 bolt for anything else but changing fluids.

 

[Waystro]

I've Never Broke a 14 Bolt either also never said I did But I have seen 14 bolts grenaded(not in my truck) I've also seen sterlings blow up also Proper maintenance oil changes etc will be the determining factor in the life of your axle.
Me and expert No
Do I have a lot of experience Nope Just got into cars/trucks and working on them when I was 17(19 now) Still Learning and don't mean to sound like a know it all.

 

[riotwarrior]

I was not trying to make a ******* contest I was mearly trying to challenge those whom arbitrarily tout one thing better than the other without substantiating fact vs stating opinion.

I fully agree the support for 14 B is far superior than 10.25/.50 for sure.

For most the stock axle is adequate provides direct bolt in with no ill effect on abs or speed sensors.

Just wanted to challenge the what fors and whys...I knew the sterling has a hivher torque input capacity rating and lower gvw....funny how that rolls like that...they rated it that way.

Anyway was just food for thought.

 

[IDIoit]

I was not trying to make a ******* contest I was mearly trying to challenge those whom arbitrarily tout one thing better than the other without substantiating fact vs stating opinion.

I fully agree the support for 14 B is far superior than 10.25/.50 for sure.

For most the stock axle is adequate provides direct bolt in with no ill effect on abs or speed sensors.

Just wanted to challenge the what fors and whys...I knew the sterling has a hivher torque input capacity rating and lower gvw....funny how that rolls like that...they rated it that way.

Anyway was just food for thought.

would love to know the actual numbers on the ft/lbs!

btw, do not classify the sterling 10.5 with the 10.25

i hate the 10.5!

 

[LCAM-01XA]

Well, I still think I would rather have the readily available 14blt and all its aftermarket support instead of looking for a good sterling to start off with....but this turned into a ******* contest over who's is bigger. I just asked if anyone has swapped one in.

I'd go for it. ANYTHING can be obliterated with lack of proper maintenance and the presence of the right moron behind the wheel, plus what I think folks tend to miss is the vehicle said axle is going into - an '80s F250 is not rated to tow/haul the same numbers as a 2000-up GM 3500, noticeably less power and torque to work with too compared to a 8.1 "Duragas". The only reason we're replacing our Stering 10.25 with a Dana 70 (E350 cutaway) and not a GM 14-bolt is that we already have 14 wheels with good tires for this truck and Ford dually wheels will not pilot properly on a GM axle. But you have a SRW truck, those can center their wheels by the cone lug nuts just fine, so you should be good to go. ABS sensor is not an issue as you don't have ABS or an electronic speedometer. Spring perches can be moved, we'll be doing that on our axle actually since they're way off. I really don't see it as a big deal, but I will suggest that if you're going thru the trouble of doing all the work you may wanna look into the newer axles that have disc brakes from the factory

 

[towcat]

the saving grace of the 10.25 is that they're plentiful and more importantly......CHEAP.
Finding a good 14bolt is not easy and will often cost you alot more than a 10.25.

Waystro- what's getting you in trouble is the heresay. Do yourself a favor and restrain yourself from referencing to heresay. It will save your ass from being made fool every time.

 

[trackspeeder]

would love to know the actual numbers on the ft/lbs!

btw, do not classify the sterling 10.5 with the 10.25

i hate the 10.5!

They are basically the same axle.

 

[IDIoit]

had to dig into a 10.5, not a 10.25, so i have a biased opinion lol

 

[manimal]

Well, right now I have 3 good 14blts. NONE of which have the POS Gov-loc....THOSE 'ARE' junk.

 

[tbrumm]

Ford Sterling 10.25/10.5
1.50" axle shaft dia. 35 splines
Mfg. Output Torque Rating:
10.25 8300 ft.lbs. short duration/2000 ft. lbs continuous, gross axle wt. rating 8250 lbs.
10.5 10,660 ft. lbs short duration/2900 ft. lbs continuous, gross axle wt. rating 9750 lbs
AAM 11.50 Gen.II 14 Bolt
1.43" axle shaft dia. 30 splines
Mfg. Output Torque Rating:
8333 ft. lbs. GM application, gross axle wt. rating 6500 lbs SRW GM application
GM 10.50 Rear 14 Bolt
1.50 axle shaft dia. 30 splines
Mfg. Output Torque Rating:
6242 ft. lbs. (max), gross axle wt. rating 5700-8600 lbs.

The above information is taken directly from my differential "bible", Differentials, Identification, Restoration and Repair by Jim Allen and Randy Lyman.