Drive train question

Unknown

How can you tell if the drive shaft is out of balance? I have a vibration in my drive train that a lot of old guys have told could be the result in the drive shaft being out of balance.

Thanks,

Jason48

Club Coupe

A drive shaft shop can determine if your shaft is out of balance, but have you taken a good look at it to see if there is a balance weight missing off of the shaft itself? I would think that you may have a bad carrier bearing, bad transmission mount or weak u-joints. My experience had been that driveshafts pretty much stay in balance.

Uncle Josh

My 49 Commadore 6 Rumbled badly at 50 mph and over. I Got a pair of new 'Center Driveshaft Support Carrier Cushions', item #192 from K-Gap for $26, and it's gone.

hudsonguy

Another thing to check on, is the assembly of the Hudson driveshaft. If it's been disassembled lately, make sure that the three u-joints are all oriented the same way, and in line with each other. The splined connection can easily allow incorrect assembly, and I've been told this will feel like an out of balance driveshaft.

Park_W

Also check tightness of the differential pinion nut. A '51 I acquired had driveline vibration which all investigation and driveshaft balancing didn't cure. When inspecting the diffy for other reasons I found the nut not fully tightened, and that eliminated the vibration, caused by the pinion bearings running a bit loose.

Unknown

I must sheepishly admit that checking the air pressure in the rear tires goes a long way toward relieving the problem. It still has some slight vibration, but not nearly as much, since I put recommended air pressure in the tires.

Club Coupe

Also check for a tire seperation and/or a bent wheel. If your tires are several years old they may need to be replaced per public radio. Last year there was a story on public radio about tires that were a safety hazard simply because they were several years old. So now in addition to everything else to worry about we now have the "aged tire factor" to be concerned with. Go figure.