Shaving the bottom of a Salisbury?

**101 Ron** · 16th April 2012, 06:49 AM

Originally Posted by djam1

Been belting Salisbury equipped Land Rovers around the NT and NW WA for over 20 years and never found this to be a problem.
Not saying it isnt in some areas like Victoria but I think if you live in Victoria a Salisbury with 1/2 inch less clearance is the least of your problems

I live in area with with deep washed out rutts in the tracks with rocks etc mixed in.
A grind on the bottom of the diff doesnt lose strenght.
I did 1/2 inch grind on both front and rear diffs on my 101 landy and still have a protected diff drain plug.
Dont knock it unless you have tried it.
I is quick and easy to do for a 1/2 inch improvement.
Any more than 1/2 inch will require some extra work.
That 1/2 inch doesnt sound like much, but the shape of the bottom of the diff is greatly improved and will tend slide along if it touches the ground rather that plough in.
I recommend the after market covers as the sals can be alittle bit leaky at the best of times in this area.
After market covers, especially the ARB are designed with diff shaves in mind and a drain plug is fitted in the bottom of the cover to drain the oil if you want to go futher than a 3/4 inch shave and weld the standard drain plug.
The ARB cover will improve greatly diff housing strenght.
Dana 60 diff housings do not have a protrusion hanging down like the sals, so a bit of a grind gets the housing to similar shape as the Dana 60 which the Sals is a copy of.
It is worth while........you never know until you do it.

**goingbush** · 16th April 2012, 07:29 AM

Originally Posted by djam1

... I think if you live in Victoria .... less clearance is the least of your problems

Indeed !! , can't wait to get out of the place !!

**goingbush** · 16th April 2012, 07:34 AM

Originally Posted by isuzutoo-eh

...

For those who don't like bright red advertisements on their diff, there are other options too, such as the Great Lakes Offroad cover I have, which certainly makes up for any apparent loss of strength imparted via angle grinder:
Lucas Refrigerator (gets warm in there)

A can of Matt Black spray paint fixed up that Bright Red "look at me" diff cover & shiny ARB Logo

**isuzurover** · 16th April 2012, 12:16 PM

FWIW:
On my IIA - which is an offroad toy - I shaved the sals similar to Rick130. Prior to that I had lost count of the number of times I had been hung up on the sals on rutted hill climbs (even on 33's) - mainly in QLD/NSW. Shaving made a huge difference.

On the 110 (tourer) I have not shaved the sals (beyond minor smoothing underneath) and not felt the need. There are times when it has acted as a plough, but usually in soft sand/mud, and has not stopped me. However I also run 33's on the 110. If I was running 31-32" tyres I think it would have annoyed me more.

IMHO it depends on the use of the vehicle and the terrain.

Also - the ARB cover seems to be about the most expensive option of them all!!!

**101 Ron** · 16th April 2012, 04:21 PM

ARB cover is thick and strong with 2 cross bracing webs in it.
It has a drain plug built into the cover and a oil level dip stick with magnetic tip to pick up any crunchie bits in the oil.
The dip stick has different markings for rolled diffs.
The out side dimensions of the ARB cover are no bigger than a stock cover .

**101 Ron** · 16th April 2012, 04:23 PM

ARB cover fitted without any shave.

**101 Ron** · 16th April 2012, 04:57 PM

Taken tonight.
Pictures do not show the difference very well.
1/2 was gained in clearence and the shape of the housing much improved.
All with a simple grind.
I could go much further and still not lose any strenght, but I wanted the drain plug protected.
As standard the drain plug is surrounded by alot of metal which is not needed.
Front diff.
(oil leak is from changing the engine oil filter)

**101 Ron** · 16th April 2012, 05:00 PM

Rear diff.

I currently have 11.5 inches of clearence under my diffs running 35 inch tyres which measure 880mm dia in the real world.

Using a after market diff cover prevents any peeling back of the cover when sliding over things.

I could get a bit more if I wanted more by grinding flush with the drain plug and/or using a different type of drain plug, or seal it up and use the covers drain plug.

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