Thread: Has anyone had a stub axle fail before?

Wheel offset is what?

I've replaced one that had failed in a similar position but it also had a failed bearing involved on standard wheels and rims. The wheel had locked solid but at the stage that I got involved the CV shaft was still in tact but the CV couldnt be removed from the stub axle. We didnt findt the crack in the stub axle until after the inner bearing race had been ground and cold chiseled away.

we wound up replacing the half shaft, cv, stub axle, bearings, seals the rotor and the pads.

I have never seen that ever before, but I have just bought my first Defender, I hope it is not a Landy thing!!
Chris

Land Rover stub axles have been failing since Series 1 in the 1950s. The thin bulk because of the bronze bush in the back of the S1 and S2 front stubs was the initial problem. The removable ring for the seal continued to be a problem until S3 when the stubs became a single piece.

The issue will always be a compromise between weight and size of the hub assembly, size of the bearings, diameter of the halfshaft/CV, the lever effect caused by the position of the bearings/wheel offset and the remaining available thickness for the stub axle.

You can't increase the thickness/strength of one without decreasing the thickness/strength of one or more of the others.

It's the first I have read about on this forum......not saying it doesn't happen but I would put it down as uncommon especially if you maintain the designed offset on the rims.

I can remember my son-in-law had a stub axle fail on his series 3 station wagon , but was years ago . They had unies ,not CVS , It had a hard life , and even less maintenance that It should have . It failed because the lock nuts came loose , It never cracked like this one !!.. Jim

First time for me. Pat

The wheels have more offset (steel Dynamics) but the same as what hundreds of others are running... and yes, i wouldn't exactly say it has an easy life either! Just a shame that it took out the virtually unbreakable Ashcroft CV in the process.

Note to self: when repacking wheel bearings in the future, check for hairline cracks in the stub axles