So while browsing around on Rock Auto I happened across these heavy duty axles and wondered if anyone else has used them or anything like it. I plan on doing a 2" lift soon maybe bigger and I know lifting these beasts puts a huge strain on the CVs. 

https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/subaru,1991,loyale,1.8l+h4,1270112,drivetrain,cv+half+shaft+assembly,2288

And I need to replace my axles anyway. The boots are torn and at one point dunked in sand. They are starting to really bind up. 

I have not tried them, but I believe they advertise a longer travel than the stock shafts, which would make them ideal for a lift.

Somebody used them and said they were no better than the other offerings out there in aftermarket land. 

I used Surtraks after they took over/ bought out EMPI. I wasn't impressed, but they were the 8003s, not the 9003s, and it was several years ago. 

Good luck!

Dan

There is no such thing as a heavy duty halfshaft for the 4-lug cars because, generally speaking, all the aftermarket or rebuilt axles will fail in short order.  Do a search for non-OEM axle reviews and you'll find that people have had to replace "brand new" rebuilt axles over and over again.

My friend had “heavy duty” axles for his loyale and they were absolute trash

I must have lucked out. I bought heavy duty front axles from rock auto for my brumby (stock lift). They've been in there for 20,000 now and still going strong. Boots holding up well.

Cheers, Knucklehead 

 

Long story short, in a conversation with AWD Tuning, the local shop that repaired my WRX's transmission, they report good success with 'HD' axles made by FEQ , they get them from WorldPac.

 

I have no idea how many models they offer or any other details.

If they're OEM - clean and reboot them.  they're binding because they have zero grease in them and tons of debris - not because they're necessarily permanently damaged and unusable.   i've done it with 100% success rate so far plenty with 10's of thousands of miles on them.  the general idea that "noise = bad" is terribly inaccurate. 

if you don't believe me - wipe out all the current grease and dirt you can and stuff and pack it really good with grease to test it out.  the noises will subside.  you gotta pack it really good by hand though because you're not taking the joint apart so it's hard to get new grease in and old out - you can't just sit the grease in there somewhere for it fall right back out again, and it's all going to sling right back out when you drive again but you'll get 10-50 miles of notably quieter/less symptomatic driving to verify they're worth rebooting if you don't believe me.  i get that i'm quite literally almost hte only person in Subaru world saying this.  but i've done a bunch of times.  

i've also seen so many aftermarkets break they're simply not worth my time when there are easily, repeatable, 100% successful methods out there.  

also - go find some used OEM axles. 

also - some folks say they have better aftermarket success by judiciously spreading the grease out before installing them or replacing the grease with good quality, proper amounts before installing. personally i say why bother when i know i can find an OEM axle, but those shop guys need easily repeatable, quick turn around supplies and have found ways around it. 

To get the outer joint off the axel.  Get a 12 inch piece of 2x6.  Drill a hole just big enough to fit the steel axle through, after removing the inner joint.

Clamp the axle in a vise with the joint end down.  Put something under to catch the joint.   A moderate hit on the block of wood should pop it off.

Now you can clean,  and inspect, and regrease much more effectively. 

I've never had the patience to disassemble, good job DaveT!   I've always sprayed it out and worked the joint around and called it good.

I have done some that way previously,  but now that they are near impossible to get oem , I had to find out how to deal with the dirtier ones I had set aside. 

7 hours ago, idosubaru said:

If they're OEM - clean and reboot them.  they're binding because they have zero grease in them and tons of debris - not because they're necessarily permanently damaged and unusable.   i've done it with 100% success rate so far plenty with 10's of thousands of miles on them.  the general idea that "noise = bad" is terribly inaccurate. 

if you don't believe me - wipe out all the current grease and dirt you can and stuff and pack it really good with grease to test it out.  the noises will subside.  you gotta pack it really good by hand though because you're not taking the joint apart so it's hard to get new grease in and old out - you can't just sit the grease in there somewhere for it fall right back out again, and it's all going to sling right back out when you drive again but you'll get 10-50 miles of notably quieter/less symptomatic driving to verify they're worth rebooting if you don't believe me.  i get that i'm quite literally almost hte only person in Subaru world saying this.  but i've done a bunch of times.  

i've also seen so many aftermarkets break they're simply not worth my time when there are easily, repeatable, 100% successful methods out there.  

also - go find some used OEM axles. 

also - some folks say they have better aftermarket success by judiciously spreading the grease out before installing them or replacing the grease with good quality, proper amounts before installing. personally i say why bother when i know i can find an OEM axle, but those shop guys need easily repeatable, quick turn around supplies and have found ways around it. 

This is true, BUT...

I remember in my earliest Subaru days, when there WERE NO aftermarket axles even being made (yes, a long time ago), and the dealer wanted over $300 PER JOINT. Scouring the junkyards for replacements, cleaning, rebooting with good grease, only to hear the horrible "click-click" again.

So yes, they do get worn to a point of no return, and I could never see, or feel if one was worn bad enough to click just by inspection. Just had to go through them and try it.

I'll never forget that feeling of elation when I finally got a good set! And then they would last the life of the car.

13 hours ago, Subaru Scott said:

 Scouring the junkyards for replacements, cleaning, rebooting with good grease, only to hear the horrible "click-click" again.

Yep, it's a mechanical part so they can surely fail.  I certainly wouldn't say they never fail.  I've had some axles I wouldn't attempt that on knowing what they had been through. 

One difference I've seen is units that have seen significant abrasives, two that i've seen are sand like coastal areas/offroad and certain states/situations that use heavy abrasives for winter treatments more than chemicals.  when those are thrown into joints they get torn up quickly.

Thanks for the info! So just because it's making horrible clunking and grinding sound doesn't mean it's necessarily bad? I'm pretty sure they are factory ones. It looks pretty straight forward in my Haynes repair manual. I have a set on my parts car in about the same shape. I'll pop em out and take a look and rebuild them. I'm just worried because of driven it through sand and got sand everywhere.