1950 Rearend Disassembly

R

Rocket455

Member
Slowly getting back to work so the progress on the project is slowing down. This whole COVID thing made me realize how much work gets in the way of me doing things I want to do.
Anyway, I tried taking apart the rearend. I removed the 10 nuts from around the differential thingy. I don't know if this is called a pumpkin, a 3rd member, differential cover. Whatever the hell it is I can get it maybe 1/2" or so separated from the housing. I can't get it to clear the studs. Is there something else holding this thing together? Or am I just not using enough force. I didn't want ruin anything so I left it.
Do I need to remove the giant nut from the yoke to get this thing apart?


To be clear this is a 1950 Coupe. Original overdrive car. I don't know if this is a dana 41 or 44. Apparently they both came in 50 cars. But I believe it to be original.
 
Yes. Axles were completely out. But the thingy still won’t come all the way off. Gets hung up around 1/2” off the surface of the housing.
 

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Can't think of anything that would stop it coming out. As you approach the area where it gets hung up, wobble it about. Try and deduce where it is catching. As long as the axles are out of the way it should come out.

Mart.
 
That axle doesn´t look like it belonged in that car from start...just saying when you start hunting for parts...
Dana 41/44 has a lid on the back and not a removable pumpkin...
 
It looks like the correct car axle to me. Not sure why it’s not covered in gear oil though? Do you have the shop manual?
 
When I took mine out of my ‘51, I used two small pry bars and pried at opposite sides, (3-9, 6-12) gently. It fits tight over the studs. As long as the axles are out there should be nothing holding it in....... Mark
PS...A manual is a big help.
 
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Studs can get enough bend or deflection angle to them that they make it hard to remove housings like your third member. I don't know why they didn't just use bolts. These old units were the father of the 9-inch axles. By the time it came out in 1957, Ford had learned more about how to make them.

The side bearings are held with an adjustable retainer if I remember correctly. I've never seen one back out since they are usually locked but a person should be able to see them through the axle tubes. I don't know if they can even come out far enough to block removal. There is nothing else in there that could lock anything up.
 
Thanks, everyone. I do have the green shop manual but I couldn’t really make sense of this part and the diagram didn’t give me confidence.

If nothing else could be holding it up then I’ll get it out now.
 
As your prying it up, try to see if any one stud is bent, binding in the hole. If you see one, let the center section ( pumpkin) back down, put on a nut till it’s flush on the stud then tap it with a hammer till it’s centered in the hole......Mark
 
why are you taking it apart did it explode inside or are you just going to clean and inspect it i had to take mine out of my 50 cpe because it ate the spider gears but like was said pull axles out make sure you pull them at least 5 inches out remove nuts and with little prying should walk right out good luck
 
Only the wagons and sedan deliveries used the Dana. All the rest of the sedans used the pumpkin type rear.

flatheadmurre said:
That axle doesn´t look like it belonged in that car from start...just saying when you start hunting for parts...
Dana 41/44 has a lid on the back and not a removable pumpkin...
Click to expand...
 
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