The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Driveline Fair price for HO52 axle

I finally located a 4.57 center section to replace the 5.13 in my 1959 3800. Unlike almost everyone else, I want the 4.57 gears instead of the 4.10s because I actually use my truck to haul loads. Anyway, the owner of the truck with the HO52 won't sell just the center section, only the entire axle assembly. Does anyone have guidance or opinions as to what these axles generally sell for?

They're not that scarce, especially with the 4.57 gear ratio. If it's complete, brake drums, pinion flange and all, I'd probably offer $200.00 and bargain up to a max of $250.00 if necessary.
Jerry

For those prices you can have a 14 bolt with modern (available) brakes.
I’d guess a fair price for the old Eaton with a generally undesirable ratio is $100-150. If 4.10 ratio add some to that.

I have 4.10 in my 1 ton and use it as a truck frequently, in the hills and mountains around here it is not to fast of a ratio, I sure don’t wish for anything slower like 4.56.

Also, you have a 1 ton which generally have larger brakes than a 3/4 ton where most 4.56 gears are found. So the brakes that come on that axle may not be useful to you.
That axle also likely from a single wheel truck so studs are shorter than you use with your dual wheels.

Thanks Grigg and Jerry. Your comments have helped me at least get a sense of what its worth. Grigg, you may be right about the 4.57 still being too low gear. With the loads I sometimes haul or pull, the 5.13s were about right for my tired 235. With the additional power from the newly installed 261 I know I can use at least a 4.57 gear. Maybe I should reconsider and look for 4.10s like everyone else. By the way, I don't plan to use the entire HO52 axle, just the center section.

I put many miles on my other 1 ton with both 5.13 and later 4.56.
My GMC with 4.10 is geared better, and I use/used them all the same.
Sometimes I wish for even faster gears, but probably don’t have the power (gmc 228) to suit one step faster.

For what its worth i found even with a 5.38 rear end and 30 in, tires shifting from 3rd to 4th with the original sm 420 required rpms high enough to scare me and end up lugging in 4th. when climbing any type of grade. I eventually switched to a 4.57 and a t5 at the same time which puts the gears close enough together to be able to shift up even climbing mild grades and keep up with highway traffic.

I can only imagine what it would have been like with a 4.10 and a sm420 but I suspect it would trade pulling power for higher speeds.

That being said my truck weighs 3 tons and has the aerodynamics of an apartment building which might effect my results.

John

Oh, you are a few years too late......I listed a good working HO52 rear end I pulled out to swap to a Dana 60 free for the taking a while back......no bites. I had to get rid of it so it went to the scrap yard.....

One rear axle that might be worth a look is from the Toyota Tundra V8. I was at a Toyota dealership recently and they had one removed for some reason. That thing is massive! It's got a 10.5 inch ring gear, and comes in ratios from 3.60-something to 4.30, with a couple of ratios around the 3.90 range. At first glance, I thought I was looking at a HO-72 axle! They also come with disc brakes on some models. If the wheel mounting flange width is pretty close to right, it might make for a pretty good swap, especially paired up with an OD transmission of some type.
Jerry