Full Floater
Toyota Axles have a semi-float rear axle. They are 1/2 ton
vehicles that are not designed to carry a lot of weight. When the outer
bearing on the axle shaft fails, the axle still attached to the drum
and tire will subsequently leave the vehicle and usually pass you up on the
road. Of course, its no fun seeing your own rear tire with a crazy swinging
axle shaft pass you by. To compound these issues, we as wheelers put a lot
of side load on these bearings. They were designed from the factory to ride
on the tire perpendicular to the asphalt, not sideways in a canyon sliding
off a rock.
4X4 Wire has a good write up
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There are many benefits to the full floater over the semi-float design. I can go to my local auto-parts store and get the necessary parts for repair/replacement. I can repack the bearings when necessary, without the need for a press. The biggest benefit; should I snap an axle or break teeth off a ring gear, I can pull the axle shafts out, and drive home on the front drive shaft. With the current Toyota 3rd member design, if one was to break some teeth off the ring gear, the 3rd member would need to be pulled out, the ring gear removed, re-installed....then one could drive home on the front driveline. In the semi-float design, the axle shaft carry's part of the load in the vehicle. In the full floater setup, the load is placed on two bearings per axle side. The axle shaft is left to float in the bearings, and does not support the weight of the vehicle.
Below are some pics I took when I was installing my setup.
I went to the dealership and ordered the correct seals and
backing plate for this setup.
The key part in this whole setup is the FROR adapter plate.
I replaced the stock hub studs with ARP hub studs.
Bearings, O-ring gaskets and inner seal.
Pressing in the studs that bolt to the housing flange.
Attaching the flange to the axle housing.
Moser
Bolts needed to attach the adapter to the hub.
Seal that FROR installed on the spindle.
Gaskets, in the order that they go on the spindle.
Putting new races into the hub housing. Be sure to use a brass
drift so you don't scratch up the inside of the housing.
I found that when installing ARP hub studs, using two nuts makes it easy.
measuring the preloads.
Disclaimer: What you see on these pages are my own experiences and what changes I have performed on my vehicle. Should you choose to attempt these type of changes to your vehicle, I am not responsible for any consequential damages that may result from these type of modifications. I do not encourage any readers to copy these modifications to their own vehicle. Modifying your vehicle can be dangerous to you and anybody else on the roadway. Please take care in what you do with your vehicle.