Rear axles S-10 Jimmy (Blazer)

[XWrench3]

i find myself in a place, i have never been in. the stock rear axles, have erodded away to the point, that i will have to replace them. my guess is, the factory stock axles, were not properly heat treated. it is eroded where the outer axle bearing rides directly on the axle. which is one of the worst idea's i have ever seen. bearing races need to be HARD. if an axle is made that hard, it would surely break. about 6 months ago, i replaced the bearings with a Timken kit, that moves the bearing further out on the shaft. well, in less than 6,000 miles, the axles are torn up. so replacing them is the only option. my dilemma is, should i replace them with Genuine GM parts, and hope the replacement axles are harder, or should i go with aftermarket (Dorman), and hope they are? this is going to be an expensive fix for a guy on s.s. disability, so doing this again is someplace i really can not afford. i am hoping SOMEONE here has had some experience with this, otherwise, it will be flipping a coin and hoping it makes the correct decision.

[XWrench3]

REALLY? NO one else has EVER done this???!

[XWrench3]

well, genuine GM axles are out. i can buy a pair of aftermarket shafts, for less than one gm axle shaft. as a side note, this is the straw that broke the camels back. one thing i can not stand is poor engineering. this will be the LAST American made car/truck i buy. i HATE to do it. but if they are going to build junk, somebody else can buy them.

[Dextron3]

Hi there from another new Michigan member,Im also on ssi disability..I never heard of your problem what year is your truck?.Did the salt deteriorate your axles and they rusted out or did they just plain wear out.This is a very uncommon problem.Im a member on another site dedicated to the s10 jimmy and nobody has ever mentioned having that problem.From what I read people either love these trucks or they hate them.I fall in the 2cnd catigory.Ive been through everything this truck can throw at me and its been an on going project for 4 years now.People around here are parting jimmys a dime a dozen so why don't you find a year that has the same exle gear ratio and replace it with used unit.

[Crvett69]

i believe they make a special bearing that moves the inner race to a unworn spot on the axle to keep you from having to replace it.