Dual zuk cases? How does the tcase actually work?

[87_bigbadzuk]

I understand and read alot on this subject about oiling issues and clocking the first case to clear the driveshaft. My question is can you cut the front output off the 1st case and weld it up so it doesn't have to be clocked at all and moreless just be left with a high low selectable case. I understand about the double high range reduction which I can run when playing in the mud and when rock crawling run high low and low low so I should have a 2.8 high when both are in high and I don't remember what the low range is but somewhere in the 4 to 5 to1 range for crawling. Anyone know if you can chop the case and not have problems. I haven't had a zuk case apart but I have on np 231 and 208s and thought about doing this when I had my chevy truck with the 208 bolted to tranny with front case cut down to a divorce 205 and it was a long bed so it woulda worked so same idea here. I haven't thought about how to connect them yet, maybe some kinda rubber between flanges or a single ujoint between them. I want to stretch my wheelbase front and back to about 100 so alittle added lenght on the drivetrain shouldn't be a problem with a rear driveshaft if I'm able to cut the case and do what I want to do.

[87_bigbadzuk]

Is there a way to remove the front output and the counter gears and counter gear shaft and just have high low selectable left? I'm not sure where the reduction comes from as I'm use to seeing planetary gears for that but it sure looks like all that can be removed from looking at the trail gear install pics but I could be wrong.

[msmoke]

Is there a way to remove the front output and the counter gears and counter gear shaft and just have high low selectable left? I'm not sure where the reduction comes from as I'm use to seeing planetary gears for that but it sure looks like all that can be removed from looking at the trail gear install pics but I could be wrong.

What you are asking is not possible.  The samurai has offset axles front and rear. Transfer of power through the case goes from the main shaft, through the counter shaft then to output shaft(might not be using proper terminology here) .

Hi/Lo range is selected on the main shaft. The sliding collar moves back and forth selection which gear of the 2 on the main shaft is the active gear in transferring power. One is a large gear (for high range) one is a small gear (for low range).

Power is then transfered over to the intermediate shaft/gear.

From there it turns the output shaft(s). The rear is always activated. The front is your 4wd selector, and you can choose it engaged or disengaged.

What you are trying to accomplish would get rid of all drive force since power does not go straight down the drive train, it is offset for the rear axle. So when you cut that undesirable chunk off the tcase you would be removing the working that drive the rear axle, in essence making it direct drive with the hi/low selector doing absolutely nothing but moving back and forth with no power to any wheels.

That is why all double samurai cases are made with a tracker tcase up front. Because it has a centered rear output and drives the rear axle off the main shaft.

Hope that helps.

[87_bigbadzuk]

Yes I understand now that the counter gears can't be removed after watching some YouTube vids I just couldn't tell how everything worked just from pictures. So if I really get this right the front output shaft could be removed and everything still operate the same but I don't know if I could get enough room for a front driveshaft to slip by it if it was still mounted level and all connected flange to flange?

[jr4x]

You cant do it with two samurai cases period.
 
The front case the drive shaft would be coming from the right side of the truck at an angle to get to the centered input shaft on the rear case. Even at the maximum working angle of a two ujoint shaft  the intermediate shaft would have to be at least 1 1/2 ft long to get from the off set out put to the centered input. This drive shaft would vibrate and the rear case would be so far back you would probly need to go to longer than 100" WB to make it work. Not to mention you canot cut anything off the side of a samurai case for clearance and still have it transfer power. So getting a front drive shaft that would be 4 ft long at this point to clear the front case would require a realy high lift hieght or two peice shaft.

Here is a picture of a case looking at it from the front. The yoke on the right is the input shaft where the drive shaft from the transmission would connect to. The two yokes on the left are the front and rear out puts. Imagine setting another samurai case mounted in the same position right behind it and visualize what the drive shaft angle would look like going from the left upper flange to the flange on the right on the case behind it.

[87_bigbadzuk]

Wow I have been missunderstanding this the whole time! I missed where ther shaft that I was thinkin of cutting off was acctually the input and I was thinking it was the front output hahaha. Thank you guys so much for clearing it all up for me