Half Shafts

Those splines are supposed to be a perfect, close tolerance fit… they have to be able to move as you know… I would think that the splines should have been covered and not plated… I would not put it in a press!!
you should be able to get them “unplated”..

I agree with Roland that you can get them unplated. I needed some chrome pieces de-chromed and it literally took 15 seconds to remove the chrome from the nickel plating below it. Perhaps just have the male spine portion unplated and see if that gives you enough clearance, don’t think you could unplate just the inside of the female spines. 😕

Larry

Further thoughts

Whether the interference is at the spline contact area or the OD ID contact might make a difference.

You may be able to reduce the OD of the male spines with some TLC and crocus cloth??

for that matter, a folded piece of crocus cloth might also work to reduce the plating on the splines themselves?

Larry

@lf-tp2511 posted:

Further thoughts

Whether the interference is at the spline contact area or the OD ID contact might make a difference.

You may be able to reduce the OD of the male spines with some TLC and crocus cloth??

for that matter, a folded piece of crocus cloth might also work to reduce the plating on the splines themselves?

Larry

The zinc plating I got done always ended up on the rather thick side… I don’t know why, but I would assume that the corners are going to be the major issue……. Once again.. Close tolerance fitting… I would not Manual go for the splines… not lazy - just concerned!

can You assemble not with grease but with VERY light oil.    Just curious to how "tight" the fit is.

Vinegar removes zinc plating… you can do it at home… google it..

...Try a 'Wire Wheel', on a 'Grinder' Motor, it works very well, to 'wear-down' a Coating/Plating, and can get 'into' the Splines. And it's FAST!

And be advised, Half Shafts are suppose to Stay 'Indexed', Aligned, to preserve their Balance. You don't just slide them together, 'Hogg-Pogg'! Plus, I think the Ends are at 90 Degrees, Both Ends...but NOT Sure!

MJ

@marlinjack wire wheel won’t work on the inside splines… I still think taping them off very good and stand them in vinegar would do the trick without damage…

I appreciate the responses to my half shaft inquiry.  I'll try vinegar on the male spline and see if it brings happiness. If not, I'll get creative in applying it to the female interior and somehow protect the exterior zinc.

While not a Pantera, I have had several restoration projects going simultaneously. We mostly finished this European 1975 Alfa GT Junior yesterday. Fellow Pantera owner and racecar driver, Gray Gregory, and I have worked on it as a team the last 18 months. I acquired it a boxes of parts and a chassis without any running gear on a dolly. Fortunately, Gray owns an Alfa GTV that we could use as a diagram. Otherwise........?   Everything from Engine to differential came disassembled from a failed restoration project.  Yesterday was it's maiden drive and all major systems worked as intended. Very happy day for us!

Very nice!

I am surprised that nobody has mentioned the REAL problem with plated splines. The halfshafts have to slide on the splines to change length, as the suspension moves through its arc. If the splines are plated, the "sliding" action will cause the plating to begin to "fret" and lock the length of the halfshafts, thus causing the suspension to freeze up. That is why splines are NEVER plated in any application.

@DWR46 posted:

I am surprised that nobody has mentioned the REAL problem with plated splines. The halfshafts have to slide on the splines to change length, as the suspension moves through its arc. If the splines are plated, the "sliding" action will cause the plating to begin to "fret" and lock the length of the halfshafts, thus causing the suspension to freeze up. That is why splines are NEVER plated in any application.

Was my very first response! Has to be able to move in the splines…

plating was not a great idea! Hopefully the vinegar does the trick… For the inside splines I would try to close up the bottom with something like a cork or a rubber plug with a hose attached through it so you can fill it from the bottom up so the outside zinc plating does not get damaged…

@LeMans850i posted:

@marlinjack wire wheel won’t work on the inside splines… I still think taping them off very good and stand them in vinegar would do the trick without damage…

...Ofcourse the wire wheel will not work in the 'Internal' Splines. I am speaking of the wire wheel digging into the 'External' Splines!! Why were they Plated in the first place??

MJ

Vinegar alone may do it but maybe the process could be helped along.

I suppose you could un-plate the splined areas the same way they were plated.

I see lots of you tube videos about how to zinc plate with some very simple looking equipment. I'd suppose if you reverse the polarity it would happily un-plate too.

BTW, I love the Alfa. Such fun cars to drive.

Muriatic (hydrochloric) acid works in a stronger way than vinegar to remove plating....don't leave it in too long...

Great work on the Alfa!!!

Congrats on the Alfa!  It's beautiful!

Awesome job on the Alfa, they are great little cars!

You're on the right track- vinegar or even undiluted lemon juice over about an hour's soak should thin out the internal plating without touching the mild steel underneath. I wouldn't get impatient and heat things up- the action is not easily controlled at home. And you'll have to do some careful masking!

It’s just garage cooking - half shaft salad just with vinegar - You’ll be fine… keep an eyeball on it…