1996 axle replace

i spent today replacing the axle on a 1996 5.9 ram 1500. we got a rearend out from a 1996 ram 1500 in a junk yard. i believe it is the 9.25 rearend. this truck did have gear put in by the dealership to which i believe are 3:92. this is the truck that snapped the axle clean off in another thread i had.
Also, i didnt think about doing a DIY on this at the time so i sorta reacreated the old rear end in the pictures. some years may be different.


1:jack the truck up. we found the best way was to jack it from the differential itself and get both tires off of the truck because of the LSD and then lowered it onto safty jacks on the frame, still both wheels off the ground
2: take the wheel off and also the drum brake cover.
3: take the differential cover off and let the fluid out into a pan. and should see this. *in this picture there are 3 other small gears that you will see when open the diff. this is the junk one so we took the gears out*

the peice touching the pin is the axle you will be replacing.

4: now you need to locate the bolt that keeps that pin in. you may need to spin the wheel to get it in the right position. to get it out. now the junk rearend was a 8mm 6sided bolt. but the one in the truck was a 12sided 8mm

5:remove the bolt. to get the pin out, we found the better way was to push it a little then turn the wheel again so you can pull it toward you. but DO NOT pull the pin all the way out. otherwise the gear will come off and will take all the other small gears with it. just pull it to wear you can keep the gear on it. without pulling it all the way out.
6:next you need to push the axle in a little and there is a C clamp you need to remove.

7: now the axle is free and all you have to do is pull it out. once it breaks free of the differential though itll get caught. All you have to do is push down on the axle to get the whole bar straight and you can pull out. and your axle is out!

sorry there wasnt much pictures. like i said i wasnt planning on doing a DIY untill it was done. also i am not responsible for any damages or injury during this process. this is the way we did it, and can be different for every year and ever person.
if you have any questions ill try to answer them the best i can.

Oh fun fun! I remember doin that to my 89 ford, replaced gears and all seals first time... Then.axle shaft bearing went out and had to replace both axle shafts, and all the bearings, plus seals again lol had a ton of fun getting those spider gears back in the carrier....

yea, not pushing the pin all the way out saved us from trying to put the gears back in... i bet it sucked. lol. we havnt completly fixed it, but now it can move. still have to replace the entire brakeing system which with drum brakes should be a major pain. but we are doing it all ourself so saving a TON of money too.

this is a pic of the axle after it snapped. ripped the wheel with the drum brake cover clean off.

Drum brakes aren't that bad. Is the other side still good? If so, you can use that side for a guide of the shoe and spring placement


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Most definitely! On the saving money lol

yea the other side is still good. just needs a new wheel.
whats different from the picture is, the side that broke off. every part of the brakes were done. there isnt a backing plate anymore. just the axle itself with the wheel so we can move it. good that the junk rear end has the backing plate. so we just need the small items now. took a wire brush to it, and it looks like new. lets just say, he crashed it so bad, that he didnt wreck anything but the axle itself. which is crazy to think lol.

Small items like all the springs and hold downs for the shoes?


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everything but the backing plate the lines and the little cylinder thing on the backing plate. everything else needs to be replaced. i gotta get a clip of this truck for yall. just about everything is not stock anymore. unfortunatly, he was in a real bad accident a couple months ago and he doesnt quite remember much. he hasnt heard it since is accident on saint patricks day, and just the biggest smile when that truck started up.

on a side note. this guy is a genius when it comes to cars. he was in a coma for almost a month and the week after he woke up he knew more about cars then i could ever...
he can sit there and tell us what to do, what size bolt, how to do something all without even seeing it or looking at it... its amazing.

All that can be purchased from a local parts store for fairly cheap. If I was at work I could get you a price for everything lol. A new set of shoes will be around $20 and all the hardware should be around $7 or $8 for both sides


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sweet! yea we havnt looked that far ahead, but should be done some time in the next week. it was a big deal just to see it move for the first time in a while lol.