'Cracking' sound at rear - hub splines, wires?

[thegfb]

I'm occasionally getting a noise emanating, I believe, from the right rear side of the car which sounds a bit like a 'cracking' sort of noise. I've recently greased the car throughout and topped up the diff and checked all the suspension bolts, radius arms etc are tight.
The wire wheel appears to not have any loose spokes. There is perhaps slightly more movment of the hub on the drive shaft though barely enough to permit a further shim and there is a small degree of play when turning the rear wheels off the ground which maybe uj's or LSD play?
Could there be an issue with the hub splines/wheel interface?

Suggestions very welcome!

GF

[christopher storey]

It could be all sorts of things . Does it happen only when a load reversal comes in the drivetrain? If so, that points to , but is not conclusive of, u/j / hub or spline involvement . If not, it is more suggestive of a suspension noise, which could be as trivial as anti-roll bar bushes, or perhaps movement at the radius arm mounting ( which I may say I had for years ! ) . I would take your wheel off and look at the splines on the hub - they should have a more or less squared off end to each spline . If they are a sharp point , however, then it points to worn hub and further investigation of both hub and wheels is needed

PS I don't want to open a lengthy can of worms here, but what do you mean by an " extra shim" . It is important ( but counter intuitive ) to know that the thicker the shim that goes in the bearing /driveshaft interface, the more play there will be, and not the less which one would expect to be the case

[Mich7920]

Hi GF

Can you provoke this "crack" ?
Is it, in town, when you take a curve or when the wheels are staight ?
The noises are realy difficult to identify without the car, you know.
You are going to have as solution as there is parts in your E.
I just can tell you that I have a "crack" also, coming from the front, and after investigation, I found that it came from one bush of the front anti-roll bar. There are similar for the rear anti-roll bar, it could be your problem purhaps.
You must to repeat this "crack" to identify it, driving with a frend who can move into the car ( small friend ) or in static with a lift.

Mich

[1954Etype]

Have you fitted repro spinners?

[thegfb]

Fair point that Christopher makes regarding shims - I should have said replacement shim perhaps. The splines on the hub do look a little pointed but when I lock the back axle in gear and try and rotate the wheel I can't feel any movement between the wheel and hub.
Mich - I believe I can provoke the noise by lifting off and back on the throttle quickly which produces drive line shunt though no more than has been the case in the past pre noise! I have put the car in the air on a lift and the roll bar, radius arms etc seem solid.
I think I might be looking at either spline issues or uj wear on the driveshafts - though the latter doesn't seem obvious when turning a wheel backwards and forwards. The whole rear axle assembly was rebuilt about 6 years ago and mileage since has only been about 8000. Despite having good facilities and tools I wonder whether this might be one for a professional.

Thanks again for all the help.

GF
'61 FHC

[mgcjag]

Hi have you jacked up under the rear wishbone and then checked for play in the UJs. If your jacking so the wheels drop the driveshafts will be under tension and you may not feel any play

[1954Etype]

So no repro spinners then?

[thegfb]

Angus - sorry to have not come back re spinners until now - been away etc - and wanted to try and establish whether the spinners are original or repro. It would appear that the spinners are definitely not recent repros but given that the car was restored in the late eighties/early nineties they may not be the originals. The car was originally a LHD Texas car and I've had it only since 2010.

Steve - I'll try jacking under the wishbone as per your suggestion and post back.

GF

[1954Etype]

No problem. :D we have had horrendous issues with repros. The noise they make when 'bedding in' is really loud and makes you think you have a major issue with suspension, drive shafts etc. Always worth checking by taking the spinner off and seeing if there is any swarf on the wheel hub or inside the spinner. The problem is that the angle of the wheel is different to the corresponding angle of the spinner. This means that when you tighten the spinner, it doesnt go to the end of the hub and the wheel rocks from side to side when driven. We have found the answer is to remove the spinner, clean the wheel hub and spinner and then refit. Drive the car until the noise comes back then repeat.

[mgcjag]

Hi Angus that dosent sound like a very technical cure.......you can do better than that....they should be re machined to fit....not just used till the surfaces wear and then re tighten ....if a jobs worth doing and all that...

[1954Etype]

Agreed but we don't have any other choice! Luckily, it doesn't take much to settle them down.

[rfs1957]

Angus, based on your spinner experience, would you be kind enough to cast an eye over these pictures and tell me whether this looks normal ?

http://www.myetype.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=5582

I don't get any noises from the hubs, and they don't come loose, but the slight fretting worries me.

Rory

[1954Etype]

Rory, yes looks like all the used hubs l have seen. I too am puzzled about the marks but that could be corrosion. The dust you see could be coming from the end of the spokes as the wheel flexes?