JHF Portal Axle Bible

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woody

woody

eternal noobie
Staff member
Oct 12, 2010
1,853
56
Toquerville UT
NOTE: All info in this post has been pulled from various sources, including FB groups and other sites. There will ALWAYS be exceptions, so triple check any info found here.


Introduction:

Simply, Jessie Haines Fabrication JHF portal setups use fabricated housings, JHF outer C's, Hummer/JHF portal boxes and run either Toyota 8"/8.4" dropouts or Ford 9" dropouts. Portals offer an additional 3.9" of ground clearance over standard axles.

Budget: $25/30k complete. Housing, C's and knuckles, portal gears upgraded, axle shafts, steering, brakes, loaded differentials, tabbed out. Ready to run.

Parts Suppliers:
ComTac / Wolfer (Ebay)
Seco Parts (EBay)
Military Surplus Parts (EBay)
ADV 4x4
RubberDuck 4x4


Measuring/WMS:
Install diff with crosspin. Measure from pin to the end of housing (the 3.5” tube). Add 5”. Basic reference numbers, if you want a 65” WMS, the housing will be 39”. The combined length of both axle shafts will be 48”. A centered diff would require two 24” inner shafts. If the diff is offset 8” (not the pinion, THE DIFF), the shaft lengths will be 32” and 16”. NOTE: Spool diffs have no crosspin - a 1" spacer is required.

My 70" WMS with 42's on 20x10 wheels and 5" backspacing yields ~85" outside of tire (top)
 
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Differentials/Lockers

Quick and dirty, the portal gears run backwards as you see them through the knuckle while driving forward. As a result, differentials are installed upside down from stock.

TIP: A number of people have junked their front 8" diffs on day 1 due to oil starvation. One option is using assembly lube when you build it. Run a sticky synthetic oil (Amsoil Severe Gear, Redline Shockproof, etc). Overfill, 2-3 quarts total (varies with locker/spool/etc) Your initial testing should include some steep hills to ensure the gear lube actually coats the pinion/bearings...might also consider "soaking" the pinion/bearings immediately prior to install.

Overdrive? Many comp cars will run different front/rear ring and pinion ratios. Commonly, a single ratio difference will net 8% overdrive in the front. IE: 4.88 front and 5.29 rear gear ratios. Too big of a split can cause other binding issues.

Toyota 8" (normal low pinion)
Two main variants: the normal 4cyl case and the V6/Turbo case. V6/Turbo has additional case ribbing for less deflection and have an ABS sensor or sensor boss on the center/top of the case. This sensor ends up on the BOTTOM of the case when installed in a portal housing and would need to be capped/plugged. Gearsets are case-specific.
  • Spool: FYI, this requires a SPACER inside the spool to ensure the inner shafts don't walk. Mine was 1" long, trimmed down a poly leaf spring bushing.
  • ARB

Toyota 8" (high pinion)
Commonly found in front axles in 1991-1997 FZJ80 Land Cruisers. Because the standard/forward rotation of these gears occurs with the pinion HIGH, it will run in reverse when installed with the pinion LOW. This alleviates any pinion bearing oiling concerns but does effect ground clearance.

Toyota 8.4"


Ford 9"
 
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Portal Boxes/Steering

Portal boxes only need 1 PINT of 75w-90 gear lube. DO NOT fill to the fill plug. Recommend synthetic.

50 degree steering arm insert, 1/2 inch upper hole to to 3/8 (by the seal): 3/8-16 Thin Wall Insert For Metal - 319-6 - Made In USA - Pkg Qty 10

Ram: PSC 3x9 PSC-SC2217 (Ram only, $470 - Kit $705)

Spindles:
10k will work in a 12k box
12k spindles fit the 10k boxes with a shim under the inner bearing race - p/n 6001784 / 01-456-2032

AM General Wheel Drive 12k Spindle w/CTIS p/n 5715160 - NSN 2530-01-449-2494

NON CTIS spindle: p/n 5579061 - NSN 2530-01-174-4174

BEARINGS:
  • BR3490 - Inner spindle bearing, 1 ea
  • BR3420 - Inner spindle bearing race, 1 ea
  • BR3780 - Outer spindle bearing, 1 ea (pressed on, REQUIRED for spindle replacement)
  • BR3720 - Outer spindle bearing race, 1 ea
  • LM104949 - Upper gear bearing, 2 ea
  • LM104911 - Upper gear bearing race, 2 ea
SEALS:
  • 5330-01-203-6551 - Lower spindle seal, 1 ea
  • 5330-01-456-3884 - Upper shaft input seal, 1 ea
NOTE: There have been multiple reports that p/n's may vary based on year of knuckle, be sure to confirm compatability


Wheel stud is from a 99-01 F-250/350 single wheel, M14-2.0 - 2000 FORD F-250 SUPER DUTY 6.8L V10 Lug Stud | RockAuto
NOTE: lug stud pitch may vary, newer setups are rumored to be M14-1.5

Standard brakes: Wilwood Dynalite calipers, E compound pads

Bronze flanged steering bushing, McMaster-Carr p/n 2934t58 - McMaster-Carr

Upper/lower bolts for steering - 7/8"-14x3" - Bolt Depot - Nuts and Bolts, Screws and Fasteners online
20221121_115433.jpg


Upgraded high strength portal gears, $1850 - High Strength Portal Gear Sets

OEM 12k lower/spur gear - 6009452 3020-01-476-2701 2671266 - $85-$100ea
OEM 12k upper gear - 6009453 3020-01-432-2553 RCSK17046 - $75-$100ea
 
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Housings/Axle shafts

Housing options:
  • Trail Gear
  • Diamond/Front Range
Inner axle seal:
Shaft options:
NOTE: Steering arms are degree-specific. 45/50 are NOT interchangeable)
NOTE: RCV/birfield options are CV only, inner axles are sourced elsewhere. Recommend 300m.

Budget $1700 for a set of 4340 inners from Branik
  • RCV D3899M (45-degree) Stock diameter, 300M, 32-spline stub, 1.15" 36 spline star, $450ea - RCV H1 CVJ3899-M – BuggyThings
  • RCV CVJ3899 (45-degree) Stock diameter, 4340, 32-spline stub, 1.15" 36 spline star, $450ea - StackPath
    • RCV CVJ3899 4340 rebuild kits: 3899-R, $200ea - StackPath
  • RCV D10609 (45-degree) 4.25" bell, 300M, 32-spline stub, 1.15" 36 spline star, $525+ea DISCONTINUED
  • RCV D60 D13899 (50-degree) - $720+ea - JHF Portal 60 RCV
  • JHF/Branik U-joint shaft set (50-degree), $6500-$8500/set - Home
  • Spidertrax U-joint shaft set, 50 degree, $7200/set - The Spidertrax Store
CV Grease options:
CV Boot: CVJ3899 4"
  • RCV p/n L15RFKT001
  • EMPI 86-2326-D - $17ea on Amazon
  • Napa 686-2326
CV Boot options: D10609 4.25"
NOTE: boots are normally hose clamped to the bell. Clamps on the inner are optional.
 
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Tools:

For knuckle removal/axle shaft replacement...
  • 3/4 deep socket (lug nuts)
  • 9/16" coupling nut or allen (knuckle plug)
  • 9/16" socket (birf bolt and calipers)
  • 3/8" x 3" extension and socket wrench
  • 9/16" combination wrench (calipers)
  • 7mm socket (hose clamps)
  • flush cut pliers (for zip ties)
  • 1-1/8" socket and combination wrench (steering)
  • 1-5/16" socket and combination wrench (knuckles)
  • small pry bar
  • 1/2" torque wrench and 6" extension (retorque lug nuts)

20221121_120112.jpg



PRO TIP: grind a "scoop" into the 1-5/16" box end so it fits between the upper jam nut and the CV. The open end will last only a few times before it will spread and be useless :)

20221121_150515.jpg


Known Torque values:
NOTE: most torque values are unknown...
  • Lug nuts - 3/4" deep socket, 120ftlbs
  • CV outer bolt (behind allen plug) - 9/16" socket, 37ftlbs
 
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45 degree steering arm repair

The drivers front/passenger rear steering arms are tearing away between the three 3/8" bolts that are threaded into the casting. I know of a half dozen thus far.

Jessie did a repair for Dave Wong, machining down custom spacer for the outermost top bolt and welding it to the steering arm.

20221029_133027.jpg



I don't have those machining parts/skills, so I opted for a triangular plate to help distribute the load across a larger area. No clue which is better (betting Jesse's, but time will tell) You can see the weld next to the upper right bolt head, the tear was about 2" long. I had to press the arm/plate straight before welding. NOTE: those upper two bolts are threaded into blind holes, and can be 1" long with a lock washer instead of the 1/2" that's provided.


20221031_114531.jpg
 
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Brakes

JHF portals: standard with Wilwood Forged Dynalite calipers and Wilwood PolyMatrix E 5E-6096K pads. Rotors are laser cut steel

Wilwood Disc Brakes

Part No: 120-6818, calipers, dynapro, dynapro 6, big brake, dynalite, dynalite pro, forged dynalite, d52, superlite, sl6, sl4, tc6r, promatrix, w6ar, rotors
www.wilwood.com www.wilwood.com

JHF Trail chassis: standard is a single 1-1/8" Wilwood Compact Remote Master Cylinder (mounted under the drivers seat)

Wilwood Disc Brakes - Master Cylinders: Compact Remote Master Cylinder

Wilwood makes a wide assortment of small, lightweight master cylinders that are suitable for high performance street and racing applications and they are available in a variety of bore sizes. This page displays Master Cylinders: Compact Remote Master Cylinder
www.wilwood.com www.wilwood.com
 
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Portal 1480 Shaft Lengths
For anyone building housings or wanting to upgrade to 1480 u-joint shafts, these are the shaft lengths you'll need, measured tip of shaft to center of joint. The offset is measured from the center of the housing, not center of the pinion. For reference, all of our moon buggy housings are 65" wide with an 8" offset. Our trail car housings are 70" with a 10" offset. When building housings for customers, we've tried to standardize everything to the dimensions listed below.

** For 9” axles with a Detroit/Grizzly/Spool add .5” **

Toyota 8"/8.4" -
65" x 8" offset 15.4" 31.4"
70" x 8" offset 17.9" 33.9"
70" x 10" offset 15.9" 35.9"
70" Centered 25.9" 25.9"

Ford 9" Driver Front -
65" x 8" offset 14.2" 32.5"
70" x 8" offset 16.7" 35"
70" x 10" offset 14.7" 37"
70" Centered 24.7" 27"

Ford 9" Passenger Front -
65" x 8" offset 16.5" 30.2"
70" x 8" offset 19" 32.7"
70" x 10" offset 17" 34.7"
70" Centered 24.7" 27"
 
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Other topic possibilities:
Brakes
Hardware
Assembly guide (torque values too?)
Common mistakes and common failures
Gear choices (diff and t-case)(converter stall)
General discussion (caster angles, shock angles, shock lengths, winch/fuel tank mountings, link tab placements, gussets)
 
I have four turbo4/v6 diffs and none actually have the speed sensor hole, just a boss in the casting. Three of them are the 4 rib style, last is the more rounded later 4runner style.

Another thing to maybe note is what joints are compatible with which steering arms style.
 
The trail gear Toyota 8” differential flange is milled very thin for axle seal puck to slide in. The 3rd member Allen bolt-stud installs after the puck. Someone tougher than me pounded all four seals in part way in crooked. $400. The those thin holes were stripped so I cut a grove in stud for a screwdriver while tightening nut

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I'd be curious the changes needed to go from 45° to 50° steering arms. Seems the 45 stuff is almost outdated with the newer ujoint shafts also requiring 50 arms.
 
SteerAndStuff said:
I'd be curious the changes needed to go from 45° to 50° steering arms. Seems the 45 stuff is almost outdated with the newer ujoint shafts also requiring 50 arms.
Click to expand...
45-to-50 requires two inserts (from reply #3) and updated steering arms from JHF. The 45 degree stuff would require significant machining to work with the 50 degree products (and you'd still be limited to 45 degrees) And new inners.

Stolen FB photo of a 50 degree steering setup. Cap screws w/ inserts for the two upper 1/2" holes.
JHF 45-to-50.jpg


UPDATE from RCV today....the CVJ3899's are being discontinued, and the D10609 will be STOCKED at $525ea. (Stocked is relative...lol) Rebuild kits are also available (I have 10 of the rebuild kits ordered for me and others as needed...)
 
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Who makes\sells the lateral style hydro ram mounts? The ones that have one side welded in that the ram slides into and the other side bolts in place after.
 
4xsteve said:
Who makes\sells the lateral style hydro ram mounts? The ones that have one side welded in that the ram slides into and the other side bolts in place after.
Click to expand...
Jesse does them for his housings, and Steve at Sand Hollow does too. Jesse'e required the ram be machined down a bit in diameter (or as Jesse told me, take a hand grinder to it....lol) Steve's are designed for the actual 3x9 ram diameter.
 
Ghetto Fab said:
Are all the H1 portal boxes the same? I believe I've heard the later ones are supposedly stronger? Can anyone elaborate on any differences in the H1 portal boxes?
Click to expand...
10k to 12k? Then yes....all the later boxes are 12k. Some 10k stuff works in 12k, but 12k doesn't work in 10k (from what I recall) I've killed some time on Google searching info....
 
woody said:
10k to 12k? Then yes....all the later boxes are 12k. Some 10k stuff works in 12k, but 12k doesn't work in 10k (from what I recall) I've killed some time on Google searching info....
Click to expand...
I think that is what I've been seeing. What are differences between the two? How do you tell the two apart? What years got what boxes? If I bought a military surplus humvee off the gov auction site what would it most likely come with? I haven't found much info on any of this stuff.

Is there any opinion info on top speed of these H1 portal boxes? I know the H1s could in theory do highway speeds. In my opinion most of you guys with these portals are doing more comp style wheeling, and at times I think that maybe portals might not be the way to go on a more well rounded trail type buggy. Wheeling in JV I like to at least think I'm going fast at times!
 
Ghetto Fab said:
I think that is what I've been seeing. What are differences between the two? How do you tell the two apart? What years got what boxes? If I bought a military surplus humvee off the gov auction site what would it most likely come with? I haven't found much info on any of this stuff.

Is there any opinion info on top speed of these H1 portal boxes? I know the H1s could in theory do highway speeds. In my opinion most of you guys with these portals are doing more comp style wheeling, and at times I think that maybe portals might not be the way to go on a more well rounded trail type buggy. Wheeling in JV I like to at least think I'm going fast at times!
Click to expand...
Jesse raced EMC at KOH on portals with his Roxor. 80mph, likely not....but 60, sure. The bumps in JV will slow you down quick ;)

I'm honestly not sure on the differences exactly....the easy tell is the CV input/splines. I'd have to look that up too tho.
 
What are all the steering arm to portal box fasteners? Small ones, 8 per corner, appear to be 5/16-18? Mine are only about 1" or maybe 1.25" but I've heard longer may be possible, even advisable? Mine come loose a few times a day so I want to replace them all in an attempt to keep them tight longer.
Don't know what the larger ones are, but they come loose just as much so planning to replace them as well.
 
What are is everyone using for ball joints on these? I've seen some on ebay advertised as using the stock H1 ball joints, and I've seen other setups using uniballs. It almost looks like Jessie's setup is using some kind of bushing?
 
You guys with the toyota diffs have you had any breakage in the thirds? I would think the toyota diffs would be the weakest link with the CV options listed above. I was thinking about this the other day, it seems odd that there are such expensive options, and then a toyota diff powering it all. I get that the portals reduce the load upstream, but that should also reduce the load on the cv joints.
 
Ghetto Fab said:
You guys with the toyota diffs have you had any breakage in the thirds? I would think the toyota diffs would be the weakest link with the CV options listed above. I was thinking about this the other day, it seems odd that there are such expensive options, and then a toyota diff powering it all. I get that the portals reduce the load upstream, but that should also reduce the load on the cv joints.
Click to expand...
Two issues primarily with the 8" diff: Spools have more deflection than other carrier options, so there is a greater chance of breaking the teeth. And running the diff upside down means oiling issues. Overoiling, sufficiently breaking in/presoaking the bearings, and running a shock-load sticky synth gear oil seems to alleviate that.

I have wheeled mine a TON, and have zero diff issues. I HAVE twisted a 300m long side front inner about 120 degrees (tires pointed nearly straight). I have not broken an RCV, but the front two got very clicky. CV's are weakest as they reach full lock.

Someone the other day said going from 45 to 50 degrees in with steering is a 28% drop in strength with the steering/knuckes/etc.

The weak point is the stock upper portal gear.
 
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Just going to list some tools that I've found helpful:

Tekton WAE83033, 1-5/16 dual angle head open end wrench. (Not the proper size, but the looseness allows for extra accessibility inside the C's)

Tekton WAE84033, 33MM dual angle head open end wrench. (Same as the 1-5/16, but much tighter fit to reduce risk of jaws spreading or rounding off the fasteners)

Sunex 36478, 9/16 male hex, 3/8 drive socket. (Solid, one-piece construction. No risk of a bit falling out of a socket)

33MM, ½" drive, shallow impact socket.
(Standard item, but listing it because I've found that 33mm is the correct size for my fasteners, not 1-5/16 that most people use)

Another cool trick I found, even though I doubt I'm the first to do it, is to get a piece of ¾" NPT pipe and insert it into the CV screw access hole. In my picture I'm using a short 2" piece which locks the rotor in place so you can now use the glory holds of the rotor without the risk of pinching or cutting fingers. From there you have a few options. First I jammed a piece of ½" PVC into the ¾" pipe and it made an excellent handle. However, in the end I decided to get a 6" long ¾" pipe with a cap on it. The solid pipe is a more solid handle, much easier to thread in and the cap on it means the hole remains closed off so no contaminants get in and no oil gets out.

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What caster are the knuckles set at on these axles? Woody's build thread said 2° rear and 5° in front...but on another board, someone's saying Jesse Haines is recommending 5° for the rear.
 
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Expanding off my previous post in which I used a short ¾" pipe to lock the rotor and a piece of ½" PVC as a handle, I have built a pretty functional and inexpensive handle for maneuvering portal boxes. I call it the "portable portal buddy". Haha

Here's what I used:
¾" black pipe (galvanized is obviously available too) - (1) 4" section, (1) 6" section, (1) 10" section, (2) 90° female elbows.
A PVC or steel cap can be added onto the open end of the long piece as a bolster \ safety if desired too.
Ends up around $20 usually.

6" goes into the portal and locks the rotor, elbow, 4" vertical, elbow, 10" goes back towards the axle C.
**Sections may need to be longer or shorter to accommodate different rotors and different stud lengths**

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