Manky Monkey Motors

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I am just cleaning up my 1st reliant axle and removing all the brackets and sundries ready to attempt the famouse 'rear brake conversion' operation.

Whilst cleaning-up, i've noticed that there is a small hole, about 2mm diameter, with a small split pin in it, in the pavement side of the axle.

The hole seems to be deliberatly drilled and could possibly have been beneath one of the 'C' clips that was on the axle.

Is this some kind of 'breather' hole for the axle oil pressure?  ???

There does not appear to be one on the other side of the axle.

Anybody enlighten me?

Cheer's

Sorry, forgot to post piccies.

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I'm far from an expert in these matters but to the best of my knowledge its is an oil breather.
I had to turn my axle upside down to keep the direction of travel correct, plugged it and with a magnetised drill bit (To stop the swarf falling into the axle tube) re drilled the same hole on the reverse side and refitted a split pin.
Works perfectly
A mate of mine has fitted a small K&N breather filter over his, looks well smart

ive noticed a hole in my axel too,what does the split pin do as mine hasnt got one in it.

Thanks Watsonic, thought it might be something like that.  I'm sure somebody more knowlegable will let us know if were wrong. ;)

The split pin would be to stop the hole from becoming blocked

"The pavement side of the axle" -never heard it described that way before  :)
Yup, it's just a breather hole. None of my axles have ever had the split pin but I know they're supposed to. I can only assume it keeps muck out & is fitted loosely enough to allow excess pressure to escape around it.
As Mr Watsonic so eloquently observed, if you're running a bike engine with a Reliant axle you usually have to flip the axle upside down to avoid ending up with 5 reverse gears, so remember to fill the breather hole with weld, epoxy glue or old chewing gum & redrill it in the other side.

Mine's going to be used with a Reliant engine anyway, I hope.  Hope to pick a full Reliant up in a fortnight. :) :)
This axle was one i'd already paid for and thought i'd have a go at cleaning up.

Never hurts to have a spare. They're gradually getting harder to get hold of.

Silly question time?

The nuts that hold the hubs on, are they normal 'right-hand' thread or are they 'left-hand' thread (anti-clockwise)?

There being little bar-stewards to get off.  >:(

Just want to make sure I am trying to loosen them the correct way before I have my spinich. ;D ;D ;D

You could always flip the diff instead of the whole axle.
There is also a feed/drain hole inside by the nose bearing that should be re-drilled if flipping the housing. My picture should show the old hole and where i started to drill the new one in the wrong place
My solution to the loss of breather hole due to my having shortened that tube was to fit one off a steam engine in the housing itself in a handy boss.
The little holes are easily blocked which can mean oil is forced past the seal and into the brakes. Some axles have a slotted spacer between flange and backplate to let that oil out before it gets inside the drum.

and here is the breather (I took out the stiff internal spring so it works at just above atmos

That's tidy.
Normal thread on all the ones I've stripped down Dicky.

Cheer's Mr M. ;)