97TacoDude said:
a full-floater system, the axleshaft only serves to transmit the rotational torque from the differential out to the wheel. It does not carry the weight of the vehicle like a semi-floater (stock) does. On a full floater, a spindle is attached to the outer end of the axlehousing. The hub's cap is attached to this spindle and rides on tapered roller bearings. It is this assembly that carries the vehicle weight. As such, a full-floating axle system is considerably stronger than an equivalently sized semi-floating system.
For those of you who carry heavy loads, this means your axle load capacity is greatly increased with a full-floater. Load ratings for similar vehicles with the two different axles are usually significantly different. If you do hard-core 'wheeling on big tires, a full-floater means that your axleshafts can also handle much more loading than a similar semi-floater could because it now must only handle torque loading.Further advantages of a full-floater include being able to remove a broken axleshaft, yet still have the ability to keep a functional rolling tire on that corner of the vehicle. This can be done since the wheel actually bolts to the hub that rides on the spindle attached to the axlehousing. If the axle has manual locking hubs, it may be possible to unlock the rear hubs for towing a disabled vehicle on the trail or for flat towing over the road.
