Carbon fiber drive shaft

This is sound advice as a diagnostic to confirm that your driveshaft IS IN FACT the source of the vibration you're experiencing, before you go and spend coin replacing it.

You see how this works, right?

Remove the rear driveshaft entirely.

Drive the truck in 4 hi (which now makes it basically a front-wheel-drive pickup truck)

See if the vibrations are still there, or gone.

If they're still there, you need to look for another cause. If they're gone, you've confirmed that the driveshaft is the cause.

If you go switching your driveshaft, the other thing to consider is if you want to switch from a single cardan driveshaft to a double cardan (CV) driveshaft.

http://www.4xshaft.com/selection.asp

If you do that, you'd shim the rear axle so that the pinion on the differential was pointing directly at the transfer case.

 

Carbon fibre driveshafts are not any lighter than stock. What they give you is a smoothing, whip effect - perfect for drag cars. they twist and launch like a spring. They are very thick hence very heavy.
On a truck i would go aluminum if you're really that worried.

 

I feel like any replacement driveshaft, regardless of material, is going to be vulnerable to vibes.. as being out of balance is the main cause.. correct me if im wrong.

I had a local driveshaft shop balance and straighten the shaft (pun intended) and it reduced my vibes significantly.. almost completely.

OP, are you running aftermarlet wheels? suspension components? etc.. there are numerous variables for vibes on these trucks.

 

^^wut he said

-driveshafts as a single piece need to be spun balanced and have weights tacked on
-ujoints and flanges have to be in phase, not 90 degrees out of phase
-transmission output joint angle need to match 3rd member joint angle as close as possible

once you check all the above prop-shaft vibes should be gone

 

I just had a shaft made from a 4runner shaft. Used the Double Cardan from the 4runner shaft and the rear flange and slip yoke from my stock shaft. $350 including my junkyard 4runner shaft. No more vibes for me.

 

Lol @ the guy who said carbon fiber ISN'T lighter than a steel driveshaft, while also being larger than a steel driveshaft. Its so cute when people read nothing and post everything , but you're right about carbon fiber being able to flex and smooth out bumps, VIBRATIONS, and other things better than any metallic shaft due to its flexibility as a material.
First of all, a steel shaft would be comparable in size to a carbon fiber shaft if the carbon fiber one isn't SMALLER in diameter because carbon fiber has MUCH higher tensile strength than steel pound-for-pound, so much LESS material is required to achieve a stronger shaft. Literally just check google if you don't believe me on that.
The only shaft significantly larger in size is aluminum which is why people don't replace every steel shaft with aluminum, it creates clearance problems with how large it is, especially when it starts jumping rope over 75 mph. Also, being that it has a lower tensile strength than steel it is even more prone to 'jumping rope' or other deformation caused by high speed situations. Aluminum is slightly lighter than carbon fiber typically, but theres a reason race teams don't break doors down for aluminum driveshafts... Thats that they are more prone to failure than either other option and aren't good for high power/speed applications.
That would be one of the biggest benefits of a carbon driveshaft though, anything happens to that and it shatters without damaging anything else. Cant say that about a steel or aluminum shaft, have fun with a 20lb baseball bat whipping around under your truck at a few thousand rams