The optimization mindset is what drives racers to examine every inch of their racecar for ways to gain performance. One area where some horsepower can be freed up is in the driveline — specifically, the rearend. U.S. Gear has developed a new Ford 10-inch gear set that will remove weight from your rearend and not sacrifice any strength. After receiving feedback from its customers U.S. Gear got to work on the development of a new 10-inch gear set that would meet the most demanding of needs from racers.

To help make the new 10-inch gears a high-performing product, U.S. Gear changed how it looked at the manufacturing process. Tommy DeWildt explains what U.S. Gear does differently when creating each set of the new 10-inch gears.

“Through a shot-peening process, the gears undergo a compressive stress where media is shot, inducing small indentations on the surface of the gears. This process ensures unwanted tensile stresses are removed, making the gear material more resistant to fatigue and cracking. After the shot-peening is complete, the gears go through a complete deburring process. This consists of removing all excess sharp edges and excess material, which ensures tooth-to-tooth contact is as smooth and accurate as possible, and the gear is ready for installation once it leaves U.S. Gear. Following these processes, the gears undergo heat-treating, lapping, and quality testing, all performed in-house.”

The new Ford 10-inch pro gears are made from 9310 grade U.S. steel and designed to fit in most standard Ford 10-inch cases. Available gear ratios include 3.50 to 6.20 at this time. You can learn more about the gears right here on the U.S. Gear website.