Blasting and rear axle stuff

[71CHEVYSHORTBED402]

1971 SWB, rear leaf springs

I spent many hours cleaning this axle. Hit with a rust inhibitor cocktail for a stint, then rinsed it off. Less the rust inhibitor, it could work as is with the paints I'm using. But I'm not done (cough!). After all that work, I think I'm going to have it blasted anyway.

Won't come as a shock the entire housing shell is pitted (cast iron?). Sands nicely however. I've never had a piece blasted before, but my son says it will remove that pitting for a nice "finish". Is that true?

Apparently the manufacturer welds a protection "scab" on the axle for the lower leaf spring U-bolt plates. Some of that flaked off, so found another use for a welder.

Edit: My truck had a rubber fuel hose clamped onto a ventilation tube on the axle. I read that factory was a fitting instead? I also read a similar fitting was on the transmission vent tube? My transmission vent tube had nothing on it.



Other than that, for what it's worth the axle has many stamps. I can't make out a date stamp though, assuming there is one.

• The axle is stamped TRT W112, 3896839 N, GM 58, 12345, D141, 6T 90 (may be a character between T and 9), and I couldn't tell you, looks like CONG.
  
• The pinion is stamped 9210 GM