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  1. C

    My DIY differential gear change

    Thanks, Jay! Now that you've watched me go through this process, I gotta ask: Are you still thinking about doing this yourself?
  2. C

    My DIY differential gear change

    Great question, but unfortunately I won't be able to answer this for 500 miles, as I break in the new gears. I've read that it makes it a lot more fun, gives you that "new girlfriend smile", etc., but I don't have any real numbers...
  3. C

    My DIY differential gear change

    Diff back into the car Last step is to get the differential installed back into the car and the car reassembled. First, I lifted the differential back up into the frame, put one of the cover “arms” into the frame, then the flange up resting on the exhaust, and finally the 2nd arm into the...
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    My DIY differential gear change

    Thank YOU, Allan. Through your multiple warnings, you had me adequately prepared for that step, both in tools and in mental attitude. Both made a huge difference! :)
  5. C

    My DIY differential gear change

    Okay, sorry for the delay -- had to take a break to watch that Niner game (wow!)... With the pinion in, in went the carrier with the shims that I had pre-selected during mock-up phase. Torque the bearing cap bolts to 65 ft-lbs: I measured backlash and it came in nice and tight -- four...
  6. C

    My DIY differential gear change

    Big day for this build -- final assembly! First thing is to install the pinion seal, but first it's important to put both the front bearing and the little washer in: Here I'm getting ready to press in the pinion seal: Then the pinion goes back in, but this time with the crush...
  7. C

    My DIY differential gear change

    Wanted to bring everyone up to speed on where I'm at, and then my goal is to get the thing back together this weekend. Hopefully... :) I would estimate I've tried about 8 or 10 different shim combinations by now. I started the pinion shim first, and had started that at 0.046", per...
  8. C

    My DIY differential gear change

    Hmmm, could be. FWIW, my 30k stock diff had a backlash of between 0.012" and 0.014". My new one is begin set up around 0.006" to 0.007"...
  9. C

    My DIY differential gear change

    Thanks. I'm definitely anxious to hear how this thing sounds. It's running smooth-as-silk on my workbench but obviously that's no guarantee that it'll be quiet in the car and under load. I've been spending a LOT of time (and conversations with Unitrax) thinking about the setup, backlash...
  10. C

    2" seat lowering kit instructions, and some tipsmplease.

    Just sent you a copy of the instructions. Don't expect much -- I found them pretty cryptic, but hopefully a bit of help. It was more a matter of me just looking at the pieces and figuring out what goes where. The one tip I'd offer is that these turn the installation/removal of the seat from...
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    Rear differential at 13.6k miles?

    Awesome news! :)
  12. C

    My DIY differential gear change

    Sorry, man, not much progress. I've been on a business trip all week, but in that time I did get the blessing of Unitrax for my setup, so now I'm ready to proceed. With any luck, I'll have the car running again this weekend. I also received my new 3/4" breaker bar (ebay find) last night, so I...
  13. C

    ECU/Battery Tender Question

    I use a tender all the time; this one works great for me: http://www.amazon.com/Black-Decker-BM3B-Battery-Maintainer/dp/B0051D3MP6/ref=sr_1_1 Can't beat the price, for sure. I like that it comes with a cigarette lighter adapter, which makes it easy for me to just plug right into the...
  14. C

    My DIY differential gear change

    Thanks! I did buy a few new tools for this job, including the 12 ton bearing press. I am doing this project both because it gives me a good excuse to buy new tools (now I have that for any future needs) and because it allows me to see how these things really work inside and know exactly how...
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    My DIY differential gear change

    Okay, perhaps I'll shoot for 0.007 or so. Unitrax's set-up sheet said 0.005" - 0.008" for Dana sets and 0.004" (!) for American Power Train (may be mis-remembering that latter manufacturer's name.) They also mentioned something about "2-cut" vs "5-cut" gears and how the setup is different...
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    2" seat lowering kit instructions, and some tipsmplease.

    I have a copy at home. Should be able to copy it for you tomorrow evening if you can't find it before then... Bryan
  17. C

    My DIY differential gear change

    Thanks, Frank. I'm definitely planning to check again once things are in there permanently. I do have a couple of crush sleeves on hand (one came with the gear set, one came with the rebuild kit), but hopefully won't need both... What I'm finding so far is that the original shim set...
  18. C

    Convertible option for 2014...???

    Re: Convertible option for 2014....??? Hmmm, that's a great idea -- didn't even know that was an option. Can I ask how much it costs to get on the list?
  19. C

    My DIY differential gear change

    For those wondering what their spider gears might be looking like... I mentioned on another thread that for the 3k miles I've driven my car, I suspected absolutely nothing wrong from my differential. No noise and no sign of any gear trauma inside. During that 3k miles, I experienced wheel...
  20. C

    My DIY differential gear change

    Thanks Allan! I'll post more pics once I get some more configurations tested out. I just bought a 3/4" breaker bar today. You have me looking forward to / dreading this crush sleeve... :)
  21. C

    My DIY differential gear change

    Thanks guys! Where did I learn to do this? I'd say I'm learning as I go, with help from this forum. I've watched a few youtube videos and read whatever I could get my hands on. :)
  22. C

    My DIY differential gear change

    Next, I built a little tool to hold the pinion in place. It's just a piece of wood that uses the cap bolts and another bolt to make contact with the face of the pinion: That temporarily holds it in place while I invert the housing... ...and drop the front pinion bearing into place...
  23. C

    My DIY differential gear change

    Back at it this morning. First thing was to put the aluminum case into the oven and warm it up to 200 degrees. While that was baking, I used my new $20 crock pot to warm up the main pinion bearing and the two carrier bearings, making sure I kept track of which set went on which side (so I...
  24. C

    My DIY differential gear change

    Okay, time to start putting this thing back together. It was a beautiful day here in Northern California and I miss driving the car! Yesterday I got home from a business trip to find all this waiting for me: Unitrax provides everything, right down to the shim kits, the new straps/bolts...
  25. C

    Came home and opened the box on my porch

    suspension porn.... Gorgeous!!!

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