4.10's Lessons Learned

[Capt Jake]

1) The Chrome Diff cover from Summit does not fit. The ring rubs on it. I guess the $19.99 price tag said it all.

2) My axle bearings took a lot of heat. Heat the outer axle, then spray bearing with H2O in a spray bottle to get a temp delta between the components.

3) Gear oil came out like thin mud...awesome sent, way worse that usual.

4) Carrier shims took +0.010" on the left, -0.010" on the right from stock for .012" final back lash. Couldn't get it any closer.

5) Clutch pack kit worked fine. S-Spring needed a small workout before I held it collapsed in a vice and placed the carrier over it followed by some light tapping.

6) I dropped the Pinion gear...again. I'm gonna start ordering two sets of gears and return the ones I don't drop. Pinion head shattered at the heel, tail was bent. Slippery little bugger..

7) Ratech sent a Pinion tail bearing with a distorted cage, or maybe I dropped that too. Thank you, UPS 2 day delivery.

That's it. They are different every time you do 'em. Its like building a wrist watch I guess. Controlled precision, never brute force.

[tbone]

You lost me on #2.

[MrBluGruv]

Give special attention to that s-spring. While I genuinely believe I had a one-in-a-million QA slip-up with mine, I had to have mine replaced today because it split in half, and this was supposed to be the heavy-duty one too.

[fastblackmerc]

:dunno: The guy that did mine had no problems....

[Capt Jake]

It was definatley a concern. I didn't want to flex it too much. Once its stretched beyond its elastic point, who knows how long it will last. As for the diff cover still making the project incomplete, I think I will go with something that costs more than 20 bucks.

It willl make a nice garage decoration.

[Blackened300a]

2) My axle bearings took a lot of heat. Heat the outer axle, then spray bearing with H2O in a spray bottle to get a temp delta between the components.

You are supposed to use a bearing puller on those. It makes life so much easier. Installation is with a oversize socket and a hammer.

[hotford]

6) I dropped the Pinion gear...again. I'm gonna start ordering two sets of gears and return the ones I don't drop. Pinion head shattered at the heel, tail was bent. Slippery little bugger..


You know that ring and pinion set are matched set and should not be mixed with others!!

[SpartaPerformance]

Did you use a Ford parts?? If not there's the problem. There's a reason why non-Ford stuff is half the price, unfortunately most times it's an expensive lesson.