1st post in the axle section - be nice

[ForOffRoadDriving]

last night i finally pulled the trigger and installed the axle after i got home from work. it was suposed to rain all night so i said what the hell, ive got nothing better to do tonight? things went quite smoothly and the rain held off until dark, so i only got a little wet. unfortunately i was using my phone as a media source while working so the battery died before i could take enough photos.

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

The guard kinda looks like it belongs on an old hockey or lacrosse helmet.
Looking good, interested to hear how it sounds....or hopefully doesn't.

Richard

 

[ForOffRoadDriving]

It sounds awesome and is perfectly matched with my tire size. The lockrite grabs like hell and aside from the clicking it makes when turning the rear end is silent! Job well done, i will update with pics at the 500 mile interval when ill be changing the oil out and inspecting the gears for abnormal wear.

 

[ForOffRoadDriving]

500 miles went by faster than i thought so using the last few hours of daylight on monday night i popped off the diff cover and changed out the fluid. the added drain plug on the botom of the housing made things less messy and after close inspection everything looked great inside. after installing the new gasket, cover, and guard i filled it up with some amsoil 75w90 severe gear and reinstalled the fill plug. now im ready to tow the boat or climb the hills at the gravel pit, or just drive to work....... all without worrying about getting easily stuck.

a few metal shavings on the fill plug

 

[4x4junkie]

Looks good.

I'd give it another 500 miles before subjecting it to the sustained torture of towing, though if you want to start romping on it now, it should be ready for that.

 

[ForOffRoadDriving]

i followed richmonds directions for breaking in the axle for towing by towing the trailer empty for 10 miles or 20 minutes and then it cooled for about 30min while i was loading it. then i towed the loaded trailer 10 miles back home and unloaded it and let it cool for about 30 min, then repeated that cycle 2 more times until all the chairs and tables for our baby shower party had been collected. two days later i repeated the same cycle then on the 3rd day i changed the fluid out at the 500 mile mark (it was more like 560miles but i was close).

 

[4x4junkie]

Well you're probably OK by now then.

Towing creates a lot of heat (which is why I mentioned it). Until the gears get well-broken-in, they tend to create a lot more heat than normal.

 

[ForOffRoadDriving]

i started the tear down on the old 7.5 with 3.73s and a trac loc, things were looking good until i took the clutch plates out. one side looks good still, but the other side is all clutched out. the going rate seems to be about $80 for a set of clutch plates, and since i dont plan on putting this axle back under my truck i dont really want to spend the money on it. ill keep my eyes open for a junker 7.5 and hopefully i can get enough good plates out of it to pack it a little tighter and put it back together.

im thinking i have to remove the ring gear inorder to get these gears out of there?

heres the clutch plates from the good side

heres the ones from the bad side