8.8 cross-pin bolts?

[rickcdewitt]

good call on the carrier bearings.they take the side load in the rear.i have put a few in 7.5's that wore out early and they made a rumble.the ring gear shouldn't move side to side noticably or theres play

 

[MAKG]

I took a good look at every bearing I had exposed, including the axle bearings and the carrier bearings. They all looked good.

And even the gear oil was nice and clean. I think it's clear I've been barking up the wrong tree here. The pinion nut WAS loose, but that's it.

I also took a good look at the wear pattern on the gearset. It was perfect. The spiders had some striations in them, but they looked like factory original machining marks.

The thing that really confuses me here is that the noise seems to come and go. It was pretty bad -- with the rubbing sound back again -- for some 15 minutes yesterday on the highway (in heavy traffic) at around 40 MPH. And then it was better. It sounded VERY much like a roller being dragged. But every bearing I've looked at doesn't show signs of it (I've recently repacked the front as well).

The places I haven't looked are the transmission, transfer case, and front axle/driveshaft. I'm considering trying a coast test to rule out the transmission and transfer case (remove rear driveshaft, unlock hubs, and coast downhill with the engine idling -- lock the hubs to get back uphill in front wheel drive)

 

[Evan]

The spiders had some striations in them, but they looked like factory original machining marks.

Totally normal.

 

[Dan Rowe]

Anyone know what store might carry this in Canada (Calgary), I have a leaking Right Rear Axle seal on my truck and would like to do the work this weekend-(doing rear brakes at the same time), I would feel much better about opening up my Diff with this extractor kit in hand, but due to the timing ordering off the net is out of the question...

I wanted a second for just in case. I found them on ebay, but can't find any stores at all. I asked at Napa and the counter guy said he bought his through Fabbri. I don't think their stores have 'em yet.

Do you have access to a Mac Tools, or Snap-On tool truck?

 

[MAKG]

The places I haven't looked are the transmission, transfer case, and front axle/driveshaft. I'm considering trying a coast test to rule out the transmission and transfer case (remove rear driveshaft, unlock hubs, and coast downhill with the engine idling -- lock the hubs to get back uphill in front wheel drive)

FYI, I tried three tests on this last weekend. Zip tied the front driveshaft, locked in the hubs (in 2WD) and the coast test. None of these changed anything.

This means the noise MUST be the rear end, front wheel bearings, or brakes. The entire driveline aside from that is ruled out, including the front (manual) hubs.

Now, I'm suspecting brakes, as I had an interesting incident the other day. Hard stop on the highway, strong enough to kick in the RABS. The left rear brake didn't release right away. After the stop, it felt like driving sharply uphill (even though it was actually slightly downhill) for some 30 seconds. Then, silently, it behaved normally again. There was a distinct burning smell some 10 minutes later, coming from around the left rear wheel (I suppose it could have been the tire, but I would have expected that to dissipate immediately), which is why I'm blaming that brake.

There was a fairly recent brake job on it (including hardware and wheel cylinders), and it seems to work fine. I did have to straighten a hard brake line on it, as it had been bent at the fitting. It hadn't been leaking and did bleed normally.