96 Ranger Dana 35 NO GEAR LUBE :(

[RangerRough]

i completely rebuilt my front steering and suspension, drained my gear oil and replaced axle seals and bearings, etc. Finished up replacing pretty much everything and began to bleed my brakes with anticipation to drive my truck to get aligned and test her out. I FORGOT TO REFILL MY GEAR OIL......... OUCH! was driving it dry for awhile Decided to drive through my mudhole in my back yard and try to get it stuck, well it got stuck and i had to get out and lock in the hubs. when i put the truck into 4wd low, i noticed it was making a lot of noise, i managed to crawl out with ease but the sound was very discomforting to hear from the front differential. I popped it out of 4wd low and drove it to the garage and the noise went away, so i knew it was the dana 35. then i realized i never refilled the gear oil. i put the recommended gear oil in and drove it around in 4wd low and high, the sound was drastically reduced but still present. what damage y'all think i caused to the dana 35? did i fry the bearings inside or is the damage going to be more severe? should i just rebuild the entire dana 35 with a locker? any recommendations for a locker for my 96 ranger dana 35 ttb? Any and all knowledge shared here will be greatly appreciated

 

[Uncle Gump]

Technically... with hubs unlocked and transfer case in 2 wheel high... rotation of the front differential should be minimal.

 

[RangerRough]

Technically... with hubs unlocked and transfer case in 2 wheel high... rotation of the front differential should be minimal.

yes, i know this already, what does this have to do with anything? Am I missing something

 

[Uncle Gump]

Yeah... I just fell off the turnip truck yesterday... and I have no idea where I'm at.

 

[RangerRough]

Yeah... I just fell off the turnip truck yesterday... and I have no idea where I'm at.

umm? ok? lol you trolling me?

 

[Uncle Gump]

We got off on the wrong foot.

I was simply stating that wear would be minimal because none of those parts should have been moving anyway.

 

[RangerRough]

We got off on the wrong foot.

I was simply stating that wear would be minimal because none of those parts should have been moving anyway.

ohhhh like me driving around town for a few weeks would not have caused a lot of damage? yeah iono, i think just using the 4wd for that short period of time, maybe 30 yards of mud worth, may have caused the damage im hearing. I never worked on a front differential before or had any issues with my 4wd trucks front diffs either.

 

[RangerRough]

Amazon.com

I found this, but would that fix the grinding/whining sounds? or did I damage the ring gears or other internals?

 

[StephenF]

A little late here, but did you figure out the issue? That kit would fix a bearing issue, but not if it is a gear issue. Only way to know is to open it up.