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Gear Pattern check/metal shavings

Do you know where I can get shims? I can only find the whole kit.

Also, in looking for a new pinion nut and seal I have discovered my pinion is 27 spline. When I look up an 04 Tacoma elocker which is what this is out of it says it should be a 29 spline.
 
I'm not sure about just getting shims for a solid spacer kit without the spacer itself. If you have any local axle shops, you could bring one of your shims with you and ask them if they'd be down to rummage through their spare shim collection to find a few similar diameter in varying thicknesses for a few bucks. As far as spline counts on different yota gearsets, that's out of my wheelhouse unfortunately. I can't recall which is supposed to get what, etc. But once you narrow down the application, seal and nut should be available at just about any gearing supplier
 
Any recommendations on getting the pinion back into the outer bearing? I can’t even get the nut on at this point. I don’t have a press or air hammer.
 
I usually push the pinion in as far as it will go by hand, put the flange on, hold the flange with my hand and air hammer the dimple in the head of the pinion so the impact forces aren't being applied to the pinion seal. With no air hammer, you could basically do similar upright on your toolbench, so the 3rd member is standing on the pinion flange. Then you can drive the pinion downward with a hammer and extension of some sort (block of wood, brass blunt punch etc). That can be a little fussy because you almost need 3 hands, but doable.
 
Thats exactly what I ended up doing.

I took one .010 shim out. It takes about 30” lbs to get the pinion to move. Then takes about 10-12 once it’s turning. I’m not even sure I have the nut all the way down. So need to search for shims.

Do you normally just replace the seal whenever you’re doing this? It’s not leaking.

Thanks for all the help.
 
Nice. Yeah from those numbers, the .010 change is an overshoot for sure. As far as the seal goes, it's about 50-50. If it looks pretty fresh and pliable I might run it. But if it looks like it's been in there a while, I replace it out of principle because it's so easy to do while you're there.

No problem on the help, and props on sticking it through. Getting gears dialed in takes patience, and I personally believe most issues that arise from gear failures stem from running out of patience and falling back on the "good enough" mentality during setup
 
Last question for now. Should I stick with the FSM numbers for preload? It has different numbers for new vs used bearings. Thinking I should lean toward more preload rather than less.
 
I got shims. Narrowed it down to either .051” thick, which gives me 5-6” lbs preload. Or .051” which gives me 16-18” lbs.

4.3-6.9” lbs is what the FSM calls for used bearings. 8.7-13.9”lbs for new. So I either need tj set it up very heavy or in spec for used bearings. There’s no in between.

Leaning toward in spec rather than heavy since it is way above the new bearing number.

I do feel though that I have had a gear person set up a diff way heavier than what I currently have at 16-18.
 
Time for a beer.
IMG_4059.jpeg
 
Yeah I agree, I probably wouldn’t go beyond spec on the preload if avoidable. Is 5-6in-lb with no pinion seal, or with the seal installed?
 
Seal installed. I can pull the seal if you think it makes a difference. I have a new one.
 
Seals can sometimes add a few inch lbs of drag on their own, so you may actually be in the 2-4in lb range.

I’m torn on which route I would take if it were in my hands. Byro mentioned flat sanding a thou or two off the solid spacer on a flat surface with sandpaper before, I haven’t done that but it is intriguing.
 
I will pull the seal tomorrow add .001 of shim back in and see where it’s at. If it’s still in spec for used bearings I’m going to run it.
 
I always set pinion preload without a seal. A few reasons...

1. Your checking bearing preload not seal drag.

2. No risk of damaging seal

3. I use a old nut for setup so it's coming back off regardless. Fresh pinion nut only on final assembly with some locktight.

4. I always put a little sealer on the end of the splines to prevent oil weeping from the splines. So yup, final assembly only.
 
I pulled the seal. It made a 1-2” lb difference. Either way. .050 shim stack is about 18” lbs. .051 shim stack is about 3 lbs. A bit frustrating because both are out of spec.
 
Your chance of tearing up bearings is higher if they are too tight. Your choices are send it a bit loose, face the solid spacer down a tiny bit or send it tight. I'd double check everything is seated right. I can't recall ever having a time I couldn't get a pinion preload in spec with a solid shim.
 
I’m at about 12.5 now. Thoughts?

It just seems that there is no in between.

I have even started measuring shims to .0001 trying to get a tiny bit more or less. I have 3 packs of shims and realized they all vary slightly, meaning a .010 might be .0098 and one might be .0102.
 
Used bearings right? A bit snug yet.

That's how diff shims work, tiny differences to change preload.
 
Hmm, yeah this is a stubborn one. 12.5 is in the range where I may be tempted to send it. Is this going to be a rear diff or a front diff? Also, are the bearings dry or lightly oiled during your testing?
 
Once this goes in I will have little time ti run it before I head 550 miles up to the Rubicon. So I want o do I t right but just can’t seem to get there.
 
I hate to say it, I'm really torn on what I would do if I were in your shoes. I'd be personally tempted to run that 12.5in-lb setup, even though I agree that too much preload can generate too much heat. Preload also minimizes deflection, and I'd be timid about running like 3in-ib as the other option
 
I measured every shim I have and added .0002-.0003 to the stack and got it to 7.5-10”lbs. thinking I’m gonna run it.

Thoughts?
 
Do 2 and 4 pinion diffs have the same size bearings? Wondering why the 2 pinion have a higher torque value.
IMG_4062.jpeg
 
I can't explain the different specs for 2 pinion and 4 pinion, but I'd probably go ahead and run that 7.5-10in-lbs, that's in the safe zone
 
Fwiw we had to sand the sold spacer down on my fj60 3rd as it had a ridge at the seam where the spacer was welded. It was driving us nuts with preload numbers all over the place until we measured the spacer and found that. ZUK told me that's normal and to tape some emery cloth on a cutting board and run it over that a few times to get rid of the ridge, that worked.
 
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