VintageBlue

put my car in neutral, jacked it up, held the wheel and rotated the drive shaft. Had 45 degrees of play before I felt resistance either way. I am assuming this is bad....my question is, how can I tell if it is worn out gears, or just needs more shims to adjust the backlash? Is there a way without taking the rear end apart? If I am going to open it, I want to open it to work on it and if I work on it, I want to know what I need to fix so I can determine if I need to take it to a shop or if I can do it myself. also, anyone rebuilt a rear end? I read a how-to on the web and they talk about pressing fittings and bearings together...is that the case, or can it be done in a garage with regular tools?

nealro

Depends on what rear end you have. If you're talking 8" or 9" it's pretty easy to pull out the 3rd member and check it out on the bench without pulling the thing apart. I would think you'd be able to see right away where the problem is if you have that much play. If you haven't done a rear end before I'd recommend help from someone who has, it's not rocket science but it has to be done pretty precisely. There's a good article for 9" rebuilds at www.ford-trucks.com in their articles section.

As for specialty tools, you'll really need to have a press for bearing removal/installation and a dial indicator to check backlash.