need help installing 3:73
10-31-2004, 05:08 PM
#1
1st Gear Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location:
Posts: 80
need help installing 3:73
Well I need help installing the 3:73 gears for my rear. I know how to do all of the work but what I do not know how to do is making sure that the ring and pinon gear are meeting correctly, like I would not know if I needed a pinon shim or a ring gear spacer, and I also do not know how much slack ther is supposed to be in between the pinon and ring gear and how to make sure that are correctly aligned.
10-31-2004, 07:28 PM
#2
4th Gear Member
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Poplar Grove, KY
Posts: 1,656
RE: need help installing 3:73
it would be easier to take the car to a mechanic and let him do it. the slightest error on you part and it could be diasterous. i would ask the mechanis if you could watch or maybe help and take notes on what and how he does things. there is nothing worse than you rear end locking up or coming apart it could be deadly. so leave it to the pros! no offense to you or nothing.
10-31-2004, 10:02 PM
#3
4th Gear Member
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: United States
Posts: 1,665
RE: need help installing 3:73
i remember when i did my very first rear end along time ago, the bolts that hold the ring gear came lose on me, even tho i tourqed em... and my rear end locked up and the came lose and locked up.... i almost wrecked..... it wasnt a very fun expirence..... but now i can do it in a flash, all you really need is a dial indicator tool.... and if you got acess to a pinion depth tool, that would be usefull.... but if you dont got neither, you could just put the shims back where the old ones were, and shoot some white grease in there, and play with it for a hour or so, til you get em trailing right, thats what i had to do for my first few times til i got the tools i needed
10-31-2004, 11:28 PM
#5
1st Gear Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location:
Posts: 80
RE: need help installing 3:73
ORIGINAL: nemethjames1
i remember when i did my very first rear end along time ago, the bolts that hold the ring gear came lose on me, even tho i tourqed em... and my rear end locked up and the came lose and locked up.... i almost wrecked..... it wasnt a very fun expirence..... but now i can do it in a flash, all you really need is a dial indicator tool.... and if you got acess to a pinion depth tool, that would be usefull.... but if you dont got neither, you could just put the shims back where the old ones were, and shoot some white grease in there, and play with it for a hour or so, til you get em trailing right, thats what i had to do for my first few times til i got the tools i needed
i remember when i did my very first rear end along time ago, the bolts that hold the ring gear came lose on me, even tho i tourqed em... and my rear end locked up and the came lose and locked up.... i almost wrecked..... it wasnt a very fun expirence..... but now i can do it in a flash, all you really need is a dial indicator tool.... and if you got acess to a pinion depth tool, that would be usefull.... but if you dont got neither, you could just put the shims back where the old ones were, and shoot some white grease in there, and play with it for a hour or so, til you get em trailing right, thats what i had to do for my first few times til i got the tools i needed
I have done three before, but they were factory replacment so they just sliped in with no prob. I was thinking that it would be different since I was changing to 3:73. I am guessing, but I would think that the ring gear would be a little fatter and the pinion would be a little smaller in diameter. Has any one installed these gears? If so, do you remember how many shims and what was needed to complete.
Thanks to all for the great help.
10-31-2004, 11:38 PM
#6
1st Gear Member
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location:
Posts: 64
RE: need help installing 3:73
you pretty much have to get a dial indicator to check your backlash in your gear set. the backlash should be like .008-.013 in backlash to get the gears to mate right. you do this by moving the shims from one side to the other till you get the right backlash in the gears. seriously though, if you dont go and buy an indicator to do the job right, you shouldnt be doing it in the first place.
10-31-2004, 11:54 PM
#7
1st Gear Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location:
Posts: 80
RE: need help installing 3:73
I have a dial indicator, by back lash are you talking about the slack when you move the chunck one way and it taps the pinion then move it the other way tapping the pinon again. Also how do you know if you need to move the chunck from one side to the other, and when you need to move the pinion in or out?
11-01-2004, 12:03 AM
#8
1st Gear Member
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location:
Posts: 64
RE: need help installing 3:73
backlash is ho much movement there is in the ring gear, up and down it should only move .008-.013 of an inch when you move the ring up and down and not turning the pinion. its just the slack in the gear. and you change it by moving you shims from side to side. thats if your using a new set of universal shims for mustang 8.8 rear differentials.
11-01-2004, 11:28 AM
#10
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 11
RE: need help installing 3:73
you need a pinion depth gage to measure the depth (200$+), if you have ford racing gears there is a technique to measure it called Master Housing Dimension(not sure if it works with other gears):http://www.superstallions.com/tech/d...ars/gears.html
as for the backlash it should be between .008 and .015
as for the backlash it should be between .008 and .015