front diff replacement 12/08/07 in Toledo DONE !!!!!!!

KJ04 · **Posted:** Sun Dec 09, 2007 8:15 am

Broke a $40.00 bolt, where :?:

jerbacher · **Posted:** Sun Dec 09, 2007 8:26 am

KJ04 wrote:

A $40.00 bolt, where :?:

One of the 15/16 cam bolts that hold on the lower control arms. Ya know, the fancy ones with the cam plate welded on and the flat side of the shaft...

KJ04 · **Posted:** Sun Dec 09, 2007 9:36 am

jerbacher wrote:

KJ04 wrote:

A $40.00 bolt, where :?:

One of the 15/16 cam bolts that hold on the lower control arms. Ya know, the fancy ones with the cam plate welded on and the flat side of the shaft...

But $40.00 for just one bolt, I replaced both of mine and I think they were around $13.00 a piece from the dealer a few yrs. ago.

So, aside from the bolt problem, how did everything else go?

tommudd · **Posted:** Sun Dec 09, 2007 10:18 am

Two of the bolts were rusted/ just a pain to break loose, other than that fairly simple to do really. We did have to take off the left lower control arm but the right one we just took off the front cam bolt and pried it down some and was able to get to the bolts we needed to remove/ replace. The replacement diff was in really great shape. Just cleaned it out inside good and sealed back up.
If this things like this keep coming into my garage I am going to need to strip my garage down in Marietta and move the compressor, air tools, rest of my hand tools , etc NORTH to Toledo. :wink:

Other than that things went well. Cant beleive how many different cracks the diff had in it though!

KJ04 · **Posted:** Sun Dec 09, 2007 10:44 am

tommudd wrote:

Can't beleive how many different cracks the diff had in it though!

It's likely that there were already some stress cracks in that housing before Jon even got to Wellsville. Did anyone get pics of it?

Aside from the chunk that broke off, mine split from the lower left side angling upward toward the top of the housing in one continuous crack.

meh_kick · **Posted:** Sun Dec 09, 2007 12:21 pm

Nice work folks. I think Nick said it best: "Did anyone get pictures?"

tommudd · **Posted:** Sun Dec 09, 2007 12:25 pm

a few of the broken diff...didnt have anyone extra to take pictures and when you are covered in dirt/oil/ grease ya dont really want to grab a camera :wink:

As far as replacing it wasnt really to hard to do, well I didnt think so ...Jon may have different thoughts just time consuming

KJ04 · **Posted:** Sun Dec 09, 2007 12:51 pm

tommudd wrote:

a few of the broken diff...didnt have anyone extra to take pictures and when you are covered in dirt/oil/ grease ya dont really want to grab a camera :wink:

As far as replacing it wasnt really to hard to do, well I didnt think so ...Jon may have different thoughts just time consuming

So, how many hours did it take 3 guys to do it?

tommudd · **Posted:** Sun Dec 09, 2007 1:12 pm

OH you mean our "Two and a Half Men" ( sorry Sean just had to throw that in...) Not sure maybe 6 to 7 hours total, with the couple of bolts I struggled with and not having a compressor for air tools, and needing to run after parts (the broken bolt/ food etc) it was right at that. Next one (which we hope will not ever happen again) since I thought of maybe a couple of short cuts later that may work, I would say 2 guys 5 hours easy. Thats two knowing just what to take off on each side, each one tearing off one side and getting the diff out and back in, then reassemblying the side you took apart.

jerbacher · **Posted:** Mon Dec 10, 2007 1:09 pm

Heres a couple of the front end all torn apart. These were taken right after we dropped the old diff out. Thats all I have. I think Tom has the rest.

meh_kick · **Posted:** Mon Dec 10, 2007 2:58 pm

jerbacher wrote:

I would have put a solid axle right there. :lol:

tommudd · **Posted:** Mon Dec 10, 2007 4:58 pm

if there would of been one laying there in the garage.......... he may of left SFA... :wink:

man you can pick a lot of stuff out in those pictures, Sam Adams sitting back there etc...its a good thing it didnt pick up on my "box of dirt" for my early plantings :wink:

Have to get the other pics off my camera later this evening

jerbacher · **Posted:** Mon Dec 10, 2007 5:31 pm

tommudd wrote:

if there would of been one laying there in the garage.......... he may of left SFA... :wink:

man you can pick a lot of stuff out in those pictures, Sam Adams sitting back there etc...its a good thing it didnt pick up on my "box of dirt" for my early plantings :wink:

Have to get the other pics off my camera later this evening

Yeah, sorry bout that box of dirt Tom. I meant to take that with me and dispose of it. I felt bad about leaving so much dirt and mud and grease and nonesensee in your garage...

2006 KJ · **Posted:** Mon Dec 10, 2007 6:02 pm

did you put on the front diff. collar during this expedition?? if so how did it work? glad to see everything went smoothly! (or appears to have went smoothly)... next time wellsville wont get the best of ya!

jerbacher · **Posted:** Mon Dec 10, 2007 6:05 pm

2006 KJ wrote:

did you put on the front diff. collar during this expedition?? if so how did it work? glad to see everything went smoothly! (or appears to have went smoothly)... next time wellsville wont get the best of ya!

Actually, it wasnt machined quite right, so i need to adjust it a little and then put it on. Its easy to stick on there, so no biggy.

Jeepjeepster · **Posted:** Mon Dec 10, 2007 7:45 pm

Would of been a good time to detail that sucker.

I mean, looks like fun!

bugnout · **Posted:** Mon Dec 10, 2007 7:53 pm

jerbacher wrote:

2006 KJ wrote:

did you put on the front diff. collar during this expedition?? if so how did it work? glad to see everything went smoothly! (or appears to have went smoothly)... next time wellsville wont get the best of ya!

Actually, it wasnt machined quite right, so i need to adjust it a little and then put it on. Its easy to stick on there, so no biggy.

I scratched my head over that for a while then finally decided to just open up the mouth of the clamp a little and see if I could make it fit. Only took about 20 to 30 minutes, grinding, checking the fit then grinding a little more. Mine fit with the split vertical, bolt heads toward the passenger side.

I did not take any metal out of the web (the area between the screws)

Hope that helps.

2006 KJ · **Posted:** Mon Dec 10, 2007 8:08 pm

bugnout.. what collar did you use? metal or alum. and where did you get it??

bugnout · **Posted:** Mon Dec 10, 2007 8:30 pm

2006 KJ wrote:

bugnout.. what collar did you use? metal or alum. and where did you get it??

I used a steel collar from McMaster-Carr

Here is the thread about it http://www.lostjeeps.com/forum/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?t=26526

jerbacher · **Posted:** Mon Dec 10, 2007 8:42 pm

i also got the mcmaster steel collar. I told the guy to machine it out to 3.5625. The collar is 3.5 stock. He said that the original collar was slightly oval and asked if I wanted him to make it that way again. I said "sure" since there must have been a reason for it to be that way in the first place, right? Actually you should just get it machined circular. Its easier on the machinist too. Mine was too small in the area right by the split.

front diff replacement 12/08/07 in Toledo DONE !!!!!!!

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