I got the gears, posi and install kits from snapple as he had bought them for his van. I was originally going to install these into his van and am glad the issues I am having are on my van and not his! The rear gears and posi are used GM units and are in great shape.
The first attempt at the install met with lots of swearing, bumped head, banged up knuckles and knees because I tried it under the van. I failed and could not get a decent pattern. Every time I installed the pinion the measurements changed. Adding and subtracting shims made no real difference. After 2 days the rear was buttoned up and I was hoping it would be ok...NOT! Never even made it out of the driveway it was so noisy.
First attempt:
Crawling under here for the pinion work sucked!
Original gears looked great and the oil was black but very little metal particles on the magnet.
Used GM 4.11 ring and G80 posi ready to meet!
4.11 pinion installed.
It was after this I stopped taking pics due to frustration! After 2 days of swearing I walked away for 5 days. After talking to my buddy Darrel who has done many gear swaps in Jeeps, we decided the problem might be the china bearings in the install kit. I decided to order a new Yukon master install kit complete with Timken bearings. In the meantime, I pulled the axle out to work on the bench.
The problem wasn't the bearings...it was ME! ](*,) ](*,) ](*,) When I pounded the larger pinion race into the housing, I never got it seated all the way. It went in very hard so I thought it was in all the way. That is why my measurements kept changing.
This is where that race goes in:
