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wait....what? they gave you a builder package that didnt have the correct bearings for......building...your diff? hows that make sense?
Pretty much my reaction. AND they know it! So far I haven't been too impressed with their service. Oh well, luckily I can survive for a couple of weeks without this truck. Actually, it has been three weeks now since I originally ordered the kits.
I'm gone for work until Thursday afternoon so I won't be able to work on it until Friday or Saturday.
Got the bearings from NAPA. They cost $44 each before taxes. It's nice to work for a company that gets a discount. Pressed the bearings on the locker, set the backlash to .006" and checked the gear pattern.
Drive:
Coast:
From what I can tell, this is perfectly fine. Thanks to ZUK for all his records on his website, I didn't have to pull the pinion bearing once. Then I had to shim the solid spacer for rotational drag. This took me about six tries. I am happy I had a real press to use. I didn't damage any bearings, seals, shims, flanges, etc in the process. I ended up with .064" in the forward (outer) shims. The inside was .092".
After getting everything assembled, I installed the air line flange, contoured the copper tubing, and went home. I hope to install it in the truck Monday.
I'm still working on getting my air tank configured. I was going to reuse the fire extinguisher valve assembly but I don't like it. I will either find a pipe fitting that will thread into the top of the fire extinguisher and seal the snot out of it or if that doesn't work, I will weld a fitting into the top of the extinguisher. I am looking to mount it under the bed. My air pump is getting shipped to me (thanks mom) so that will be on the agenda too. If I don't get the pump before I'm ready to use the truck, I'll set the tank up to be charged with shop air. That should last quite a few actuations.
Last edited by Joshuajayg; Mar 28, 2021 at 01:35 PM.
Good work on the gears. Sorry about the hassle with marlin crawler. Keep up the good work on the truck. I have to ask, where did you get the canvas topper and how much was it?? Or do you have a link?
Good work on the gears. Sorry about the hassle with marlin crawler. Keep up the good work on the truck. I have to ask, where did you get the canvas topper and how much was it?? Or do you have a link?
Thanks.
Topper is a Softopper. It was just over $800 with shipping. https://softopper.com/products/softo...-cap-so-m84oo/ I like it. We will see how it holds out long term. The tubing isn't super robust but I believe the strength of the system comes from the arch and the tension it is under. This desert sun and dry air will be hard on it. I should really take it off when I'm not actively using it. They also sell a "boot" to stash it in when not using it. You can boot it up either off the truck or when it is folded up and laid down on the front of the bed.
As soon as the back is installed and I get a short test drive out of it, the front differential is coming out to get its re-gear and Spartan locker installed.
I installed the rear diff last week. Took the truck down the road a short ways and back. No hum an no leaks yet. Yippie!
Saturday the XYL (wife for non HAM people) and I flew to Leadville, CO; I was looking for a burger from Gringo's but lo, Gringo's was no more. It is now called Taco la Mina.
I was still satisfied with the burger I got. Had some coffee at 10,000 feet, then made the flight back in time to pull the front differential out of the truck. I was able to drain it, disassemble it, and lay it out in an orderly manner.
Just look at that fresh oil. Not going to waste though, it will be burned to keep the hangar warm.
Today after work, I pulled the bearings off the carrier, took the spider gears out, wrote down the shim thicknesses, and got things cleaned up and ready for assembly. The housing is getting pressure washed tomorrow.
In the mean time, I've developed a fuel leak in my new fuel tank. There's a spot weld where some baffling is tacked to the bottom of the tank. A crack has developed around that weld. The tank is under warranty so a new one is being sent someday. The seller said it is backordered until about mid-month. Not a good start to the life of a new fuel tank.
On the short list of things to do:
Replace fuel tank
Assemble and install front differential
Weld mounds and fittings on fire extinguisher/air tank
ive heard this happening over and over and over with these repro tanks. next one you get, have it welded up first and maybe put some sealant all over the outside of it to help prevent this issue in the future.
ive heard this happening over and over and over with these repro tanks. next one you get, have it welded up first and maybe put some sealant all over the outside of it to help prevent this issue in the future.
I read the reviews and saw this as an issue also. I was hopeful that I wouldn't be one of the ones with an issue but here I am. Welding early isn't a bad idea. Maybe I'll stick some rubber dampening mat on the bottom of the tank to keep the vibrations down. I expect the issue comes from the bottom of the tank flexing constantly; the spot welds are harder than the surrounding material which would cause a stress concentration. Maybe fixing my humming diff and the loose companion flange off the transfer case will decrease vibrations too.
Forgot to mention that. I found the companion flange coming off the back of the transfer case to be quite floppy. Turns out this is a common issue. I took the driveshaft loose and some gear oil spilled out of the cavity where the nut sits. I took the nut off, cleaned everything in the parts washer then with brake cleaner. The output shaft has nearly no lateral play so the bearings are still in good enough condition. I put it all back together with new sealant per the service manual and torqued the nut to 90-ish ft/lbs then staked the nut. After reassembling the driveshaft to the companion flange, things were much more rigid. I also had to re-clock the drive shaft yolks as they were off quite a bit. I haven't driven the truck again yet but I'm expecting a smooth riding experience, not that I had any real complaints before.
Knocked the ring gear on the carrier this morning before work. Then realized I need to install the cross pin FIRST! Haha. Took the ring gear back off, installed the Spartan Locker and cross pin, then re-installed the ring gear. Slowly but surely.
Friday I pressure washed the differential housing and drove in the pinion races. I installed the pinion with the stock shim under the bearing but no spacer yet. Then I drove on the new TIMKEN bearings on the carrier and that is when things started falling apart again. The bearing included with the Yukon setup kit are not stock Nachi bearings, they are a different Timken bearing. The difference in width is about .5mm. When I was shimming the carrier in the housing to get a pattern, I couldn't get a preload, I still had about .007" of gap between the shim and the housing. That's when I measured the bearings in their races and found the difference.
Stock Nachi:
Setup kit Timken:
At this point I shoved in some shims just to set a good backlash and checked the pattern. The pinion is a little deep. I'll remove the pinion shim, install a thinner one, and go at it again another day when I can get more accurate measurements. I washed my hands and went home to eat some homemade pizza the wife was making and drink a cold Irish Red Ale. Then I started researching. I found some dimensions for both bearings and they concurred with my measurements; the Timken bearings are too narrow to fill the gap. Then on one of ZUK's pages on gearinstalls.com I found this little snippet:
So today I sent him a text message to ask about buying some shims and he said I'd be better off with new Nachi bearings as the shims tend to mushroom over time. Thanks for the help, @ZUK .
NAPA couldn't find the 17831S cup, only the 17831 so I did some googling and decided to order the stock bearings (Toyota's number) through LCE Performance. So now I wait.
Why is it that these setup kits/builder kits are sent with parts that don't fit? I would have rather spent the extra money up front for bearings that fit rather than spending less on the setup kit and then having to spend $100+ on bearings TWICE.
I leave you with a fresh Spartan Locker photo and no bearings.
Last edited by Joshuajayg; Apr 10, 2021 at 07:29 PM.
awesome work with the gear installs. that is crazy that marlin knowingly sells a kit with incorrect bearings, that kind of stuff is infuriating.
truck is looking great, i love the soft top
Thanks, @de6w6it . I think it looks good with the topper too. Needs a bath, though. Haha. I am hoping the get the front diff bearings and finish that one this week(end).
@ZUK Drove 40 miles home today and no whine, whirr, or wrinkle from the rear diff up to 70 mph. I'm satisfied with that. If it starts making noise at some point, I'll pull out my shim pack and see how the gears are riding. Go buy a six pack (or two fancy coffees) on me.
The 4.88 rear is great for 65mph cruising on the highway. Shifting down to 4th is a little high for steep hills and 3rd is a little low. I figured that might be a struggle but overall, I'm happy with the re-gear. It isn't too low and low range feels more useful. Maybe I won't put a 4.7:1 in my transfer case now.
I have a pressure relay, fittings, switches, and fuse block for the compressor install. Stilk need to weld the NPT fitting in the top of the fire extinguisher and mount it somewhere. I'm looking at a spot under the bed right now. I'll be glad to have the front diff and air tank done, those are kind of looming milestones. I've been working overtime and the garden is now demanding attention. But July is approaching and that is my build deadline because I have PLANS!
Updated the front page list of repairs and modifications as well as a photo. Whew, that's been some work! I may take some time this week to work on my air tank and electrical circuit install.
Got lots done, just haven't updated.
Front differential is installed along with the Spartan Locker. I hate getting that diff in there. I sacrificed too much blood to it this time. The power steering doesn't like 4wd now. Haha.
Replaced a CV axle that had a hole in the boot. Packed the left wheel bearings, installed the CV keeper circlip that was missing. Replaced the grease seal on the left hub (still need to do the right.) Replaced the two broken wheel studs on the front hubs.
Patched the leaky fuel tank with some Permatex fuel tank repair stuff from NAPA. I'm impressed so far.
Yesterday I welded the drain and air fittings to my fire extinguisher. Then I welded some brackets to the sides and bolted it to the bottom of the bed next to the fuel tank. Installed my Viair compressor in the engine bay. Added all the wires and hacked some holes in the dash for the switches. It works! I finally have onboard air and a functioning rear locker!
Now... I made another order from LCE to the tune of $1300. I even forgot something so I'll need to add that to the order if they can do do on Monday. Hint: I have a rattle from my transfer case.
Mar 22, 2021 | 11:04 AM
