okay heres the sit rep, i just did a pinion bearing in my 89 ford bronco, i had to use the carrier, ring gear and pinion out of an 83 rear end.
well i am not in the best of situations right now and could not afford the tools needed to measure pinon depth, backlash or pinion pre load
i re-used the crush collar from the 83 rear and i also had to use the axle shafts from the 83 as well as the 89's axle shafts would not fit using the 83 carrier.
other than having to change the drums as the center openings were smaller everything came together well it moves just fine but there is a very faint whine thats haunting me, im very worried about the rear end failing if it does i lose the only vehicle i have
ive already put maybe 4 or 500 miles on it, im wondering what kind of damage i could be causeing, if the ring gear and pinion could be salvageable should i manage to find a way to get the tools and parts i need to properly rebuild it, what do i do?

 

Just run it.

If you own a bronco, you own a project.

The rear end is the most durable part on the truck, so how much could it be wrong and why are you messing with it to begin with if you don't have the tools to fix it.

Try using public transit until you get back on your feet and can afford to have it check, you can check it by removing the diff cover, it's not like you have to remove the whole thing again.

 

You'd be better off getting a JY axle unless you were changing gear ratios for some reason.

 

hey i do what i have to to survive and i had to fix the pinion bearing, it was whining so bad i couldt hear the radio over it

 

Bummer man, I would advise taking it easy until you can afford to get the proper parts and tools.

 

A whine louder than the radio huh? Stupid question but, you put fluid in right? It's a dumb question but some people space and just forget. It happens.

 

oh yeah, i did put fluid in it, the pinion had a ton of play in it before i did it,, once i did the pinion bearings and seal, and put everything back together the whine almost completely went away its very subtle you have to actually listen close to actually notice it, other than that, axle spin nice and smooth when i have it up on stands theres no play in the pinion but im certain i dont have the preload set right, i used the stock carrier shims but as i was installing the carrier they fell out, not thinking, i wiped the dirt of of them..............along with my left and right markings. the truck moves alright like i said i have between 4 and 600 miles on it now, the diff gets warm but not anything i would call abnormal i guess i will just have to take it easy i called my local shop and he said as long as i have a lil play before the pinion engages the ring gear, and as long as the whine isnt terrible which it isnt i should be fine

 

Are you shure that whine is the diff? It might be the power steering pump ;-).

 

yep yep, this sound differentiates from the sound of the good ol ford power steering pump definitely coming from under the truck

 

Hey man I was in the same boat, I bought the truck knowing the pinion bearing was worn and that thing whined like anything. I changed it out and it was pretty much blind leading the blind and we did it not having the correct tools. we torqued the pinion nut down to something like 180ft/lbs of tourque (the second time) first time was not enough and the yoke was pulling in and out making crazy noises. It whines a little bit not much. This has been like this for over 2 years now...

 

2 years ya say? huh, well the electric impact gun i used is rated for 230 ft/lbs on a full charge, the whine right now like i say is barley noticeable and best heard when i disengage the clutch and brake, seems to be completely non existent when its cool out, thanks for the support guys, seems as though maybe i didnt do to bad a job, i mean i have the presses and all. the tools i was missing you ask? a dial indicator and an inch pounds torque wrench, thats it, oh, and the paint you use to mark the ring gear, but from what it sounds like i did alright, did i mention this is a posi rear?