Greetings..I'm new to forums, so bear with me.
I had a rear u joint get loose on me on my 96 f350, 2wd, srw. I believe I have the 2nd gen Sterling 10.25. The yoke was damaged so I picked up another one at a salvage yard (i'm certain I got the correct yoke because I took mine to match it up..)
I'm having trouble getting the replacement yoke to tighten up enough to get the "slop" out of the pinion. So far I've used a box end wrench on the end of a 1/2" breaker bar as a "cheater". The bearings appear to be fine.
I have not disturbed the ring gear. I've done all this with the wheels on and the truck on the driveway...
How do I get the pinion to tighten properly? Also, how do I ensure the pinion contact on the ring is proper?
What about the crush sleeve? So far, I don't see a crush sleeve, but I'm not sure what I'm looking at.. Is the crush sleeve between the two bearings? What does the crush sleeve do?
Sorry to be lengthy, lots of questions..
Any help would be appreciated.

 

Just tightening as tight as you can with the setup you are using should do it.

The "slop" you still have, is it rotational slop or up and down? Tightening the pinion nut won't effect the rotational slop.

The crush sleeve is between the bearings.