Rear end problem
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Rear end problem
I am in the process of converting my 89' 2wd into a 4wd. After I put the rear end, (including springs) onto my truck i reinstalled my old drive shaft so that I could drive it. When I did I noticed a vibration from about 15 to 45 mph. I put the back end on jackstands and noticed that my wheels were moving up and down about 1/4" on both sides. I assumed that I had bent axles and swapped both of them from my old rear end that did not have the vibration. I still have the problem. The wheels move up and down and I also noticed that my entire drive shaft wobbles but gets worst toward the rear end, the pinion where the drive shaft attaches also appears to have the same wobble however it does not appear loose and both u-joints are tight. What would be the most logical thing to do next?
Cargo Master
Joined: Dec 2003
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From: Sunny Florida
Axle play has to come from a bad axle bearing but you said you chage your axles so maybe the axle housing part for the bearing is bad? Did the bearings feel bad on the other axles?
The pinion play means the pinion bearings are bad and only a rebuild will fix it correctly.
The pinion play means the pinion bearings are bad and only a rebuild will fix it correctly.
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All of the axle bearings are OK. Also the pinion did not move up and down or sideway shen I tried to move it by hand. One guy suggested that the driveshaft could be out of balance making the whole rear end shake, but it's the same drive shaft that was in it before and it didn't shake. This has me puzzled.
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From: Hallettsville, Texas
Is it the same wheels and tires as you had before? Are they balanced? Do they physically move up and down 1/4" by hand or are you refering to running it while on jackstands and the wheels move up and down while rotating? What type swap did you do? Did you install your body on another frame and running gear? Did you install donor gear on your frame? If so, did you get your driveline angles where they need to be? More info would help.
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I installed the whole rear end including springs onto my frame. It has the same wheels and tires on it that it had before. I jacked up one side today and took the wheel, tire and brake drum off and I can still see the drive shaft making this wobbling motion while in gear. I can not move the tires up and down by hand, but can see them moving up and down when it is running. The vibration starts at about 20 mph and is more noticable when I let off of the gas. i also changed the yoke today where the u-joint attaches to the pinion shaft and it did not help. i can't find any weights at all on the drive shaft, but it doesn't appear that any are missing either. and tghe u-joint seems fine. Could it be a bent pinion shaft or the bearing for it?
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From: Hallettsville, Texas
Do you have a carrier bearing with two shafts or just one shaft between the rear axle and transmission? If you have a carrier bearing, did you get the yokes back in the right position (phased)?
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If the pinion is bent or the pinion bearing bad, could it allow the motion to transfer to the axles making them do this? Is rebuilding the rear end something that I should try myself, or have someone do it?
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I think I will take the carrier and axles out and just run it with the pinion gear in it and see if I still have the wobble. Then I should be able to know if its something in the pinion or further down in the rear end.
Postmaster
Joined: Jul 2003
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From: Pittsburgh
disconnect the driveshaft at the axle and rotate it 180* and drive it, see if that helps. if it does, try it at the tranny. If it gets worse (doing it at the axle) put it back the way it was and try it at the tranny. your shaft can be balanced, but a yoke can be kinda goofy. roating the shaft will move the heavy side (of either) to where the old light side was, hopfully cancelling some of the out of balance.
Justin
Justin
Justin
Justin
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Does the driveshaft need to go in the tranny in any certain position? I have tried the 180 degree thing at the axle and it didn't seem to help. If it needs to go in the tranny a certain way then maybe that is my problem. However I wouldn't think anything in the tranny would balance with the driveshaft.
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It's a slip yoke transmission and yes the u-bolts are tight. I have one side of the rear end up on a jackstand so it is not moving but the axles are moving as if they are slightly bent (however they aren't because I changed them with my other rear end that wasn't doing this) and also the drive shaft and pinion have the wobble.