94 Ranger - 7.5 - Manual Transmission.

I followed the instructions from the other threads on replacing the pinion seal and got that done and reassembled. I followed the 'reuse the crush sleeve' approach, used a hole saw on a piece of 2X4 and used that to seat the pinion seal, pulled the rear diff cover and cleaned it out and replaced the gear oil.

I've read a lot of controversy on pulling the carrier out, new crush vs. reusing the old, in Lbs vs ft Lbs, etc.

87 Ranger Rear Pinon Nut Size?? - The Ranger Station Forums

I called the local Ford dealership and the Service Mgr said that the reusing the crush sleeve would be fine as long as I put 150 Ft. Lbs. on the Pinion Nut.

Anyone else used this method successfully?

 

Honestly, I would used the right driver to install the seal. Otherwise, you can screw up those seals easy and they will leak.
And, actually, the critical torque measurement is the bearing preload, not the nut torque. The best thing to do is measure the rotational torque req'd to spin the pinion (with a beam type, not clicker type, torque wrench), before you tear it down. But, sounds like you didn't do that. Anyways, going by Ford specs, a used bearing set typically would be set at 8-13 lbs-in. Note: lbs-in, NOT lbs-ft. But, your diff's pinion bearing preload may have been more, that's why you check it before disassembly.
On reassembly, you tighten the pinion nut while checking the bearing preload. That is done by tightening the pinion nut a little, then checking the preload, repeat as necessary. You tighten the nut until a preload of 8-13 lbs-in, OR if YOUR measured preload was more, to that value. If yours was less, then tighten to the 8-13 value.
Note: I said before, rotational torque. That is the torque req'd to keep the pinion turning after you get it spinning. The breakaway torque is the torque req'd to get the pinion turning. You don't use that value.
Now, since you don't know what your preload was before, if you set the preload to 8-13 and yours was originally more, you run the risk of having some slop in the crush (collapsible) spacer & then therefore pinion bearing to race tolarances, leading to other issues. Since you NEVER back off the pinion nut to reduce preload, because over tightening the pinion nut (which also causes excessive preload) will crush the spacer too much. That is why you can't just back off the nut. By the same token, if your preload was set higher originally and you undertighten the pinion nut by setting the preload to 8-13, your spacer will have slop due to being compressed more when installed originally.
Since you don't know your original pinion preload, IMO I would go back in and replace the crush spacer (and pinion nut) and start over. That will entail removing the pinion, unfortunately. But I am very particular when it comes to rear ends. There is no margin for error in setting them up, you do it wrong and you can kiss your ring and pinion goodbye, or at a minimum your pinion bearings.
Even tho I have done some rear end work, I really prefer not to. I have a good rear end shop (NOT a general repair shop) that I use to set up my rear ends. To me, it's a good investment- the job's done right the first time, which saves me money and time in the long run. You may want to see what a rear end shop would charge to set yours up.
Sorry for the length of this. If anything, I hope you come away with the understanding of the importance of preload, and how it is the important value, not the actual pinion nut torque value.