Hey guys, lemme tell you my situation, and please gimme some ideas on what I should do. Keep in mind money isnt falling off trees around here, so the cheaper the better!

About 4 years ago the yoke nut on the rear axle under my 89 came loose. When I asked a mechanic at the truck shop where I worked what I should do, he said "On these big trucks all we do is tighten that nut down until it dont turn anymore" That works fine on semi trucks, but unknown to me at the time, things are a little different on these light duty trucks. So I started to go to town w/ my impact, but stopped when the nut would not stop turning. I then looked into it, and found out about the crush sleeve, the pinion bearing preload, and all the other stuff I just royally ****ed up. Oh well, too late now. Lets just run it and see how long it lasts. Its been 4 years, 4 truck pulls, countless romps in the mud, and I dont know how many red light drag races.

Well 3 weeks ago I entered in a local truck pull, and ended up blowing up my yoke and rear u joint. Bought a new yolk and ujoint, but had no way of figuring out what the yoke nut had been torqued to. So I did everything by feel, and now that its all back together, I cant seem to feel any backlash, and everything spins free, (its actually spinning nicer than it did before things blew up) but i drive the truck even short distances and things heat up REAL quick. On my drive home from work (about 15mi, 1/4in town, 1/4 highway, and 1/2 interstate) the rear end heats up to the point I can put my hand on the cover, but after about 2 sec its too warm to keep there. And yes, the fluid is topped off, and only about 3 months old.

So, what do you all think I should do? Id like to know what temps these things are supposed to run at, but I cant seem to find that info anywhere. Do you think its worth it to try and save the axle, or should I be planning on a swap in the near future? Thanks for any opinions, If someone knowledgeable about axles could speak up, that would be great! Thanks again!

 

I'm not familiar enough with the sterling rearend to say whether they do or do not have a crush sleeve. But, as a general rule of thumb, a crush sleeve *should* be replaced anytime the pinion nut is removed. They are designed to crush as needed to set the pinion bearing preload, and it's a 1-shot deal.
Since your pinion has been loose at least twice, it means that *if* there is a crush sleeve, it's on it's 3rd go round.

As for heat buildup, all diffs build up heat, and they can do so at varying rates depending on the specific stress and loads encountered in any number of situations.

I'd start by first determining if this diff does use a crush sleeve, and removing the rear cover to inspect the ring gear, and the pinion as well as possible. They could be damaged. Those 2 checks can tell you a lot about what is actually going on inside the diff.

 

Ford 10.25 Full Float Axle Rear Disk Brake and Rebuild .: Articles Here is an article which includes adjusting the pre-load.

 

Thanks guys. Yes, the 10.25 has a crush sleeve. That really sucks to hear, seeing as how the pinion nut coming loose has been a reoccurring problem on these axles....
I saw that article yesterday, and reset my pinion nut to 165ft/lbs. Hope it holds...