OK, i bought a 4th Gen rear end and had it up on some saw horses ready to paint.. well anyway, i was moving stuff around and it fell down took out some nice chunks in my concrete.. anyway, i am now concerend i have bent something.. i mean, the whole thing is pretty sturdy but still, it weighs a LOT.. whats the chances that i have bent an axle tube?

Also, I am cleaning it up for painting and really want to take the drive shaft connector (dont know the real name), anyway the thing at the front that connects to the driveshaft, off.. but if i do that, can i re-install everything just like it came out or do i need to buy new bearings and then re-set the backlash etc? I dont even know what backlash is

Cheers,
Richard.

 

The part you're referring to is the pinion yoke. If you do remove it, it's crucial to scribe a mark with a chisel or a marker so that you can re-tighten the nut to exactly where it was before. This will ensure that your pinion bearing preload doesn't change. I also count how many threads are sticking out of the nut just to make extra sure it's put back correctly. Just a recommendation, while you have the yoke removed, you might as well put a new pinion seal in. These develop leaks quite often, and now would be the perfect time to put a new one in. Just make sure to put a little gear lube on the rubber seal surface before you re-install the yoke. You can burn up the new seal if it's installed dry. Pry the old one out with a large screwdriver or seal puller, and use about a 2 1/2" diameter piece of pipe and a hammer to tap the new one in. The short pieces of exhaust pipe adapters they sell at parts stores work great for this purpose. Some guys recommend using a new nut whenever you remove the yoke, but I've never had a problem re-using the original one. I usually use an impact wrench to remove and re-install the nut. You just have to make sure to do really quick bumps with the trigger when you're re-installing the nut so you don't go past the original mark you scribed. If you use hand tools, you have to use a pipe wrench or some other method to hold the yoke still while you're tightening it. You don't have to do this using an impact, but once again, you have to be really careful not to over-tighten the nut.

 

Hey, thanks for the tips.. But what about the rest of the internals? Would i not have to remove all that too?

Whats the chances i have actually bent something by dropping it? I know i disturbed a wheel lug thing but i knocked that back with a bfh..