Just swapped a 02 rear into my 87 and I can only fit one clip in the bearing cap on the yoke... and no a needle has not fallen down, checked it 3 times.

 

If that's the rearend yoke, you don't use the clips back there. The yoke has tabs on the outside that locates the caps correctly and it looks like you have bent the retaining strap or I hope its not tight on the other side.

 

3R / S-44 joints use an inside clip like that.

1310 which were used on f-bodies too, use an outside clip.

If you google 3R 1350 1310 1330 measurements and measure stuff, you may figure out you need a conversion u-joint with one axis 3R sizes and the other axis 1310 sized.

 

Straps are tight and are not bent. The yoke does not have the tabs, neither does the old rear....

I ordered both a u joint for 87 and 02 both were the same...

 

It's not bent, your looking at the bevel that's cut into the yoke.

 

Not unusual when removing joints to bend the yoke a bit, then those clips won't quite go in. Why I like to cut out the joints and then push out the cups one at a time. Just have to spread the ears enough to get the clip in, or grind down the clips a little. And hope the joint is centered enough that it doesn't vibrate.

 

Bend the yoke??? Wtf?

This is the yoke, not the driveshaft part...

Man what happened to the tech quality of this site...

 

The Yokes can and do bend a little bit when pressing U-joints in/out. Happens mostly to the DS and Trans Yoke and not so much with the rearend yoke.

Anyway, Odd you don' t have the tabs.

 

Oops. Right you are, I was thinking of the trans yoke and driveshaft.

 

If all this is, is at the bolt-on straps, then use a C-clamp and acoupla sockets to compress the U-joint all the way together. Install one cap with the bolts slightly loose, compress, install the other cap, tighten.

 

I am having the same issue... Not sure WTF is up but the inside of the pinion gear yoke measures exactly 2.500 across the inside flats. The U-joint I have ( Moog # 234 ) is 2.557 from c clip to c clip. Tried to force it on the yoke and the land on on of the bearings broke off. Just as in the photo that Camarothatcould posted the yoke is smaller than the distance that the clips are. The yoke does NOT have tabs on the OD to hold the bearing cups. Tries centering the shaft and tightening the straps worked ok till I hit about 80 MPH then shaft moved off center and BIG vibration problem. I have not found a u-joint that is 2.500 across the clips. At this point only solution I can find is to grind off .30 the clips to make them thinner to fit. NOT a fix that I am very comfortable with but I have no other solutions available unless someone have something constructive to suggest...
Dave

 

Gave up and ground .30 off the clips so they are .70 thick. Shaft in and. Vibration is gone...

 

I've had to do that before too, but not to that extent.

Curious, where was that U-joint made? I've had lots of troubles with Chinese made joints, metric may be close, not exact I'm thinking?

 

This can't be this hard of an issue... Jesus. ... this swap has been done a million times...

Not sure where they were made, but 2 were ac delco

 

Ac delco =china.

Precision = USA and is usually what I run. (grease-able obviously.)

TRW/Federal Mogul= USA and is a good product.

DANA= USA hands down the best. May have to cross some numbers but can be done.

I noticed this is a few weeks old. Did you get it?

 

Nope.. still driving it, I dont think it's going anywhere but I have a 1000 mile tour coming up and I'd like to get it fixed

 

what we usually do is when the joint is out we file down the inside where the clip rides to get rid of the grease and debris or just file the the snap ring a hair to fit but we usually dont do that

 

Was at napa for 45 mins looking through theor book and taking and measuring joints off the shelf, nothing... I dropped the original joint off at a driveline shop. The factory 87 joint fits perfect in the 00 rear yoke

 

I had to open my yoke too on big vise and breaker pipe