[6pack] rebuilt differential on Ebay

[Sally or Dick Taylor]

Bruce---If you can afford the down time, have a good manual of diff rebuilds, and the patience to do it, try the rebuild yourself. In many cases, you will not have to use the special equipment that's called out for refitting the ring and pinion mesh. (note the shim thicknesses and placement, as well as where the cotter pin went thru the castlated nut on the pinion). If your '73 diff is like my '73 diff, only the seals, cone/dished washers and a few bearings will need replacement. Mine had nearly 280,000 miles on it, when, with the help of Berry P. and Bob L. the job was done in about 16 scattered hours. The next three diffs I did took much less time, as there's a lot of fussing that wasn't necessary.

The only part of doing this that had to be farmed out was pressing off the bearings in front of the seals on the half shafts. (Lots of tonnage involved here. The cost at the local NAPA was minimal, like $5.00 per axle.

I had a spare diff to work with, so after the repair I got to try it out, having my worn diff to fall back on if necessary. Armed with the confidence of my rebuild that now had 5,000 miles on it, I then tackled my original and installed it.  

Lots more to this, but the short story is that the job looks formidable when looking at the illustrations and pages of instructions. Once the diff plate is removed and you're able to see and turn the moving parts, the slop will be evident. Bearings and their races should be removed, cleaned and inspected with a good magnifier. This will show up as to their worth in keeping.

If we weren't so far apart, I'd loan you one of mine while you completed ths job. Now with an LSD, but that's a whole other story!

Dick