Rear Axle (Pictures and Video)

[PHOENIX]

Well Saturday I opened up the axle to change the fluid, take a look around, and to determine what gears I have.

Fluid was very old and really needed a changing.
I looked around a little bit and found some damage (see arrow below).
I determined that I have 3.07/3.08 (40 and 13).
The video is nothing special, but shows how the axle works.

Should I be worried about this damage?
About every other tooth on that gear has the side damaged.
It looks like something got stuck in between the gears.
What causes this damage?





Download the Axle Video

[swervin ervin]

Looks like the spider gears have seen better days.

[Class of 69]

It is normal for the spider's to wear some, but those need to be replaced. You can do it yourself. Remove the bolt that holds the center pin in, and after you slide it out, rotate one axle until the top and bottom gear come out. Then, slide the side gears off the axle shafts. Go to a dealer and get new ones, and reverse procedure to install. You will probably need a new pin also, check it for wear at the gear locations. No close tolerances to set. Just make sure to replace all the washers in their right location.

[N2TRUX]

Yep, it's time for new spider gears. Those little guys make a big mess when they lock up, and explode. All the pieces float around for a while destroying all the other gears. It's not pretty...

[PHOENIX]

How much do you guys think it would cost me in parts and labor to take the axle into a shop and have them fix this and change the gears. I would probably go with 3.73's and buy them from someone else and bring them into the shop.
So how much for them to supply these spider gears and install them along with install (but not supply) the ring and pinion gears I bring to them?

I will make it a priority after exhaust is completed.

[jimfulco]

If you're going to spring for a complete overhaul plus spider gears plus ring & pinion, you could forego the spider gears & get a posi for not too much more.