Alright folks, an update is certainly due.....
Ok, so the tranny/clutch finally crapped the bed. I couldn't get it to shift into ANY gear. The Jeep was towed from my house to the Jeep shop. Diagnosis: Bad Clutch Linkage.
I knew the linkage was worn, but not that bad. Turns out, not only had the 2" body lift thrown the linkage out of whack (strange angle on the bellcrank pushrod) but the clutch pushrod was fabbed-up WAY to short.
Solution: ALL NEW CLUTCH LINKAGE and a little fab. Ordered an HD linkage kit (heim joints) and new bellcrank kit, etc. The shop fabbed up a new bellcrank pivot bracket (body side) with a 2" drop so that the bellcrank wold be straight.
Bottom line: Shifts like a dream (minus the
T-5 's known "hics" and "grrrs"). New car smooth.
This was such a relatively cheap upgrade ($130 parts without ANY shopping around and totally do it yourself, but I didn't) - I recommend it to EVERYONE with 30 year old metal-on-metal linkage.
As soon as I got the Jeep back I finished up the roll bar. God Bless NUTSERTS!! Used nutserts/rivet nuts (finally found the right ones on Ebay) in the windshield frame to secure the front bars. Created my own Nutsert Installation Tool as well. Pics to follow.
Installed new rollbar pads/covers and a new spice safari top.
Next up -
AMC20 rear pinion leak....drip, drip, puddle. I was told it may be driveshaft wobble or a bad pinion bearing or some other expensive repair. It WAS on it's second pinion seal in 3 months. Not to be fooled, I decided to see if the third time was the charm....
Removed the driveshaft, COUNTED THE THREADS VISIBLE ON THE PINION SHAFT (There were 3), and removed the pinion nut (impact wrench). Pulled the old seal.
Well apparently, there are different "quality" of rear pinion seals. The first (what I pulled out) is metal-on-metal (metal seal rides on steel differential/yoke carrier -$3.99) with a rubber seal around the yoke shaft.
![Eek! :eek: :eek:](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)
![Confused :confused: :confused:](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)
![Mad :mad: :mad:](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)
No poopie it leaks!! It's metal on metal in a 30 year old Jeep!!
The second type (Thank you NAPA for not carrying JUNK) is rubber on metal. Yes, it was $14.99 (I'll get you the part number).
It was SO worth it. Installed it....bone dry after the commute today and no reason to think it will leak!!!
![Smile :) :)](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)
Reinstalled the yoke, tightened the pinion nut (3 threads -- and another ONE OR TWO can't hurt, right?)
TEST DRIVE: Grinding noise. Uh-oh. Did I over-tighten the pinion nut and smoke the outer pinion bearing? I was certain I had.
So - in a moment of passion and inspiration - I was all set to replace the outer pinion bearing! Drained the diff and pulled the cover. OKAY STOP!!! I was told that there were 4:10 gears in this thing by the PO....3:73 is stamped on the ring. So 3:73 it is....gotta update my profile I guess.....
Pulled off the yoke. Gently pried off the "new" seal....
...followed the advice I read here on the forum and INSPECTED ALL PARTS AT DISASSEMBLY!!.....
The new seal has a flange on it. The "cheap one" did not. The flange was clearly scuffed pretty bad. It appeared that the yoke had scuffed it up.
Being a betting man, and NOT wanting to tear down my differential/remove the carrier, etc, and certainly screw something up...I decided that the scuffing was what I heard....upon further inspection, I decided that I hadn't properly seated the new seal causing it to grind on the yoke.
Well since I had the diff cover off, I ground off all the paint/primer/rust and decided to give it a little FORD RED engine paint. New diff gasket and some RTV. Looks GOOD to me!!
Seated the seal with a wooden block and rubber mallet. Installed the yoke, drove the pinion nut down (Impact wrench) to "three threads" and filled it back up with GL-4.
Test drive........Perfect. I love it when a plan comes together!!
So that is what I have been up too.....seriously, pics to come.
Cheers,
![Chug :chug: :chug:](/community/smilies/beerchug.gif)
TrebleHook