Can a 96 XLT Tcase be swapped to a 99 sport?

[Mr.Fork]

So my 96 blew the trans again a few months ago. I opted not to put a new trans in it since the job was such a pain and since practically everything else was wrong with it too(all 4 ball joints totally shot, headlight switch finnicky, turn signal stalk bad, speakers blown, hotwired since my friend broke the key in the ignition, etc etc).

I picked up a 99 sport for a good price off a friend, but realized soon after that something was wrong. When I accelerate more than half throttle without rolling into it while in 4auto, the truck shudders and feels like the front wheels are getting tons of wheel hop. With 4wd on it does the same thing but not as pronounced.

This makes me believe either the tcase is shot or there is a different gearset in the front than the rear. With the latter however, I would expect the issue to be more prominent with 4wd on than in auto(which seems to indicated an issue on transfer case lockup).

In any case, the one thing that worked great on my 96 was the 4wd, but I know the 96 has a 2wd, 4 auto, 4lo. Is it possible to swap the transfer case between the two, even if its just to parts swap to see if the issue dissapears or am I SOL?

 

[albi1cnobi1]

The difference between the 96 and the 99 is not just the t case. The 96 has a front center axle disconnect(CAD), and the 99 has a live front axle. That being said, the shift motors on both t cases are the same, but the cases differ slightly. There are speed sensors on the front and rear outputs on the 99 case that aren't on the 96. The internals of the case, namely the ranges are different as well. The 96 case, although it will technically work, will cause problems for the GEM module and how it controls various other systems. Short end to a long answer is yes, it will work, to a degree. But not with creating other problems. But if its only temporary to diagnose, probably.