Dug myself into a hell of a hole, need help

[94Jo]

Last night i dropped my transfer case to clean my governor to help the 1-2 shift problem. It was awkward but i did it in a few hours. Today i go out to reinstall it, and i cannot figure out how to reinstall the transfer case. It is to heavy to lift my self from my back, and it will not balance on a jack to save my life, who has done this by themselves? Please give me some pointers, it is so frustrating. It is to heavy, im not small by anymeans, it is so awkward, and im getting rediculously agitated. PLEASE help me, or if there is anyone in the louisville area that could help a young guy out. THanks in adavance

 

[tbe2002]

I have dropped mine put it back together twice by my self. It is def not easy. This last time I placed it on my legs then scooted under the truck so my head was back by the gas tank then lifted my legs up and used my arms to help guide it. It wasent to bad.

 

[IZwack]

Oh you're a young guy? Well then, throw that transfer case AWWN!!

Kidding


The easiest way to do this is to jack the vehicle up so that there's enough room for you work. Then slide the transfer case near the gas tank. Then you slide under from the other side. Then put something on your chest to protect that Godly body of yours from the sharp ends of the transfer case's housing -- the rubber matting from the floor works well. Then place the transfer case on your chest (with the floor matt for some protection). Catch a few breaths and get ready to push the transfer case up and forward onto the transmission. Dont forget that there is a guide pin on the transfer case which locates it rotationally onto the tailshaft housing.

BTW sometimes the shift motor gets in the way because there's not much room between it and the gas tank -- so removing it temporarrily helps greatly.

 

[94Jo]

Ive heard to empty it so it weighs less? Is this a worth while thing to do? BTW, the rear driveshaft is still connected, i cant get it off. I even put a HUGE breaker bar on the bolts and it wasnt happening, so i just took it off at the rear, so that sucks even more. tbe2002, my girl read how u did it and said "damn he must be a beast" cause she knows how heavy the damn thing is,lol. Any more tips out there before I go out there and give myself a compud hernia and a broken nose? thanks to all so far

 

[tbe2002]

I wouldn't call me a beast, I am about 6' 140 lol. U just got to do what u got to do sometimes.

 

[94Jo]

Whoa, this thing is killing me, i just cant get it on me good enough to ge it into position, the most uncomfortable thing ever, and the ******* doesnt have a flat spot on it to use a jack, im freakin dying here

 

[Maniak]

Make a jig for it. Take a few pieces of wood and use one for the bottom (flat spot) and the other two to hold the xfer case so it doesn't roll. Then use a ratchet strap to hold the entire thing on (you don't want it falling onto you).

Once you get it up and started (problably wont' go all the way on becuase of the guide pin) release the ratched strap (while pushing the xfer case towards the transmision) and lower the jack some (Don't lower the jack the entire way in case the xfrer case does fall some). At this point while you are pushing the xfer case towards the transmision you can rotate it to get the guide pin correct.

~Mark

 

[gsx220]

this reminds me when i did my trans on my eclipse by myself lets say alot of bungy cords hellped alot lol that and im built like a greek god jk lol

 

[94Jo]

Well, i got it bout within an inch or so of being on the shaft, but just couldnt do it. The damn jack is messed up and wont go high enough. This is really gettin gay, I cant believe its takin this long, everything i do ends up in epic failure, I cant lift it with the jack in the way, i tried to suspend it from the frame but my rope has too much elasticity, and I cant put it on my chest and roll under because the truck isnt high enough (because of broken jack) Im losing my mind tryin to do this. Im not sure where to even go from here, om just glad i have a backup car or i would be in tears right now.

 

[ShadowdogKGB]

I feel your pain. Well, I will when I'm ready to put mine back in.

You gotta get yourself some good 6 ton jackstands and raise that truck up high. I don't like using the last notch on the stands. It makes me feel better to just use one notch below the max extensions.

I have an el cheapo floor jack from Wally world. I gotta put it on some thick boards to get it high enough. I also took the front wheel axle (on the floor jack) off and replaced it with about 2 feet of 1/2" all-thread to make it less prone to tip over.

On most floor jacks you can run a bolt through the part that makes contact with the vehicle frame ( couldn't think of what to call it). You can bolt a nice thick board to it and then figure out what you need to get the xfer case level.

It's a total pain for sure. But with the wider front axle on the floor jack, a well-made jig to rest the case on, getting the jack to reach high enough, and having your truck as high as you comfortably can get it I think you could do it.

 

[Jack Flash]

I've been broken down in some stupid places and lived to drive again...

maybe this backyard method will work: get a 2 X 10 long enough to stick out either side of the truck. make a cradle out of whatever is handy to hold the transfer case in close to proper position.....now get brick or blocks and lift each end of the 2 X 10 (or 8 or 12 or whatever was handy) alternately until the transfer case is high enough to mate with the tranny.

if you are lucky enough to have enough scrap wood to shim the 2 X 10 to the correct height, then you are good to go. even if it's not exactly the right height, at least it's resting on the 2 X and all your strength is not wasted, manhandling the transfer case.

have taken many auto trannys and VW engines out and put them back with this method..........jjf

 

[pavodive]

I'm not a beast, and this is what I did:

I went thru all of this about 3 weeks ago, know your suffering...

I also tried to make craddles to it, but it's not only the TC shape what doesn't help, it's mainly the unevenness of the weight distribution what makes it harder.

This was my setup:
Rise the front end about 4 inches. You want some room, but you don't want it to be too high you have a hard time making up to there.
Get two jacks. I worked it out with an "alligator"-like one and the standard bottle jack of the X.
Keep handy a 10mm with its ratchet. Use glasses, one of the worst things is when you almost have it there, and you get like a ton of things in your eye.

This was the procedure:
Rise the light end till you can screw the front axle. DON'T TIGHT too much the bolts, you just need it to help sharing the weight (a couple bolts will suffice).
Then, as IZwack said (based-on-experience, bad poetry is mine, sorry I couldn't help )

put the heavy part
on top of your chest
and without too big a fart
for God sake do your best.​

Keep in mind that your aim here is not making it to the end the shaft, but rather to get it resting on it.
Unbolt the front axle (put the alligator jack beneath it providing some lift, you don't want the manganese case falling) so you can move the rear end bride back and fro till the shaft matches. A gentle push makes to the mid of the shaft, from there on you can help with the bolts.
Bolt rear and then front axles.

Hope that helps.

 

[Bigman]

Your biggest problem right now is that you still have the rear driveshaft attached. I know that the driveshaft’s can be a pain in the ass to get of so if you really cant get if off you can leave it there but it will be a lot easier to do it without that shaft on there. You need to lift the whole truck it makes it a hell of a lot easier. I'm assuming you have the drive shaft off of the axle. Suspend the driveshaft in the rear (It will help to not have to try and lift the shaft at the same time as the case) All you need to do is get the shaft on a little bit and you will be good. Once that shaft is on about an inch the thing will support its self. Then you can just wiggle it till it goes where you want it. When ever I do it I just put it on my chest and lift it...I’ve done a NP205 on a 79 bronco with the front driveshaft attached to it in this method. It’s a pain in the ass but just do it.

Hope that helped...If I were closer to ya I would stop by...But im a few hundred miles away...If you have any questins feel free to ask me...

 

[94Jo]

Yeah my problem now is def. gettin the truck high enough. Im afraid to keep using wood because of the height and risk of tip, but i gotta get the truck higher.There are so many good suggestions, thanks guys. My goal is to have this damn thing back in by the end of today and never take it off ever again, lol. X2 on the unbakanced part. The way it balances best on the jack looks like it is gonna tip and smash my face so it throws me off a lil. Once i get it on the shaft of the trans, can it support it pretty good until I can reach for the bolts? I dont want to warp/break anything this late in the process, thanks to everybody so far

 

[Bigman]

Yeah my problem now is def. gettin the truck high enough. Im afraid to keep using wood because of the height and risk of tip, but i gotta get the truck higher.There are so many good suggestions, thanks guys. My goal is to have this damn thing back in by the end of today and never take it off ever again, lol. X2 on the unbakanced part. The way it balances best on the jack looks like it is gonna tip and smash my face so it throws me off a lil. Once i get it on the shaft of the trans, can it support it pretty good until I can reach for the bolts? I dont want to warp/break anything this late in the process, thanks to everybody so far

Yeah it will support it just fine. Like i said once you get it on the shaft a little bit it will basically support itself. You will just need to wiggle it on at that point.

Good luck!

 

[94Jo]

I GOT IT! Oh my god finally. I took your advice and jacked the mazda as high as possible, then i put the transfer case on my stomach, while i was on the creeper, slid in there, took a big breathe and finally got it into place. I was so crazy happy, it was really kicking my ass for a while there. I am so relieved. After that it took maybe 20 mins to bolt everything back together. Thank you all so much for the great advice, i didnt think id ever get it, you guys are awesome.

 

[IZwack]

...you guys are awesome.

Dont forget that some of us are girls