Front diff removal

[ExploderHOKIE]

OK, obviously i'm missing something very basic, which is annoying considering I work on cars basically every day...but i can't seam to figure out how to take the front diff off the arm on my explorer, i took both axle shafts out, and took all the bolts out of the housing but i got nothin'

i spent 2 hours in the junk yard the other day trying to pull the 3.73s out of another 1st gen to replace my 3.27s, but i didn't get very far so someone please help me out

 

[Hokie]

Sorry, no answer for you but great to see another Hokie on this board. Despite suffering through our pathetic 2nd half to Georgia surrounded by bulldogs in the Georgia Dome I'm still a proud Hokie!

 

[Anime]

If adhesive was used between the diff and arm housing, rather than sealant, then it might be holding the parts together. I'd suggest spraying some carb cleaner or something around the seal, then either pound on the diff with a rubber hammer with something under it to catch it when it breaks loose, or use a jack with a piece of wood between the jack and the diff to lift up the rear of the diff to hopefully make it break loose from the bottom up. Most of the diff removal on the TTB seems to be done with the TTB off the truck, since its not always easy to line it back up with the sealant goo on there, giving the possibility for for a leak, which is a pain.

 

[RangerX]

There's a 'hidden' pin on the drivers side of the diff that needs to come out. You need to unbolt either end of the drivers side radius arm, and swing it out, to get that pin out.

 

[ExploderHOKIE]

thanks guys...RangerX, what does this pin look like and will it be fairly obvious once im looking at the diff?

 

[ExploderHOKIE]

ok, nevermind, i found it, i can't believe i missed it the first time

 

[410Fortune]

its a bolt, its a long bolt and you can remove it without dropping the radius arm from the beam if you grind a notch in the radius arm enough to get the bolt head to pass by.
Even if you do seperate the radius arm its a good idea to make the notch while it is apart for the next time.

This bolt basically makes the beam a structural part of the differential, or in other words it uses the diff to make the beam stronger

 

[Four0Sport]

that doesnt sound like a fun job at all.. could anyone else go into some detail on removing the axle shafts? i am planning my re-gear and the front seems to be the only part that i might not be able to do myself. im planning a 2nd gen rear to get the disc brakes, replacing the entire rear diff will be a breeze, but im afraid i may need to take the truck to have the front done, not sure if im confident enough in my ability yet. im reading bits and pieces of other old threads to get an idea, some words of encouragement would be helpful lol

thanks in advance,

Jack

 

[HahnsB2]

that doesnt sound like a fun job at all.. could anyone else go into some detail on removing the axle shafts? i am planning my re-gear and the front seems to be the only part that i might not be able to do myself. im planning a 2nd gen rear to get the disc brakes, replacing the entire rear diff will be a breeze, but im afraid i may need to take the truck to have the front done, not sure if im confident enough in my ability yet. im reading bits and pieces of other old threads to get an idea, some words of encouragement would be helpful lol

thanks in advance,

Jack

Remove the wheel bearings, calipers, rotors, and spindles, the drivers side shaft will pull out of the diff, the passenger shaft will need to be separated at the slip joint as the shaft in the pig has an e-clip on it.

I prefer to drop the whole beam to pull the pig, effing around with a 50lb pig under the rig and trying to wiggle it in and out of place, especially without smearing the RTV, isn't my idea of fun.

 

[Four0Sport]

thanks for the info Hahns.. the way you describe it makes it not seem like such a horrible job. do i need to undo the radius arms like it says in one of the above posts or can i get the shafts out just by removing the the brakes and spindles? will deffinetly consider doing this myself once the weather brakes in spring. i dont have a garage to work in, and im not going to attempt this outside in the cold. again, thanks for the response.

 

[Brian1]

Yup, easiest way is to drop the driver side beam and pivot it to the outside of the fender. You can leave the steering attached. you can also see the radius arm in the pic to answer your question. Like so:

 

[Four0Sport]

ok.. sorry to sound lost, but from what i see you can leave the ball joints and spindle on the beam? just remove the hub, caliper, rotor, bearings and pull the dr shaft out?

once the pass side clip is popped off the stub shaft and i drop the beam what is left holding the pass side shaft to the pig? basically what im getting at is id like to see a picture of the pig removed from the beam if anyone has one..

thanks for putting up with this, im tryin to learn as much as i can so i can spend as little as possible when i re-gear.

 

[410Fortune]

you dont need to pull the knuckle off the beam, you dont need to remove the coil, you dont need to remove the radius arm, and you dont have to drop the entire drivers side beam either

the axle shafts are SIMPLE
I can do each side in 10 minutes
once you have the wheel/hub/caliper/rotor off just unbolt the spindle, then the axle shaft pulls out of the diff.
On the passenger side the axleshaft pulls out of the slip yoke, the short stub shaft stays in the differential.

Grind your pinch bolt like I did and taking the differential out 100% is an hour job total

Pinch bolt grind (to clear skyjacker radius arms):

differential out last fall for locker repair, took 45 mins:

yes my beams are custom, good picture of the cut and turn right there!

 

[Four0Sport]

what difference did grinding the pinch bolt make? after removing the shafts and unbolting the front diff from the beam will the diff and stub shaft come out that easy? hate to use this phrase, but do they just fall out?

 

[410Fortune]

fall out, no, the diff is glued to the beam with silicoln, it can take some serious "persuasion" to get the diff off the beam (first try hitting it sideways with a piece of wood and hammer, then flat heads, pry bar, careful dont marr up the metal)

grinding the bolt like that is required to clear the aftermarket radius arms, the factory arms likely dont have that problem.
Without grinding it like that I would have to remove the d side radius arm from the beam to get my diff out = no thanks! So the first time I had to do it, I just cut the head off my bolt, then replaced it with a new bolt, but I ground the head down on one side so it would fit.

The radius arm to beam bolts are a huge PITA, the top one retains the coil, so you have to use a 1-1/8" socket with extensions, etc, the bottom one, well it mine as well be welded in place on my truck...

 

[Four0Sport]

yeah when i saw others removing the radius arm from the beam i thought to myself there has to be a better way. although i can see how having the entire beam on the ground in front of you would make getting the pig out and in a little easier. I think i just gained some confidence in doing this job myself this spring. thanks guys!

now i need to find a d35 4.10 pig or 4.10 ring and pinion and get some help installing just the R&P, im not messing with setting clearances in a differential, im not that confident! the yard i ususally go to said it wouldnt be hard to find a 2nd gen rear disc 4.10, its the front they were worried about bein able to locate for me.

thanks again!

Jack

 

[410Fortune]

The 4.1 gear ratio is not that uncommon in Gen I Explorer's and 91-97 Rangers here in CO, 3.73 is def more common but 4.1 is out there

 

[Four0Sport]

yeah.. 3.73s are readily available, but since im planning on running 33s at some point i thought hey.. why not just go 4.10 now. I know a 4.56 would be more ideal for this size tire, but for what i am going to use the truck for i think i will be happy with 4.10s.

do all 91-97 rangers have the true D35 and not the hybrid D28/D35?

 

[410Fortune]

no

only 4.0L rangers have teh true D35 I think
Do a search, it has been posted exactly where you will find the hybrid d28/35 and what models are more likely to have 4.10's


Alot of 91-94 explorer sports 5 speeds here in CO have 4.1 gears from what I have seen, seems to have been a popular (dealer) option in those years, the 5 speed and 4.1's

 

[Four0Sport]

alot of the first gen explorers in this area are 3.73s.. its just my luck that i wind up with a 3.27 truck. thanks for the info, are you still running 4.10s in your b2? how are they with the 35s? or did you opt for a lower ratio?