Beautiful pic of what the shave does. Very beneficial and the AR500 is an awesome way to cap it off.
Nashville TJ's Build - Continued
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Beautiful pic of what the shave does. Very beneficial and the AR500 is an awesome way to cap it off.
I think it would have been better if Ballistic added 1/4” of thickness to that plate, making it 1/2” all the way across. Giving up 1/4 of ground clearance would not have mattered, but likely could have also helped by adding a little more meat below the 4 lower bolts. - which is the vulnerable area on this setup. Also could have helped with sealing, although I’ve never had a problem there.
Ballistic has since changed their design, and instead of permanently welding a mild steel reenforcing plate to that area of the diff cover at the lower 4 bolts and then counterboring, they now provide a separate AR500 reenforcement bar that bolts to the lower six bolts in that area. Much better design, and it makes it possible to easily replace that bar, making it a wear item.
I’ve talked to Ballistic to see if I can retrofit my setup, but it is not possible as the lower plate is a little different. I’ve also asked if they have a replacement cover available, as they do for other setups. Still waiting for a response.
Here is mine. It’s worn through down to the heads of the bolts, and into the bolt heads. I had to grind and drill out the bolt on the right. Haven't decided what I’ll do there yet.
Thanks for the detailed explanations. AR400/500 is pretty crazy stuff.
I read elsewhere that Ballistic is shutting down so hopefully you can get the parts you are looking for.
Have you considered welding an AR500 plate to the bottom to achieve this? You could even make it a little oversized and create a ledge/protective lip for the cover.
Jeff, have you considered using hardfacing wire, like I did with my Barnett covers?
Very cool stuff. I'm in the same boat kind of, my Dana 44 diff cover bolts on the bottom side are almost 1/2 worn off. I'm getting ready to install a mid arm and I'm wondering if I should change everything over to my spare Dana 44 housing or run what I have and build the bottom up with weld. I'm leaning towards the new housing as it will be easier to work with.
Good stuff, can't wait to see more.
That's not a bad idea - especially the overlapping lip. Maybe a piece of 1/4" AR500 if I can find it. Thanks for that, Blu.
I've thought about that approach, and did see that you did, but I'd also have to hard face the AR500 to keep it even with the lower part of the cover. I guess I could hard face the plate, and then the lower edge of the cover, and then mill it back flat so it meets up evenly. I think adding the plate as Blu suggested might be a bit easier.
I'll give both some thought - thanks for the input as always.
I don't know how hard AR500 is to cut or bend to your desired shape, but don't overlook AR500 steel targets, they're relatively cheap and easy to get.
Not a lot of time spent in the shop today, but I did get the ARB carrier ready. First up was to pull the old bearings...
...and press on the new ones:
Before dropping in a new ring gear, it's always a good idea to run a flat file across the mounting surface to ensure it is flat and smooth. In my case it was necessary as there were a few small nicks in the facing likely left over from ECGS mounting it in their lathe to mill down the diameter.
The ring gear is a very tight fit on the ARB carrier. To make this task possible, into the oven it goes. 200 degrees has always worked for me. It expands the ring but does not impact the temper.
All the while being very, very careful not to let the wife witness the previous step, the heated ring gear slides easily onto the carrier. Carrier bolts torqued to 120 foot pounds, and it's all set for the install and setup.
Unfortunately, I am not ready. I thought I had additional pinion shims left over from my last setup, but I could not locate them. I ordered a set, and they should be here Wednesday.
...and press on the new ones:
Before dropping in a new ring gear, it's always a good idea to run a flat file across the mounting surface to ensure it is flat and smooth. In my case it was necessary as there were a few small nicks in the facing likely left over from ECGS mounting it in their lathe to mill down the diameter.
The ring gear is a very tight fit on the ARB carrier. To make this task possible, into the oven it goes. 200 degrees has always worked for me. It expands the ring but does not impact the temper.
All the while being very, very careful not to let the wife witness the previous step, the heated ring gear slides easily onto the carrier. Carrier bolts torqued to 120 foot pounds, and it's all set for the install and setup.
Unfortunately, I am not ready. I thought I had additional pinion shims left over from my last setup, but I could not locate them. I ordered a set, and they should be here Wednesday.
Doh! I forgot to check that on my Dana 30 project. So far I 've only checked patterns in a single spot but when I do all four quadrants I guess I'll find out if the run out is out of spec...
Same. 200 deg for an hour works perfectly. So far, I've been very careful to clean the ring gear before it goes in the oven and haven't lost my privileges due to any garage smells in the kitchen
Every time I order a master install kit, it doesn't come with enough shims for the job and I haven't done enough gears to have a whole bunch of shims around the shop. Fortunately, a friend has a 4x4 shop that specializes in gears and always graciously allows me to root through his shim board.
Same. 200 deg for an hour works perfectly. So far, I've been very careful to clean the ring gear before it goes in the oven and haven't lost my privileges due to any garage smells in the kitchen
Oven is the way. I didn’t know I had privileges to lose.
Same
Maybe you don’t, especially if you do some cooking. For me, I don’t want to cook all the time and I appreciate the good food I get that I don’t have to make. So I try to respect the space and tools that provide it
Maybe you don’t, especially if you do some cooking. For me, I don’t want to cook all the time and I appreciate the good food I get that I don’t have to make. So I try to respect the space and tools that provide it
I always joke that my wife has more kitchen tools than I have tool tools…
I'm a pretty good kitchen tool collector too.
I may have a problem with the ARB. I need to confirm one way or the other. Here it is:
No, I am not incredibly strong. The new pinion side carrier bearing is not a press fit. It's snug, but easily removed and installed. The old bearing came off this way as well.
I've been searching but have not yet found an answer. My recollection is that this was a press fit when I installed it four years ago. The journal does show just a bit of wear, but I can't imagine what would cause the bearing inner race to slip and rotate.
The inner bearing race also shows a bit of rotational scoring, but there is no damage to the bearing which would indicate something got in there and jammed the bearing.
Anyone have any insight?
Fuck. I think I'm replacing the ARB.
No, I am not incredibly strong. The new pinion side carrier bearing is not a press fit. It's snug, but easily removed and installed. The old bearing came off this way as well.
I've been searching but have not yet found an answer. My recollection is that this was a press fit when I installed it four years ago. The journal does show just a bit of wear, but I can't imagine what would cause the bearing inner race to slip and rotate.
The inner bearing race also shows a bit of rotational scoring, but there is no damage to the bearing which would indicate something got in there and jammed the bearing.
Anyone have any insight?
Fuck. I think I'm replacing the ARB.
Wouldn't building up the bottom with weld end up being stronger? Thought I had read somewhere that the additional weld would bring in carbon from the original cast?
The journal does show just a bit of wear, but I can't imagine what would cause the bearing inner race to slip and rotate.
The inner bearing race also shows a bit of rotational scoring, but there is no damage to the bearing which would indicate something got in there and jammed the bearing.
That is surprising, it really looks like it was rotating, at least some. Do you have access to specs for that piece, or can you find them, then measure and compare?
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I've had both of my ARB's out over the last couple years and my bearings didn't pull off, 60 and the HP44 lockers.
I was replacing seals so I didn't mess with them either.
May have contributed to your original issue.
I guess you want to know WHY that happened. But if you figure that out and the ONLY problem is the carrier press fit is worn, I wonder if tacking the bearing on would work for the life of the bearing?
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not advocating that. But in a post apocalyptic world (you know, when Amazon stops delivering stuff to your doorstep step because all the drivers have been drafted to fight Canada
…) would it work?Similar threads
