I have just pulled my stock auburn diff - I knew the posi unit was bad because I do countless donuts and on right hand turns I could only get one wheel peel. Also about 5000 miles back lost it in a relatively sharp turn at about 50 mph and cracked a rim on a curb. Evidently this is bad for the diff bearings. About 2500 miles after my curb incident my diff started to roar like crazy from 10 mph on up - And I mean LOUD essentially undrivable. After I got the diff out, the bearing that was on the impact side showed pretty significant wear.
Anyhow I had bought a zexel diff a couple of years ago and will be attempting do swap out only the diff meaning reusing the stock gears. I will not touch the pinion gear. My question is if I reuse the stock shims (one per side) what are my chances at getting the gear setup right. And if I do have to adjust the backlash what tips do you all have. By the way when folks say they get whine after doing their own gears, is that so terrible - does whine mean destroyed gears or is it just a little annoying. I will have access to a dial indicator with magnet but I have never used one.
Any tips or suggestions will help
Thanx