Did I destroy my rear diff?

I could have used a beer on the trail. getting home was pretty intense.

 

@ovrlndkull it was like $50 to have the set cryo’d. I didn’t have the front done as Zuk said fronts not really worth it.

 

Yeah I don't think I've ever seen a front fail other than the ADD tube and stub shaft.

The rears on the 2nd gens especially the OR are weaker than what ya'll have. That's what I assumed and misread the OP as having since I was tagged in this thread and didn't half ass pay attention to those details.

 

A Ford 9" is the quintessential diff for Drag racers. And the options are endless.

I wonder if the damage here is a one off or something that we can expect to see as these diff age. The Ford 8.8" with 31 spline axles was a pain near bullet proof for the applications it was in. I am hoping that the 8.75" in my truck gives me that type of reliability.

@Rat_Bastard , how hairy a trail were you on? Were you really loading up the drive train when it happened? And how often do you do serious wheeling?

 

I was on a steep, rocky , off camber trail. My front driver side was at full droop. I was in 4 low and tires couldn't grip with little acceleration. I shifted to neutral and then locked the rear and thats when I heard something snap. I thought it was the CV. I went easy on the skinny pedal but it apparently was enough force to do damage. I wheel frequently and not afraid to crawl through aggressive terrain.

 

Thats interesting. So the rear diff ws under a load but not moving and you locked it. I have never done that so I can't say if that was a good idea. I have always locked up right before getting into shit.

 

It was probably already weakened from hard use and that was the straw that broke the camels back.

 

Wanna borrow my truck and do the same thing so I can tell the wife I'll need to regear to fix it?

 

Sounds like a sudden shock load, and with how clean the shaft is of splines that confirms it. This will be something to watch for I guess. Hopefully the aftermarket starts putting out parts for these differentials... so far there is next to no aftermarket support.

 

I know a good spot.

 

I'm in Tucson too. Mind if I ask what trail this happened on?

 

I call it a forced upgrade!

 

I was back at Redington. I found a trail off the beaten path.

 

I'm wondering if I should be replacing anything else like bearings, Aside from the axle shafts.

 

How many miles on your truck and how many miles on the center section since it was re-geared ???

 

117k

 

The bearings will probably get destroyed trying to get them off. You'll also need the retaining collar typically you cut them then hit it with a cold chisel to get it off.

 

I like where you're heads at lol

 

Driveshaft spins and nothing downstream..... it's the dif/rearend. Everything downstream is mechanically connected to the driveshaft.... it has to spin, if it doesn't, it's broke.

 

Yes.