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Chevy 10-Bolt Rearend Upgrades - Get Your Rear In Gear

Chevy 10 Bolt Rearend Differential
The torque specs that the... 
   
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Chevy 10 Bolt Rearend Differential
The torque specs that the instructions call for are first 55 then 60 ft-lbs for the ring gear. Red Loctite is used on these bolts as well.
Chevy 10 Bolt Rearend Differential
When installing the carrier... 
   
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Chevy 10 Bolt Rearend Differential
When installing the carrier and gear, we saved the original shims as a starting point for backlash measurement. Sometimes setting backlash is a trial and error process. In our case the original shims were too tight a fit, so we used the shims supplied in the kit to get the backlash properly set.
Chevy 10 Bolt Rearend
Setting the backlash requires... 
   
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Chevy 10 Bolt Rearend
Setting the backlash requires that the pinion gear be immobilized while the ring gear is rotated back and forth.
Chevy 10 Bolt Rearend
Moving the ring gear towards... 
   
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Chevy 10 Bolt Rearend
Moving the ring gear towards or away from the pinion gear centerline helps determine the amount of rotation backlash and meshing of the gears. We set the backlash in the rear end to .003-inch, which is on the tighter end of the spectrum.
Chevy 10 Bolt Rearend Ring Gear
Once the we believed we had... 
   
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Chevy 10 Bolt Rearend Ring Gear
Once the we believed we had the proper backlash set, we used gear marking compound to check the pattern wear on the teeth of the ring gear. There are about 18 different illustrations in the instruction booklet that deal with acceptable wear patterns. Needless to say, we won't include those in this article. As you can see the gear wear pattern on our ring gear is as close to center as we could get it, which, according to the instructions and Randy's book is acceptable.
Chevy 10 Bolt Rearend Axle Bearing
After that, the axle seals... 
   
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Chevy 10 Bolt Rearend Axle Bearing
After that, the axle seals and bearings went in.
Chevy 10 Bolt Rearend Axle Install
The Master Power backing plates... 
   
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Chevy 10 Bolt Rearend Axle Install
The Master Power backing plates and then Yukon C-clip axles are installed next.
Chevy 10 Bolt Rearend Differential Cover
After the axles were clipped... 
   
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Chevy 10 Bolt Rearend Differential Cover
After the axles were clipped into place, we sealed up the differential using Grade 8-bolts. That might be overkill on our part, but Harrison insisted.
Chevy 10 Bolt Rearend Gear Oil
Finally we used Royal Purple... 
   
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Chevy 10 Bolt Rearend Gear Oil
Finally we used Royal Purple 75w-90 gear oil and filled her up. Follow the direction included in the instruction booklet for the proper breaking procedure of the new ring and pinion
Harrison's Restorations Royal Purple
281/354-8600

royalpurple.com
Master Power Brakes
Mooresville
NC
888/351-8785

mpbrakes.com
Yukon Gear & Axle
www.ringpinion.com
Randy's Ring and Pinion
800/292-1031

ring-pinion.com

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