M1028 metal shards in front diff, supposed to drive cross country in 4 days!

shotty · Jan 13, 2019

Found these stuck to the magnet of the front diff:

Everything else in the carrier looks fine. I don't see anything out of place. Any ideas what it could be? I'm not sure if I will have the time to get parts in before we hit the road (we're moving).

porkysplace · Jan 13, 2019

As thin as it is it looks like it might have once been a seal or shim. If nothing is leaking and the hubs are unlocked it should be fine to drive.

shotty · Jan 13, 2019

No leaks, and it always seemed to work fine the few times I used it. Slim chance it was an extra washer or something but maybe, just maybe...

shotty · Jan 13, 2019

Snapped some pics. Everything looks good, I don't see anything alarming. There is just a tiny amount of freeplay between the ring and pinion gear which I believe is normal.

cucvrus · Jan 13, 2019

And unless you are going to have the front hubs locked while going cross country you will not even turn the front axle gears. Good Luck. If it were mine I would have it looked at by a professional and NOT risk doing further damage. Something is a miss inside. I do not have the tools to set up and spread the differential to remove the gears. I know you can pry them out but that is NOT the correct way. I think you will be A OK.

Keith_J · Jan 13, 2019

shotty said:
Snapped some pics. Everything looks good, I don't see anything alarming. There is just a tiny amount of freeplay between the ring and pinion gear which I believe is normal.

View attachment 753416 View attachment 753417 View attachment 753418 View attachment 753419 View attachment 753420

I see something amiss. First image, you see the friction disks but no clutch disk tabs in the carrier window. Friction disks are keyed on the ID to the side gears, the clutch disks have tabs on the OD which engage the carrier and you should see these in the window of the carrier. This window is in the middle of the first image.

See figure 98 in the -34P TM, item 6 is the clutch disks and friction disks, sold as a set. I would dig around to make sure you got all frags. Also turn the carrier a few turns to fully observe.

What happened? The limited slip is under spring force, over time the friction and clutch disks can bond especially without the friction modifier in the gear oil. When used, the tabs break off.

As long as the hubs work properly and the driveline does not turn, all will be fine. You should not use front axle drive if you have not checked fully for any loose shards. If all shards are removed, you can. You just have lost limited slip action.

shotty · Jan 13, 2019

Keith_J said:
I see something amiss. First image, you see the friction disks but no clutch disk tabs in the carrier window. Friction disks are keyed on the ID to the side gears, the clutch disks have tabs on the OD which engage the carrier and you should see these in the window of the carrier. This window is in the middle of the first image.

See figure 98 in the -34P TM, item 6 is the clutch disks and friction disks, sold as a set. I would dig around to make sure you got all frags. Also turn the carrier a few turns to fully observe.

What happened? The limited slip is under spring force, over time the friction and clutch disks can bond especially without the friction modifier in the gear oil. When used, the tabs break off.

As long as the hubs work properly and the driveline does not turn, all will be fine. You should not use front axle drive if you have not checked fully for any loose shards. If all shards are removed, you can. You just have lost limited slip action.

I see what you are saying. Glad we got it figured out. I didn't find any more metal in there. It's too bad I already refilled it with friction modifier!

Keith_J · Jan 13, 2019

cucvrus said:
And unless you are going to have the front hubs locked while going cross country you will not even turn the front axle gears. Good Luck. If it were mine I would have it looked at by a professional and NOT risk doing further damage. Something is a miss inside. I do not have the tools to set up and spread the differential to remove the gears. I know you can pry them out but that is NOT the correct way. I think you will be A OK.

$20 in scrap steel, an after noon on the weekend and a welder will have you a spreader. No more than 0.015" spreading, otherwise you can spring the case.

M1028 metal shards in front diff, supposed to drive cross country in 4 days!

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shotty

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