Gears

[TheRedlines]

I'm looking to regear. Any good info on setting up gears?

[Stu Olson]

Find someone that is experienced and reliable.

I've done my own the past few times with Troy providing assistance when things don't go as expected. Sometimes they are a walk in the park, other times they are a complete PITA. Having the right tools for the job does make all the difference in the world.

[DanB98TJ]

Originally posted by Stu Olson
Having the right tools for the job does make all the difference in the world.

...so does having the axles on the bench.

Unless you have a lift, trying to regear with the axles in the Jeep would be a major PITA. When Fred and I regeared mine we had both axles out, and it allowed us to take them to an experienced friend to double-check our work. It isn't hard, but it is very tedious and time-consuming.

[TheRedlines]

Thanks guys for the help. I do have a lift available to me anytime I need. Will that make it considerably easier?

[mrblaine]

I have a question. How comfortable would you be knowing that most everyone you wheeled with in JV set up their own gears?

[DanB98TJ]

Originally posted by TheRedlines
Thanks guys for the help. I do have a lift available to me anytime I need. Will that make it considerably easier?

It will make it much easier than rolling around on a creeper. The only reason my axles were on the bench is because I was swapping in a D44/HP D30 at the time. Otherwise, it would have been on a lift or done by someone else.

FWIW, it was the first try at regearing for both Fred and I. If you have access to the tools and have the patience, I wouldn't hesitate to do it yourself.

[TheRedlines]

Originally posted by mrblaine
I have a question. How comfortable would you be knowing that most everyone you wheeled with in JV set up their own gears?

If I knew that to be fact, I'd say wow, it must not be that hard...lol.

The fact is that I don't know that to be true so I would be willing to bet that it takes quite a bit of skill and knowledge in order to do it right. Now I've never been one to do things half assed because it will haunt me every time i see it or think of it. I like to do things right. I enjoy the challenge of learning and accomplishing a task that others simply pay to have done.

Example: I needed to replace a counter top on our boat due to termites and rot. It was going to cost me about 900 bucks to have replaced. It wasn't just a normal countertop. It had 3 cubbys, access to the engine room, access to the ice box and access to a locker for our pots and pans. Walnut that need to be stained to match the teak and wodwork that needed to fit in with the style of the rest of the boat. We learned alot during the 3 weeks we spent on that. It turned out 10 times better than the design it originally had and much better than it would have had we payed to have it done. We wound up spending 1100 dollars for all of the materials and tooling and had enough scrap left over to redo the galley table and countertop in the head. I consider that to be one of the best times Sunni and I had together.

[Stu Olson]

Carrier extraction without a lift.....




Carrier insertion without a lift.....





Carrier extraction with a lift....




Carrier insert with a lift....




The major difference with a lift is that it allows you to stand upright, like man, and do the work.

Aside from the lift, the bigger point as far as I am concerned is having the right tools available. This carrier bearing puller can zip a bearing off in under 5 seconds (not including the 10 seconds needed to clamp it over the bearing). The bad part is that they are rather pricey for the couple of times you may use it.



All that being said, I suck at reading gear patterns. I've looked and read the books on it and still have trouble deciphering what all that smudged up grease is telling me. Luckily, that is one of the things I can request help on while doing a set of gears.

[mrblaine]

Originally posted by TheRedlines
If I knew that to be fact, I'd say wow, it must not be that hard...lol.

The fact is that I don't know that to be true so I would be willing to bet that it takes quite a bit of skill and knowledge in order to do it right. Now I've never been one to do things half assed because it will haunt me every time i see it or think of it. I like to do things right. I enjoy the challenge of learning and accomplishing a task that others simply pay to have done.

Example: I needed to replace a counter top on our boat due to termites and rot. It was going to cost me about 900 bucks to have replaced. It wasn't just a normal countertop. It had 3 cubbys, access to the engine room, access to the ice box and access to a locker for our pots and pans. Walnut that need to be stained to match the teak and wodwork that needed to fit in with the style of the rest of the boat. We learned alot during the 3 weeks we spent on that. It turned out 10 times better than the design it originally had and much better than it would have had we payed to have it done. We wound up spending 1100 dollars for all of the materials and tooling and had enough scrap left over to redo the galley table and countertop in the head. I consider that to be one of the best times Sunni and I had together.

Not knocking your project with your wife in the slightest, but if you missed the mark a little bit here and there, it won't stop the boat from going, would it?

[Stu Olson]

Some of the little cylinder cap bolts backed out of my ARB some time ago and I spent part of a day fixing it.

As I was snugging down the bearing caps, Troy asked me how much backlash I had and what the pattern looked like.

I responded that I hadn't bother to check it since the work I did would not have changed backlash, pinion depth, etc.

He looked at me....you know, that kind of "look" that you get from a friend which equates to "You've got to be kidding me....that #%*! doesn't cut it" kind of look.

So....I checked backlash (not too bad) and ran a gear pattern. It was bad....very bad....the kind of bad that causes the question "I wonder why you didn't eat the ring and pinion" kind of bad.

I spent the next 3 hours redoing it......pinion depth was wrong......it was the worst set of gears I had done up to that time. By the way, these were done by a very reputable shop in the Phoenix area. But anyone can have a bad day.....didn't get enough last night, no clean briefs in the dresser this morning, just found out your teenage daughter is pregnant.....well, you get the picture.

When I was done, I knew for sure that they were set up correctly (and with help from Troy this time for sure).

I'm not trying to tell you that you should or should not do your own. What I am confirming is that I've found, more than once, that no one does as good a job on my TJ as I do....they don't depend on it to get them home. I do.

disclaimer: Blaine does a good job....but then again, I've never paid Blaine to work on my TJ and so he doesn't fall into the same category.

Edit: I guess Blaine falls into the category of the guy that ends up helping you get home AFTER he told you that you working on it wouldn't be a good idea. Yeah, he has a vested interest in it after all!

[TheRedlines]

Well it sounds like this may be one of those things that really needs to be taught while someone is watching over your shoulder. In other words, needs to be trained. Thanks guys for taking the time to get it through my skull.