The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop Differential Side Bearing Cap #

Hey Guys...I have a '59 1/2 ton chevy and I'm in the process of putting the ring gear and pinion back together. I think I mixed up the bearing caps though. Do any of you guys know what the casting #'s are for the left and right side? It looks as though somebody might have notched them quite some time ago, but I'm not sure. Can anyone help this 26 year old kid who started a restoration exactly 1 year ago today!!

Also I have the proper clearence .005, but it has a "Toe" pattern. Will this be ok for a casual driver?

-pork

I would fix that toe pattern, it may give you problems.

If you don't know which cap goes where, the easiest way to tell is to leave the carrier out, install the caps and feel the area where the bearing goes. If there are no steps where the bearing goes then you have them on correct. I would switch and try it again, then pick which way feels the best. Good luck!!

Pork: I just completed replacing the ring & pinion on my front 1/2 ton differential (it is the same as the rear). I can check the casting numbers on them tonight. On mine, there was one punch mark on one cap with a corresponding punch mark on one carrier side. The other cap had two punch marks & the corresponding punch marks on the other carrier side. I used that to maintain their relationship. However, I don't remember if the punch marks were originally there, or if I put them in prior to disassembly, you might check that. In any case I'll check my casting numbers for you tonight.

Guys thanks for the input.

Donsz.....I anxiously await your reply with the numbers.

racecarldad....currently their is a little step, i will switch the caps and see if the caps become more flush w/ the carrier....

-pork

Hey Pork , the parts book lists the carrier and the caps as an assembly , just one part #.
So I guess the caps are machined as a match to the spot they are installed in . Hense the need to mark their respective locations before disassembly . Check those notching marks again.
Toe contact indicates lack of backlash . Move the ring gear away from the pinion by loosening the left hand adjusting nut and tightening the right hand adjusting nut.
Be sure you are not confusing toe contact with face contact , it is easy to mix those indications up. Face contact needs a thicker shim under the rear pinion bearing to correct it .

Pork:
I checked my end cap numbers; looking from the back (ring end facing you), with the carrier situated so the the ring is on the left:
- The cap closest to the ring or left side is marked as: 3652335 *D17
- Right side is: 3652335 *D19
Again, this is from a 1/2 ton Napco front differential, but it is the same as the rear. And I believe that is the same as a regular 1/2 ton ring & pinion set. I don't know if this helps, because my shop manual & the instructions from Patricks agree with what Dusty & others have said; the end caps are machined for a particular side. So it is possible that the part numbers are relatively meaningless. Good luck.