37" tires with 4.10 for those who do have

[olyelr]

Read the detailed thread, because I asked about that and clarification. He has Yukons.

I thought he started out with yukons and traded up for AAM’s after.... I do have a shitty memory, though.

http://forum.powerwagonregistry.org/vie ... 150#p65538

Yes, he started out with Yukons, then swapped to AAM... but in just the rear? .....

I have all the correct bearings, install kits, and gears (swapped out the Yukon 11.5" 4.88 for the OEM AAM 4.88--Randy's was awesome to deal with). Now I just need to find a shop willing to install it. The diff shop near me called today and said they'd rather not work on my truck because they aren't confident they can do it correctly with the tools they have on hand....I've been looking on line for nearly 2 hrs now, and I can't find a single shop within 3 hrs drive that even remotely sounded confident they could tackle the install...

edit: Ok, I did find a shop in Columbus, Oh, Babbitt Gear & Bearing Co (1.5 hrs away), that was closed, but the owner's wife sounded very confident they could do it no problem, pending confirmation with tech tomorrow--but I'm tentatively scheduled for next Friday the 13th.

[adeluca73]

I thought Aduleca had AAM 4.88’s?

Read the detailed thread, because I asked about that and clarification. He has Yukons.

I thought he started out with yukons and traded up for AAM’s after.... I do have a shitty memory, though.

Yes...correct. I orginally ordered Yukon’s FR/R, but had buyer’s remorse & called Randy’s the next morning and swapped out the rear Yukon for the AAM (at the time AAM only offered a rear 4.88). It was more $, and Randy’s lifetime warranty doesnt extend to the AAM gears (the original reason for going with Yukons F/R) , but I felt more comfortable with the OEM supplier. 2 yrs later & no complaints...but 37’s are heavy & have a high MOI, which is bad for starting/stopping.

[Colibri]

Well hell, great to see you back around these parts sir! You’ve been missed

[adeluca73]

Well hell, great to see you back around these parts sir! You’ve been missed

[OffroadTreks]

If only those AAm gears where still on the market. Seemed to have disappeared completely.

[EasyDoesIt]

If only those AAm gears where still on the market. Seemed to have disappeared completely.

No kidding. Has anyone recently found 4.88s for the 11.5 rear?

Might have to call Randy's R&P.

[adeluca73]

If only those AAm gears where still on the market. Seemed to have disappeared completely.

Well, shoot, it’s like my bootlegged PROCAL, guess I got bootlegged gears too...

[OffroadTreks]

AEV sells the ProCal now. Can't be special anymore. And we all got a bootleg :p

Both Nitro & Yukon sell 4.88's. Fellow PWIM Alumni ChrisS just installed both actually. He had Nitro's and switched to Yukon's.

He sent me some initial notes on the first change

Complete Gear change kit PN# NG-GPRAM-4.88

Kit included the following;

Nitro 4,88 R&P Rear PN# AAM 11.5-488-NG
Nitro 4.88 R&P Front PN# GM 9.25-488R-NG

Nitro Master install Kit Rear PN# MKAAM11.8-B  
(Note this kit will include the conversion bearing required to run the aftermarket gears in the new housings)

Nitro Master install kit Front PN# MKAAM9.25
The bearing install kits included new crush sleeves, pinion shims and pinion nuts as well as gear marking compound/brush and a small pouch of assembly lube

Alternate options for the bearings from Yukon Gear are as follows, both of these kits contain the conversion bearing also;
Master install kit Rear PN# YK AAM 11.5-CONV (Complete bearing and seal kit for the 14+ housings)
Pinion only bearing kit Rear PN# PK AAM 11.5_CONV
(Pinion seal and inner/outer bearings only)
If you want to buy the front conversion bearing by itself the Timken part numbers are;
Bearing HM807035
Race/cup HM807010

Misc fluids/chemicals
8 qts of synthetic gear oil. (I chose Royal Purple) Book says 7.2 qts to fully service both differentials.
Brake clean for cleaning the housing and part and to remove the shipping/storage coating (cosmoline) from the new gears.
A good quality silicone sealant for the axle shafts when reassembling. (A thin layer is sufficient to allow the original gaskets to seal) If gaskets tear or are in bad shape replace them.
White Lithium Grease

[Reloaderguy]

AEV sells the ProCal now. Can't be special anymore. And we all got a bootleg :p

Both Nitro & Yukon sell 4.88's. Fellow PWIM Alumni ChrisS just installed both actually. He had Nitro's and switched to Yukon's.

He sent me some initial notes on the first change

Complete Gear change kit PN# NG-GPRAM-4.88

Kit included the following;

Nitro 4,88 R&P Rear PN# AAM 11.5-488-NG
Nitro 4.88 R&P Front PN# GM 9.25-488R-NG

Nitro Master install Kit Rear PN# MKAAM11.8-B  
(Note this kit will include the conversion bearing required to run the aftermarket gears in the new housings)

Nitro Master install kit Front PN# MKAAM9.25
The bearing install kits included new crush sleeves, pinion shims and pinion nuts as well as gear marking compound/brush and a small pouch of assembly lube

Alternate options for the bearings from Yukon Gear are as follows, both of these kits contain the conversion bearing also;
Master install kit Rear PN# YK AAM 11.5-CONV (Complete bearing and seal kit for the 14+ housings)
Pinion only bearing kit Rear PN# PK AAM 11.5_CONV
(Pinion seal and inner/outer bearings only)
If you want to buy the front conversion bearing by itself the Timken part numbers are;
Bearing HM807035
Race/cup HM807010

Misc fluids/chemicals
8 qts of synthetic gear oil. (I chose Royal Purple) Book says 7.2 qts to fully service both differentials.
Brake clean for cleaning the housing and part and to remove the shipping/storage coating (cosmoline) from the new gears.
A good quality silicone sealant for the axle shafts when reassembling. (A thin layer is sufficient to allow the original gaskets to seal) If gaskets tear or are in bad shape replace them.
White Lithium Grease

Why'd he switch? I've heard the Nitros can be whiny. At this point it looks like Yukons are the only game in town.

[OffroadTreks]

Why'd he switch? I've heard the Nitros can be whiny. At this point it looks like Yukons are the only game in town.

That's exactly why. Chris did the install himself too, so he probably saved a S*ton of money.

[Reloaderguy]

I looked at RRP's sight and they don't show all of the options anymore. Are 5.13's still available?

[EasyDoesIt]

Both Nitro & Yukon sell 4.88's. Fellow PWIM Alumni ChrisS.....

Thanks for collecting those part numbers and info MikeKey, really helpful.

Three questions for the group....

1) Strictly from a gear noise perspective, which brand is known to be quieter, assuming they are both setup correctly, Yukon or Nitro?
---------Edit: Looks like Yukon is the the way to go.

2) From reading adeluca73's build thread it looks like he ordered up a new inner axle seal. I assume this is still needed and not included in any of the new master rebuild kits. Can anyone confirm?

3) Is this special tool still required? From CumminsForum post...
"You will need to use a slide hammer and make a cupped plate for the end. You can come in from the outside of the axle and pull the seal into position. Put some anaerobic sealer on the out side of the seal. Your local parts store will have the sealer. You may be able to get the seal out with out damage but the ceramic backing makes that very difficult."


I have a love hate relationship with forums, I love them, my wife and wallet hate them.

Steve

[adeluca73]

For those that know me (as much as anyone can know anyone in the anonymity of the internet) this is not new, but for all the newer members, I am as analytic as anyone else, and probably more so than a lot of others. I measure 10 times, then calibrate the measuring device, then send in my calibers for PME, before cutting...(my tongue is squarely through my soft gum tissue) so I looked into this for a looooong time. I did not go with Nitros for several reasons, the primary being the reviews I read were spotty, a lot of noise and whine feedback, some install complications, two guys (I think) had some major axle issues and had to pull and reinstall, and they were just too cheap for my comfort--they could be just fine, and could save you a lot of $$ (it's just not an area I'd choose to skimp), so for me, I wanted to go with 1) OEM (which is AAM for us) if available, and 2) the most prevalent and reputable aftermarket, save no available OEM support, for alternatives--and that is Yukon, 100% the most prevalent and reliable I've found as a replacement.

Randy's is a Yukon dealer, their tech sales staff is knowledgeable and will know what install packs you need to go along with the gears. At the time I bought mine, they also carried the AAM rears, not the fronts, and they could not say a bad thing about AAM other than their warranty was only good for Yukon's. You did need one extra little part--I think it was an inner axle seal--that was unique to the RAM 2500 11.5" rears--and so wasn't included in the standard install kit, but it was a trivial cost, like $10 or less. FIND A RACE shop to do this, they do it all the time, don't be cheap and try this yourself unless you have a LOT of automotive experience, the exact right tools, and are really precise in your measurements and work...it's just not worth it. The install took the shop in Ohio around 8 hrs+ to do both, and that's all they do is hot rod cars and rear ends. The $800 for a competent install is SOOOOO worth it if you're only going to ever do this once, I beseech you to pay someone to do this job.

[OffroadTreks]

As far as I can tell, all your costs seem to be significantly less. You got the parts for WAAAAAY cheaper than their current market availability, and if you paid $800 per axle then you also found the cheapest labor costs for axles I've ever seen. As most cheap places charge around 1200 per axle.

[EasyDoesIt]

FIND A RACE shop to do this, they do it all the time, don't be cheap and try this yourself unless you have a LOT of automotive experience, the exact right tools, and are really precise in your measurements and work...it's just not worth it. The install took the shop in Ohio around 8 hrs+ to do both, and that's all they do is hot rod cars and rear ends. The $800 for a competent install is SOOOOO worth it if you're only going to ever do this once, I beseech you to pay someone to do this job.

Thank you, good info. I'll give Randys R&P a call to see what the kit is going to run.

Edit, I just called Randys and they claim that they do not have 4.88s that fit the 2014+ Front 9.25. Allegedly they are working on something but don't currently have it. I also called Yukon and they confirmed, nothing they currently have fits the 2014+ front 9.25.

So are there any other options besides Nitro?

[Reloaderguy]

As far as I can tell, all your costs seem to be significantly less. You got the parts for WAAAAAY cheaper than their current market availability, and if you paid $800 per axle then you also found the cheapest labor costs for axles I've ever seen. As most cheap places charge around 1200 per axle.

Standard rate that I've found is $2500 for parts and labor for the entire job.

[Reloaderguy]

FIND A RACE shop to do this, they do it all the time, don't be cheap and try this yourself unless you have a LOT of automotive experience, the exact right tools, and are really precise in your measurements and work...it's just not worth it. The install took the shop in Ohio around 8 hrs+ to do both, and that's all they do is hot rod cars and rear ends. The $800 for a competent install is SOOOOO worth it if you're only going to ever do this once, I beseech you to pay someone to do this job.

Thank you, good info. I'll give Randys R&P a call to see what the kit is going to run.

Edit, I just called Randys and they claim that they do not have 4.88s that fit the 2014+ Front 9.25. Allegedly they are working on something but don't currently have it. I also called Yukon and they confirmed, nothing they currently have fits the 2014+ front 9.25.

So are there any other options besides Nitro?

The front R&P in your trucks is the same as:
14+ 2500
13+ 3500


https://www.ringpinion.com/b2c/ProductD ... howAA=true

[OffroadTreks]

As far as I can tell, all your costs seem to be significantly less. You got the parts for WAAAAAY cheaper than their current market availability, and if you paid $800 per axle then you also found the cheapest labor costs for axles I've ever seen. As most cheap places charge around 1200 per axle.

Standard rate that I've found is $2500 for parts and labor for the entire job.

Whoa! Where? Of course, I'm comparing everything to VA & FL shop rates, haven't priced here yet actually. If you beat me to the 40's which you might since we're traveling this summer and having a kid, let me know what shop you use and your experience. I have no qualms about driving over that way. I've already driven a silly amount to Marcus now.

Also, don't use the Diff Wizard on Randy's site, it's stupid. Browse manually. You'll find it.

[OffroadTreks]

Although I might install mine myself. I learned a valuable lesson once about thinking I could get away with not torquing down roller rockers on the valve train properly. Costly mistake. It's the whole .005 inch stuff with setting preload and backlash, the superfine measurements required that make me personally nervous about doing a gear swap myself. I have a tendency to not be highly detail oriented. Last thing I want to do is blow apart my rear end because I looked at the dial once and said good enough. Although I'm a little older now. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[Bill2014]

Although I might install mine myself. I learned a valuable lesson once about thinking I could get away with not torquing down roller rockers on the valve train properly. Costly mistake. It's the whole .005 inch stuff with setting preload and backlash, the superfine measurements required that make me personally nervous about doing a gear swap myself. I have a tendency to not be highly detail oriented. Last thing I want to do is blow apart my rear end because I looked at the dial once and said good enough. Although I'm a little older now. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I know quite a few top notch auto/truck mechanics. All of them have told me that they wouldn't do their own re-gearing - they would find a shop that specializes in re-gearing AND has a well known reputation...

Makes you wonder how the auto factories seems to get it right almost all the time.

[OffroadTreks]

It's a lot like putting together a motor, I've helped a few friends, well stood around in the garage, but we were working with GM 10-bolts on Camaro's and crap.

Anyhow, you know, putting a motor together isn't "technically" a technical task, but it kind of is in a way. A small oversight can result in a huge costly mistake.

Wonder if the factories just have machines doing it, or if that stuff is still done by hand...

[Reloaderguy]

I've done a couple of gear sets. Unfortunately I don't have the space or the correct tools for this job. It's not that hard though.

[Reloaderguy]

Randy's isn't the only game in town.

https://eastcoastgearsupply.com/c-96234 ... nions.html

[EasyDoesIt]

Randy's isn't the only game in town.

https://eastcoastgearsupply.com/c-96234 ... nions.html

Thanks. Just got off the phone with EastCoast. They were great, very knowledgeable and by far the best prices for Yukon gears I've found.

$1350 + Tax (free shipping) should put most of us under $1,500.

Nitro Gear Kit (NG-GPRAM-4.88) runs about the same, maybe $100 cheaper.

Thread Hijack over.

[Reloaderguy]

It looks like AAM makes 5.13 rears.