Trying to get this axle swap buttoned up. A few small details remain.
Painted the drive shaft yesterday. Went to put it in this morning. Did you know you can’t mate a 1310 U-Joint on the end of a drive shaft to a 1350 yoke on the pinion of the axle? Of course, I did, but what I didn’t realize was that the pinion yoke on the axle was a 1350. Oops. I have no idea why I didn’t pay attention to that. Of course, I realized this AFTER I had attached the shaft to the t-case.
Got lucky and Summit Racing had a Spicer 1310/1350 cross over U-Joint and a set of 1350 U-bolts. I’ve never replaced a U-Joint. YouTube to the rescue! Found a video that explained it very well and gave me the confidence to take care of it myself.
I am a little disappointed that they only had a greasable joint. The other u-joints are all solid.
You can see the size difference here.
Got the front locker wired up so I could put the dash panel back together. I put the locker power switch in the lower dash panel where my lights are controlled. I put the locker switches in the dash panel to the left of the steering wheel. All parts came from OTRATTW, minus the blue locker indicator LEDs.
The locker power switch is fed by a switched 12v supply, so it can only be powered when the ignition is on. This energizes a 40 amp relay which feeds, through a 15A fuse, the front and rear locker switches themselves, which in turn supply power to the lockers. I did not add a relay between the locker switches and the lockers. I felt that was redundant and unnecessary. The indicator LEDs are powered from the battery directly and get a ground from the locker indicator plungers in the diff housing.
So the lockers cannot be engaged with the power switch off or the ignition off. But, if something is wrong, the indicator lights should still light up if the locker is stuck on. I’d like to say that the LEDs are purposely off centered. Maybe one day I’ll fix them. It’s just a blank panel in the middle that’s removable. Next time I order from ORTATTW I’ll replace it. I’m in no rush.
The last detail is to replace the ABS wheel speed sensors. The cables that came with the new hubs were only 24″. The stock ones are 36″. As much as my axle droops, I’d rip out a sensor on the first wheeling trip.