"Joseph A. Orsini" <Joeman@gbonline.com> wrote:
: Yeah it has the 3.55 open diff. It was to be my only vehicle when I ordered
: it and I screwed up by not opting for the LSD. So now I am hoping to get a
: decent 3.92 LSD out of a wrecked Dak. I just hope I can find one, where is
: this tag on the gearbox and does it just say the ratio and whether it is
: posi or not, also is it just a coded tag or does it state what it is?
It would be a little metal tag, maybe an inch long on one of the
bolts on the differential. It would say 3.2, 3.5 or 3.9, indicating
a 3.23, 3.55 or 3.92 gear set, respectively. The tag doesn't say
wether it has sure grip (LSD) or not. However, these tags generally
don't fare too well; they get eaten up by the weather and tend to
get lost when diff fluid changes are done, so don't be surprised
if you can't find a tag on the diff.
However, there is a pretty easy way to determine the gear
ratio and detect the presence or absence of sure grip, if you
can get both rear tires in the air and put the trans in neutral.
Spin one of the tires; if the other tire goes in the same direction
you are turning the tire, its got sure grip, if it goes in the
opposite direction, its an open diff. To determine the gear ratio,
put a mark on the driveshaft and a mark on one of the rear tires.
If the truck is equipped with sure grip, turn the tire one revolution.
If its an open diff, either have somebody hold the other tire still
while you spin your tire one revolution or simply spin your tire
through two revolutions. In either case, count the number of
revolutions the driveshaft makes. If its just over three, its
probably a 3.23; about three and a half would be 3.55 and not
quite four would be 3.92.
Obviously, you can also unbolt the diff cover to visually
inspect for a sure grip and also count the gear teeth, but
generally that is a lot more time consuming than just jacking
up the rear end, not to mention messier, plus you probably
won't find too many wrecking yards who would be happy with
having you going through their vehicles and popping the
diff covers off. :-)
BTW, I wasn't sure from your post wether you were planning
to just pull the gears and sure grip out of an axle or simply
swap the entire axle into your truck. If its the former,
you'll need to make sure the gears are set up and shimmed
properly for the required amount of mesh and backlash. If you
aren't familiar with the process, you'll need a good manual,
some tools like a dial indicator and some patience, or a mechanic
to do the install for you.
Good luck in your search!
--
-Jon-
.-- Jon Steiger ---- jon@dakota-truck.net or jon@jonsteiger.com --.
| 67 Coronet, 70 Cuda, 90 Dakota 'vert, 92 Ram 4x4, 96 Dakota |
| 96 Intruder 1400, 96 Kolb FireFly, 99 Cherokee, 01 Ram 3500 CTD |
`------------------------------------ http://www.jonsteiger.com --'
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