Tips for rebuilding the 231?

I have a front output bearing going south so I'm going to rebuild the 231 this weekend. I've got the complete rebuild kit on the way along with a new chain so I should have all I need to make it good as new. Is there anything I should look out for when rebuilding it? I've done several SYE's so this won't be my first time into a 231, just the first time rebuilding one. Are there any tools I'll need other than those used to do an SYE. Can I replace all the bearings by hand or will I need a press and bearing puller?

Just a good pair of snap ring plyers is the only special tool. All the bearing can be replaced by hand. Just keep an eye on how things came apart for reinstallation.

mark
orgs mfg

wes,

prediction:

you will end up being amazed at how straight-forward and easy the t-case is to work on, and you'll wonder why you were even posting about tips or tricks....

except the snap ring pliers is an absolute must!

if you have a pair of SRP's with replaceable nibs, don't even use them.....they'll bend.

My favorite pair to use on the t-case has a flat end with a 'bastard file' like surface on the tips....the tip is one-piece with the body of the pliers.....

Beezil said:

wes,

prediction:

you will end up being amazed at how straight-forward and easy the t-case is to work on, and you'll wonder why you were even posting about tips or tricks....

Click to expand...

What can I say, I'm a worry wort. Ask anyone who knows me. I just like to have all my bases covered before a project rather than during.

Beezil said:

My favorite pair to use on the t-case has a flat end with a 'bastard file' like surface on the tips....the tip is one-piece with the body of the pliers.....

Click to expand...

That's exactly what I have. They work quite nicely when it comes to holding those pesky snap rings in place while opening them.

Thanks for the input and reassurance guys.

Since you said you are having a front output shaft problem,you will need a collet style puller for the rear bearing(its a needle bearing).

I've never seen or heard of a "collet style puller". Can someone elaborate?

You might also be able to use a pilot bearing puller,I dont remember how much room there was behind the bearing.

Collet Puller:
http://buy1.snapon.com/catalog/pro_...up_id=2351&group_NAME=Blind+Hole+Bearing+Sets

the provlem with that particular bearing is that it is "blind", there's no way to get on the other side of it to drive it out.

a pilot bearing tool would help, I've used one before to remove that bearing, but if you do not want to purchase that tool, it is not necessary.

simply cut the cage with a dremel on one side, and collapse the bearing inward and remove the bearing.

or if you dont have a dremel, we beat mine out with a hammer and flat tip screw driver....

mac 'beez solutions are always prettier' gyvr

how did you manage to beat that "out" when it has to come "in"?

this is the bearing on the rear case half, and the metal at the "bottom" of the bearing is dayum thin

The needle bearings, in the input gear and rear case half, usually never need to be replaced. They will out last the rest of the parts combined. I wouldn't mess with them unless they are trashed beyond beleive, like missing needles. If you do want to replace them tearing them apart piece by piece with a dremel is the best way to remove them. I've never seen a TOOL made to get either out because they are bottomed out in the bore.

mark
orgs mfg

Carpenter said:

I have a front output bearing going south so I'm going to rebuild the 231 this weekend.

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As I said earlier,this bearing is part of his complaint!The bearing does not sit completely flush with the bottom and can be pulled with the right stuff.

When doing the mainshaft pilot bearing, which is located in the input gear, make sure that the replacement bearing is EXACTLY the same. I got a rebuild kit from National Drivetrain and the bearing they gave me didnt match the one I pulled out and now my Tcase leaks ATF into the tranny. Its temporarly sealed with the back half of the factory bearing and major ammounts of RTV. The factory bearing is closed off on one end to seal off the hole thats behind the splines on the input gear where it mates to the tranny.

I tried calling them and they where going to check it out but I have yet to hear from them. I need to keep at them and see what they do.

Ditto on the dremel tool to remove the front output bearing. I cut the cage with a cutoff wheel and it took forever but it got removed.

Good Luck,

AARON

we are talking about the same bearing....

Beezil said:

how did you manage to beat that "out" when it has to come "in"?

this is the bearing on the rear case half, and the metal at the "bottom" of the bearing is dayum thin

Click to expand...

yes, that same bearing, stuck the flat screwdriver between the tcase and the bearing, and beat it with a hammer until the bearing collapsed..... it worked.... wasn't pretty....


mac 'back woods wrenching' gyvr

Talk about a case of bad luck. From start to finish the t-case rebuild took 28 hrs, not all of this was spent working mind you but it took this long none the less. To start out, I couldn't reach the top two tranny-to-t-case bolts. First trip to buy tools, one set of ratcheting stubby wrenches (I splurged). Evening one ended with only removing the t-case. The next day I started to tear the case down, I then realize my snap ring pliers were missing. Second trip to buy tools, snap ring pliers. As stated in this thread it takes a dremel tool to easily remove some of the bearings. My dremel crapped out on me midway through the first bearing, third trip to buy tools, new dremel tool. Now here's the kicker. The rebuild kit I purchased came with an incorrect pilot bearing that resides inside the input shaft. My input shaft is hollow (you can see striaght through it) and the pilot bearing had a "hat" built into it to prevent fluid from reaching the tranny. The bearing in the kit din't have this "hat". I didn't realize this until I cut out the bearing (ruining it). I called around to every parts house in the Metro Nashville area with the part number and noone had one, I wouldn't be able to get one until Tuesday. Since my Jeep was taking up space in a buddies shop that wouldn't work so I had to improvise. I used my new dremel tool to cut off the "hat" from the original pilot bearing. I slid it down into the input shaft and pounded in the new bearing on top of it using silicone to hopefully seal up the gap. We'll see how it works. The actual tearing down and rebuilding of the transfer case was easy, however Murphy's Law made sure process surrounding the rebuild was a pain.

I know there's nothin worse than a smart-ass who says "why didn't you?" but......

those two top bolts are CAKE if you simply put a floorjack under the tranny and let the whole drivetrain droop a good 10" or so.....

anyway, sorry you had such an ugly time.

Carpenter said:

Talk about a case of bad luck. From start to finish the t-case rebuild took 28 hrs, not all of this was spent working mind you but it took this long none the less. To start out, I couldn't reach the top two tranny-to-t-case bolts. First trip to buy tools, one set of ratcheting stubby wrenches (I splurged). Evening one ended with only removing the t-case. The next day I started to tear the case down, I then realize my snap ring pliers were missing. Second trip to buy tools, snap ring pliers. As stated in this thread it takes a dremel tool to easily remove some of the bearings. My dremel crapped out on me midway through the first bearing, third trip to buy tools, new dremel tool. Now here's the kicker. The rebuild kit I purchased came with an incorrect pilot bearing that resides inside the input shaft. My input shaft is hollow (you can see striaght through it) and the pilot bearing had a "hat" built into it to prevent fluid from reaching the tranny. The bearing in the kit din't have this "hat". I didn't realize this until I cut out the bearing (ruining it). I called around to every parts house in the Metro Nashville area with the part number and noone had one, I wouldn't be able to get one until Tuesday. Since my Jeep was taking up space in a buddies shop that wouldn't work so I had to improvise. I used my new dremel tool to cut off the "hat" from the original pilot bearing. I slid it down into the input shaft and pounded in the new bearing on top of it using silicone to hopefully seal up the gap. We'll see how it works. The actual tearing down and rebuilding of the transfer case was easy, however Murphy's Law made sure process surrounding the rebuild was a pain.

Click to expand...

HAHAHAHAHAHA:laugh: :firedevil

You ran into the same problem that I did. Where did you get your rebuild kit from? I had the same thing happen to me with my rebuild kit I got from National Drivetrain. I fixed the bearing problem the same way you did by cutting the old bearing and sealing it to the new one in the bore of the input gear. The only problem was that my "Hat" seal started to leak. Took the tcase off and cleaned out the input gear and hat and added massive ammounts of gasket schlac and RTV. I made the RTV over 1/2" thick and let it cure over 48hrs. I did this 2 weeks ago and so far it has held but thats only been 200miles. I dont drive it very far anymore.

I called National Drivetrain and they where "unsure about what I was talking about but would get back to me as soon as possable." I told them EXACTLY what bearing and yet they still couldnt work it out. I will have to try again this week and see what they say since they where suposed to call me and never did

Live and let learn

AARON

I ordered my kit from Nat'l drivetrain as well. I haven't called them yet, I figure it's not worth the time considering the lack of knowledge they seemed to have over the phone (I always called the Atl. location). So far two days and no leaks. I didn't use that much silicone, hopefully I'll get lucky but I'm going to keep an eye on it anyway.

Mine started leaking after 600 or 700 miles. The Tcase was pumping ATF into the tranny which caused it to overfill and made shifting really difficult becasue of the over fill and it blew out the rear output seal. From what I can see, nothing was hurt execpt the seal so it was replaced 2 weeks ago along with a reseal of that bearing hat. I am getting really good at changing the tcase after all this

Good Luck with your rebuild

AARON