NEED HELP! Dana 30 ring and pinion questions

[PNW.XJ]

Hey im new on here as a member but have know about naxja for years and have used the forums in the past for answers, but never posted anything myself until now.

My tech question is about Ring and pinion patterns. Ive done alot of research beforehand to try and be self sufficient and save everyone time about this but still need some help.

The day after a wheelin trip I wanted to check everything on the rig to make sure nothing broke or went wrong. Noticed my front diff pinion yoke seemed pretty loose. I removed the driveline checked the pinion nut, it was tight but yoke is still pretty loose. Not as much movement front to back but rotating it had some play, which i believe is called "backlash" correct me if im wrong please!

So i torn open the front pulled shafts and checked. Nothing looked wrong at first glance. But wanted to see what kinda pattern I was getting. I didnt have any marking compound so i tried cream cheese "hey i heard it worked" lol but ended up using an anti sieze compound instead.

From what i read and know the marking seem to be ok...

If the pattern is ok, what can i do to limit the "backlash" once again not 100 sure if backlash is the correct term. Do I need to tear apart the whole pinion and add more shims?

Hopefully these pics will work so you guys can look at it.

Also one of the teeth on the pinion has a slight chip in it. How bad is this? Im in an extremly tight budget right now so if its not absolutly horrible i might keep it in for time being, but if its a problem ill fix it at the comfort of my house insteada the trail!

heres a link to my facebook page of the pics.

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1715456705342.72293.1805949712


Thanks for everyones time and input!

 

[Lowrange2]

Backlash is the distance between teeth contact. It should only be a few thousandths of and inch. Only way the adjust backlash is a complete setup (shims in the carrier and pinion). If it works and its not about to fall out, id run it till it does fall out.

 

[PNW.XJ]

geat thanks for the quick response! just signed up with photo bucket so heres the link for pictures, facebook link didn't seem to work. Let me know if it works or not. And your opinions on the chipped pinion tooth.
Thanks

http://m1226.photobucket.com/albums...rYydsQF/OMr/lW6rekUTYyPuaDvmLRk+lgxf5l0E/3yw=

 

[RCP Phx]

Pics suck,but those chipped teeth are obvious,good luck!

 

[PNW.XJ]

sorry guys all I have is mobile internet. It resizes the pics

 

[PNW.XJ]

Got it figured out, thanks from the noob.

 

[jeeperjohn]

Couldn't really tell anything from those pics but the pinion should not have any play at all. It should rotate freely but it should not have any play in and out or up and down. If it does then either you have bad pinion bearings or the preload was not properly set.

 

[PNW.XJ]

Ok thanks for the help everyone! Is there a forum to post on where I can ask for hands-on help..? Ive done everything else on my rig and pretty well knowledgeable with most repairs, but as you can tell dont know sh#t about gears. And just moving to colorado I dont know anyone yet. I know its a long shot but maybe theres someone.?

 

[REVROK]

New R&P are a must... yours are toast... as far as I can tell from those pics. Good excuse for new gears and a locker! Or you can just pickup another complete axle on CL if you are staying stock. Honestly cheaper and easier than having new stock gears put in. If you have never touched gears, either you need a friend or nearby member who is willing AND experienced with gears or you need to be willing to spend A LOT of your time carefully setting them up. If you change ratios you will need a new carrier.