Vibes got worse after SYE??

[ferntr33]

is your vacuum motor not working?

 

[DanMan2k06]

...? It's a '99. No vacuum.

 

[ferntr33]

sorry. how is it suppose to shift from 2 to 4? Is there a short fork that isn't moving? maybe move it manually to see if it is pre-loaded?

 

[stroked88]

theres a mode fork in the transfer case that moves the collar that ties the chain drive gear to the output shaft. that fork is supposed to be pinned to the shift rail, and could have had the pin come loose and cause it to stick in 4wd

 

[jsowards]

Are you sure it is gear noise? My first thought is that your motor mount may be trashed from running the TC drop. Although the howling doesn't indicate this there is a possibility that your mount could be causing vibes and noise.

 

[DanMan2k06]

Dude I'm stuck permanently in 4WD, that's DEFINITELY making noise..... whether I have driveshaft vibes or not is irrelevant at this point until I can get it to shift back into 2WD. Which means tearing back into the transfer case.

 

[stroked88]

post up what you find. too often threads like this are found when searching, but then no conclusion is given so all it does is confirm that its happened to others, but doesnt help solve the problem for others

 

[DanMan2k06]

That's exactly what I found when googling lol. I'll be sure to document everything when I find it.

 

[DanMan2k06]

Had the case split again last night within 20 minutes. Had someone sit inside and shift through everything while me and a buddy watched. Everything was working flawlessly. No binding or slop. Only thing was, we were using hand pressure to simulate the fork return spring (dunno what it's really called?). So we thought maybe the spring coincidentally wore out the same time (or around) that I did the sye. We put the spring back in, held the case half back up, and let the pin slide back into its hole. Sure enough, now when he shifted into 2wd there wasn't enough pressure to push the pin back and allow it to disengage. Problem found: bad/worn spring. Because I obviously didn't have a new one on hand, I stretched the stock one a little bit, and put 2 copper washers over the pin before sliding the spring on. Buttoned everything back up, and now it shifts like a champ.

I'm still going to order a new spring. I did a super rush job sealing it up because I was in a hurry too. Does anyone know what the real name of that spring is? I'll take pictures when I actually replace it.

 

[SleeperXJ]

It's called a "mode shift rail spring". Mopar Part No. 04338925

 

[DanMan2k06]

Thanks dude!!! Oh, and as suspected, in 2WD I am now 100% vibe free.

 

[SleeperXJ]

Good on you for getting it figured out.
Thanks for posting your results!