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NP242 need new chain?

How about the driveshaft ujoints? Don't test them for play in park as it will preload them. Leave it in neutral, put the ebrake on and chalk the wheels...then crawl under and check all of the ujoints for both driveshafts. 3 in front and 2 for the rear, unless you have a slip-yoke eliminator in the rear and then there will be 6 ujoints total.
 
sounds like a bad chain
 
How about the driveshaft ujoints? Don't test them for play in park as it will preload them. Leave it in neutral, put the ebrake on and chalk the wheels...then crawl under and check all of the ujoints for both driveshafts. 3 in front and 2 for the rear, unless you have a slip-yoke eliminator in the rear and then there will be 6 ujoints total.
Yea, the u-joints are nice and tight.
 
sounds like a bad chain

Really? Bad chains don't go clunk. Usually they get stretched to the point of dragging against the case.

Checked the motor and tranny mounts? Greased the slipjoint at the back of the xfer case. As others mentioned, check the u-joints for slop. Have a general look around the suspension for anything loose.
 
I bet your fluid level is low too
 
it's not necessarily the chain. start with the easiest and most accessible parts first. u-joints, fluids, (when was the list time you had a full service on your transmission... maybe the bands need to be tightened?), then work you way up the foodchain until you arrive at the solution.

i'm certainly no guru of any sort, but being methodical in your appraoch will make it easier to diagnose. for instance, start by removing your front driveshaft and go drive a little bit- if it stops- then it's in the front. do the same for the rear. if it's still there again- you know it's somewhere in the tc/trans.

check you fluids- you may need to drain/refill. when i did mine- it tightened things up a bit.
 
Really? Bad chains don't go clunk. Usually they get stretched to the point of dragging against the case.

Checked the motor and tranny mounts? Greased the slipjoint at the back of the xfer case. As others mentioned, check the u-joints for slop. Have a general look around the suspension for anything loose.

When the chain went bad in my 231 it did go clunk...loudly.

Drain the fluid and check for metal.
 
You didn't say if noise was in 2 or 4 wheel drive or if it was constant or only when you change gears. Check the chain by putting case in 4 wheel drive jack front axel off the ground & try turning front drive shaft back & forth to check for excess slop. If that is not the problem & all the u-joints are in fact tight, put the case in 2 wheel drive & trans in nuetral (chock the wheels) & turn rear drive shaft to check for slop in the pinion in the rear axel (loose preload, bad bearings, etc). Chrysler axels did this when they got older.
 
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