How much bearing play?

[Silent Panda]

while installing my MIP driveshafts last night, I noticed some play in the direction noted i the pic below...how much play is too much? How much is enough?

[SCREAMER]

Personally, I always shim for as little play as possible without it being tight enough to bind rotation.

[Silent Panda]

Originally Posted by SCREAMER

Personally, I always shim for as little play as possible without it being tight enough to bind rotation.

Thanks...the play HAS to wreck havok on diff gear wear and mesh...

[Erik D_lux]

Most people shim it out so the pinion is pulled as far away from the ring gear as possible. This is the worst for gear mesh.

If youre going to shim, you should do it so the pinion is pushed in. This might cause binding though so you would just have to find that magic spot where its pushed in as far as possible but not binding.

Also, some grit or binding is good on a new set of gears. This ensures that the gears will mesh around each other for maximum contact. When I mill out the housings for the bigger bearing, this is why I set the bearing a bit shallow and why the gears feel like crap when new.

Its really a tough thing to get people to understand that you dont want your gears to spin completely free of binding when new.

[SCREAMER]

Yeah Erik, I should've mentioned that since I started running your modified housings, I've had to use zero shims. Whether I'm using 43/13 or 38/13 ring and pinion, mesh seems to be perfect every time. It's a bit notchy but no binding.

[mikebecher]

I second that. I opened my front diff up for the first time since putting in the Dlux housings and I can just make out the slight wear on the tips of ring gear teeth where it has meshed perfectly with the pinion. It was a little rough when it first went together but now it's smooth as silk.

[Silent Panda]

Thanks Eric...I will open the dif cover and check my mesh. no sense in half doing it with a truck I've dropped over a grand on.

I am familiar with 1:1 dif set up so I get your comments about the sweet spot.

[meatmonkey]

Your going to want some 5x7x.1mm shims for the pinion and 10x12x.1mm shims for the carrier (it also tends to float side-side in the housing under the bearing caps).

And yes, all that play does wreak havoc on ring/pinion gears.

[cmbscx10]

I thought i had it right using (2) .05 shims on the pinion unless i am totally not understanding what you guys are talking about. With shimming you can never take away how much the pinion "Pushes" in towards the ring gear just how much it can "pull out" away from the Ring gear. Again, i may not be totally understanding what you guys are talking about.

So, does this need more shimming?
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[F1GHTF1R3W1THF1Re.]

You can shim the pinion from the inside so its closer to the ring, or on the outside to do the opposite. Please correct me if I am wrong, as I am waiting for my shims to arrive & I am under the impression that's how it's done.

[SCREAMER]

Yes, inside the housing, under the bearing to push the pinion in for more engagement on the ring gear.

[cmbscx10]

Originally Posted by SCREAMER

Yes, inside the housing, under the bearing to push the pinion in for more engagement on the ring gear.

Good info. I never thought of that. I only did the pinion itself as i didn't want to push the bearing out of it's cup but i get it now. Still not sure if mine is correct though. I suspect No.

[terrible]

What we really need is some kind of crush sleeve. Something just the right depth to keep from side loading the bearings.

[meatmonkey]

Funny you mention it. I've been running a "solid" spacer on all my Axial rigs. It's the spacer between the rear wheel bearings of an original HPI Blitz. HPI part# 103368 Not the one that fits the newer hubs with the larger 5x11 bearings. Sometimes with 1-2 .1 mm shims added depending on housing tolerance.

It allows you to get that zero-wiggle in/out without crushing the bearings together. Makes for happier gears and bearings.