| Preparing a Ring and Pinion for Installation |
So you've spent the time to select a new gear ratio. You've chosen a brand name and a company to put your trust into. Then you put your hard earned money into it. Now that you have the gears, what's next? You want to get them in and running!...and you skip over preparing the ring and pinion. Why not, your gear just arrived looking brand spankin' new!
Here's why. In just a few simple steps you can prepare a gear set that will ensure a shorter, trouble free installation.
Supplies: You will need the following items to prep your new gear for installation. Brake Cleaner, A Fine Flat File, Gear Oil, Loctite 271 or 277 and a Wet Stone. (An old one, not your wife's favorite!)
Prep the Gear: Out of the package your gear needs to be cleaned thoroughly. Use brake cleaner to clean the ring and pinion, paying special attention the ring gear bolt holes, yoke splines and pinion nut threads. Use a wet stone to lightly polish the back side of the ring gear. This will smooth over any high spots that may be around the ring gear bolt holes and/or or the outer edges. Re-clean the ring gear with brake cleaner then add a thin amount of gear oil to the inner pilot (the inner diameter of the ring gear that fits snug on the carrier). This eases the seating of the ring gear on the carrier.
Prep the Carrier: To prep the carrier use a fine flat file to clean the mounting surface of any imperfections or burs that are sometimes present around the bolt holes. And again, thoroughly clean the surface with brake cleaner when you are done filing
Mounting the Ring Gear: Your ring gear is ready to be mounted. Set the ring gear on the carrier. Flip it over and start two of the ring gear bolts as guides. Flip the carrier again and use a rubber of plastic dead blow hammer to seat the ring gear on the carrier. Once the ring gear is seated, you can Loctite your ring gear bolts and torque them to spec.
Cleaning up imperfections: Your new ring and pinion set is basically just two big pieces of steel. Sometimes out-of-the-box there may be chips on the rear of the pinion gear and/or nicks and dents on top of the ring gear teeth. This is actually normal and common to most ring gear sets. Cleaning up these imperfections will not weaken the gear set nor cause premature gear failure. It will however, give you better performance and longevity.
Tools: The right tool for this is a right angle grinder because it allows control in hard to reach places. The Ingersoll Rand 3101K Mini Grinder Kit is a great buy for the home garage.
Polishing: Use a medium (120) grit disk. Make your movements smooth and even in the direction of the tooth to polish out the imperfection's. Make sure the polished areas are rounded without sharp edges. In most applications the pinion gear can have up to a 1/4" cleaned up space as the base is not part of the contact pattern. The ring gear, on the other hand, has very little area to work with because the size of the tooth is much smaller. The main thing to remember is to stay away from the contact pattern area and make the finished surface look smooth and even. After that, it's time for more brake cleaner and starting your set-up!
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| "What to do with Thanksgiving leftovers!" |
Mike in Saint Louis sent in his cure for leftover Thanksgiving turkey!
4 Cups Chopped Turkey,Light and Dark.
1 Cup BB-Q Sauce
1/3 Cup brown Sugar
1 teaspoon molasses
1 tablespoon honey (use only for spicy BB-Q sauces
1/4 cup fresh chopped Cilantro
1 Cup thin sliced Red or Yellow Onion
1 Cup shredded Gouda or Smoked Mozzarella
12-inch pre baked pizza crust
Preheat the oven to 450. Mix everything except the Cheese and Onion in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and simmer for 1-minute. Spread evenly over the pizza crust and top with cheese and onion. Bake for 15-minutes. Serve with your favorite Beer and Football Team.
Send in Your Recipe for a chance to win a National Drivetrain apron and T-Shirt.
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