What did you do TO your Gladiator today? [ADMIN WARNING: NO POLITICS, NO GUN TALK]

[WILDHOBO]

Is the material on the plug grainy or flaky? Wear pattern on the ring gear looks good. Looks like hobbed and lapped gearing so would expect a bit of profile break-in wear.

Not really. It’s small pieces of thin metal, so I’m thinking a bearing race has failed. And the last time I changed the fluid it wasn’t there. I’m at 75k miles and the gears have been in since 12k. Not the end of the world. I appreciate the input on the gears. I thought the ring looked fine as well, but I’m no expert.

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[WILDHOBO]

I did this.
More mud than the gladiator could handle I guess. Charging system failure probably due to the mud.

Oops. It’ll be ok though. Could be worse. It’s right side up.

 

[Camaroboi13]

I did this.
More mud than the gladiator could handle I guess. Charging system failure probably due to the mud.

Dibs on the hard shell canopy if it never runs again

 

[aFatBird]

Dibs on the hard shell canopy if it never runs again

I'll sell it for cheap to you if I get rid of the diesel for a gasser.
Getting tired of the derating on long hill climbs.

 

[Mightytalldude]

Swapped in a new set of spring correction perch pads courtesy of @WILDHOBO this morning. The stock ones had seen better days. Bonus, done before the South Texas sun bakes my brain with another 100° 77% humidity day.

 

[AdamC149]

Not really. It’s small pieces of thin metal, so I’m thinking a bearing race has failed. And the last time I changed the fluid it wasn’t there. I’m at 75k miles and the gears have been in since 12k. Not the end of the world. I appreciate the input on the gears. I thought the ring looked fine as well, but I’m no expert.

If you don't see anything on the bearing races, pay attention to the rollers on the cone. Particularly the end on the larger diameter of the roller where it seats againts the inner race shoulder. Might be difficult to see without pulling the bearing off the shaft. Sometimes a small mirror can do it. This is the area of the roller that generally sees the most load and is most often overlooked. Typically people are prone to looking at the roller faces that contact the cup to determine bearing health, but that is only part of the story.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Swapped in a new set of spring correction perch pads courtesy of @WILDHOBO this morning. The stock ones had seen better days. Bonus, done before the South Texas sun bakes my brain with another 100° 77% humidity day.

This from a couple of years ago, but this is what we're looking forward to again, and in our drought, it isn't going to be fun............
Chart shows temp, dewpoint, relative humidity

Not really. It’s small pieces of thin metal, so I’m thinking a bearing race has failed. And the last time I changed the fluid it wasn’t there. I’m at 75k miles and the gears have been in since 12k. Not the end of the world. I appreciate the input on the gears. I thought the ring looked fine as well, but I’m no expert.

Watch for "galling" - you may need to take a light to the races to see very hard to detect "pitting" - will still be smooth, the pitting is not deep at all and with smooth sides, not rough.

As already mentioned, watch not just the faces, but the ends - including the bearing inner race itself which is hard to see unless the thing falls apart.
Contrary to what some suggest - you don't need to see a "glitter storm" to have bearing damage. In fact, you may not know at all from the lube! "Glitter storms" are when it's too late, and for the steel, not the bearing surfaces themselves.

ZERO signs in the fluid. The only clue was the pinion seal leak. I pulled the front pinion bearing out and found minor galling in the outer race (leading to loss of preload which helped wear the seal faster)

This is a carrier bearing but the pinion bearing outer race looked similar. Pinion wasn't loose, but there was nothing much left for preload.

 

[rharr]

Not really. It’s small pieces of thin metal, so I’m thinking a bearing race has failed. And the last time I changed the fluid it wasn’t there. I’m at 75k miles and the gears have been in since 12k. Not the end of the world. I appreciate the input on the gears. I thought the ring looked fine as well, but I’m no expert.

Something to consider if you are pulling the pinion is to replace the double ball bearing with a traditional taper bearing with shim. There is a vendor here that makes the kit or you could likely order the bearing separately and find a carrier bearing shim stack you could use to make your own spacer.

 

[WILDHOBO]

If you don't see anything on the bearing races, pay attention to the rollers on the cone. Particularly the end on the larger diameter of the roller where it seats againts the inner race shoulder. Might be difficult to see without pulling the bearing off the shaft. Sometimes a small mirror can do it. This is the area of the roller that generally sees the most load and is most often overlooked. Typically people are prone to looking at the roller faces that contact the cup to determine bearing health, but that is only part of the story.

Thanks. I’m doing a full master kit (bearings, seals, and shims) on Friday. Paying an expert from a shop to moonlight at my house and teach me how to do it. Can’t wait.

 

[NC_Overland]

Three months later, my winch power shut off bracket finally arrived. No more zip ties. I don’t recommend using American Adventure Lab. The bracket fit and works fine, but their customer service and lead time are horrible.

 

[WILDHOBO]

This from a couple of years ago, but this is what we're looking forward to again, and in our drought, it isn't going to be fun............
Chart shows temp, dewpoint, relative humidity

Watch for "galling" - you may need to take a light to the races to see very hard to detect "pitting" - will still be smooth, the pitting is not deep at all and with smooth sides, not rough.

As already mentioned, watch not just the faces, but the ends - including the bearing inner race itself which is hard to see unless the thing falls apart.
Contrary to what some suggest - you don't need to see a "glitter storm" to have bearing damage. In fact, you may not know at all from the lube! "Glitter storms" are when it's too late, and for the steel, not the bearing surfaces themselves.

ZERO signs in the fluid. The only clue was the pinion seal leak. I pulled the front pinion bearing out and found minor galling in the outer race (leading to loss of preload which helped wear the seal faster)

This is a carrier bearing but the pinion bearing outer race looked similar. Pinion wasn't loose, but there was nothing much left for preload.

I’ll know by the end of Friday. I’m sure there will be failed bearings.

 

[WILDHOBO]

Something to consider if you are pulling the pinion is to replace the double ball bearing with a traditional taper bearing with shim. There is a vendor here that makes the kit or you could likely order the bearing separately and find a carrier bearing shim stack you could use to make your own spacer.

The front gets a taper bearing stock I believe. The roller is the rear.

 

[rharr]

The front gets a taper bearing stock I believe. The roller is the rear.

not sure which pinion is bad for you. the front is taper stock. There is a kit to replace rear roller to taper

 

[Mightytalldude]

Thought I was done for the day, but the O'Reilly's called to tell me my rear brake pads were in. They weren't what I had ordered, but one step higher, so they adjusted the price to the ones they were supposed to order, I didn't ask but was nice to see that customer service. The old pads have 85000 miles on them, but overall were in good shape, minus the backing plates that were rusting. The rotors were good to go. Greased the caliper pins, and reassembled, and a quick road trip to test everything out. Success.

 

[Mightytalldude]

Three months later, my winch power shut off bracket finally arrived. No more zip ties. I don’t recommend using American Adventure Lab. The bracket fit and works fine, but their customer service and lead time are horrible.

Sorry you had a bad experience with them this time, they were good for me. Their products work great.

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