[ETD66SS]

I dissassembled the 12 bolt from my 66 SS396. It needs just about everything. The axles are worn (had those quick fix bearings), the spiders seem to bind up in one spot, However the ring & pinion are in great shape. I plan on buying an eaton posi, 3.37 gears, axles, and a complete installation kit from tomsdifferentials. Has anyone ever purchased from here? if so I would like to hear your experiences. When I took the open carrier out there was only one shim on each side, and I was able to force it out by hand, did not need a pry bar, does this sound right? Also, there was no pinion shims, should there be any? I assume the shiming was correct, because the carrier did not make any noise, and the wear on the gears is perfect. The cause of the binding in the spiders seems to be from the cross shaft, it's hard to get in & out. I've just about rebuilt anything a car has to offer, but never a rearend, any advise is appreciated. I know most of you might say to take it somewhere and have a pro do it, but I know I can handle it. I just don't have any tricks or tips on how to do it.

 

[gibbons]

I bought some axles for my '68 12 bolt from Toms and was happy with the price, plus they got to Utah from California two days after I hung up the phone.

There were a couple of interesting things about the axles. The blueing from the heat treat process was quite a bit different between the two. Don't know what that means. More interesting, though, was that the Toms were just a titch shorter, like .080" or so. It made my drums scuff the backing plates. I called Toms and they emphatically stated they couldn't be shorter, like "our stuff is perfect". Sorry guys, they simply are.

The snow had melted, the roads were clean, and I just couldn't wait to put it together and go for a spin. I called Toms back and sarcastically said thanks for your help. I whacked the backing plates with a mega-hammer couple of times to make some clearance, and the axles are working fine.