Noisy Spider Gears? (1 Viewer)

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Rear diff spider gears are making a "clacking" noise - I'm guessing this isn't normal?

I took a look inside the rear diff and it looks like the spiders are rising/falling on the side gears when moving, making the noise. The spacer in the middle moves up and down a bit as well. There is a 1 - 1.5mm gap between the spider cup washer and the carrier - see pic. Admittedly, I'm no diff expert - what am I looking for here? Thanks.
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I did some digging and apparently the spider gears only move to compensate for differences in wheel speed when the vehicle is turning and I heard the faint clicking when driving in a straight line as well, IIRC. So I guess this would remove the blame from the spiders??
 
I did some digging and apparently the spider gears only move to compensate for differences in wheel speed when the vehicle is turning and I heard the faint clicking when driving in a straight line as well, IIRC. So I guess this would remove the blame from the spiders??


I would look someplace else for your noise....
 
I would put some clean 90 weight in that diff though! that oil leeks aweful.
 
I would look someplace else for your noise....

So just to clarify, when you put your rear axle (or a customer's as I think you have an ARB) on jack stands and spin the tires (open diff), the spiders clack away?? I never remember hearing any noise from the rear up to this point.

Presuming that is normal - I will take a closer look at my u-joints and pinion bearing.
 
That is a lot more clearance than is normal by the factory specs. Whether it will make a noise that you can hear or not is debatable. It would be easy to reset it to factory specs with thicker shims.
 
That is a lot more clearance than is normal by the factory specs. Whether it will make a noise that you can hear or not is debatable. It would be easy to reset it to factory specs with thicker shims.

I don't see any factory shims in SOR's exploded diagram - only the cup washers and they don't seem to be "sized"? That said, I would think that a shim could be placed between the spacer and the spider. Would the dealer carry these shims or could I pick something up locally? Also, what is the factory spec for clearance between the spider/spacer/carrier?
 
The spider gears do not have different thickness thrust washers, only one size and that is part number, 41351-35011


The axle side gears have four different thickness options:


41361-60010 1.55-1.65mm
41361-60020 1.70-1.80mm
41361-60030 1.85-1.95mm
41361-60040 2.00-2.10mm


:beer:
 
The clearance spec are measured as the backlash between the spider gear and the side gear and the upper limit is .008 inch.
 
Thanks for the specs Steve and Pin but I think I found my problem:
I pulled the spiders and spacer and they looked fine. Later, I was checking the side bearings and as I spun the RR tire I noticed something in the tread - it looked like a nail but turned out to be some sort of petrified nut as it was as hard as a rock. So I think this was the source of the clicking I was hearing as I was driving. I still need to take it for a spin to be certain, but I'm sure it will be fine.
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