Dial indicators and other diff building tools

[Arya Ebrahimi]

Looking to acquire some tools for building diffs. I'm going to be building a 9" diff for my uncle, and will undoubtedly have some future diff work for myself as well.

I'd like to buy a dial indicator with magnetic base, a few clamshells for pulling bearings, and maybe a 3-jaw puller.

Do you guys have any suggestions on brands, models, or any other specifics I should look for?

Anywhere in particular to buy these? Ebay? Tool truck?

My uncle's paying as compensation for the work, and I believe in buying quality tools the first time, but I don't want to take advantage at the same time.

Also I need a quality torque wrench as mine is a $20 Advance Auto special, but I will search on that as I know there have been other threads.

Ary

 

[alia176]

You'll need a Torque meter (not torque wrench) for setting the pinion bearing pre-load. This can be a very expensive item but it's good to have in your stash.

 

[Arya Ebrahimi]

You'll need a Torque meter (not torque wrench) for setting the pinion bearing pre-load. This can be a very expensive item but it's good to have in your stash.

I've used the old fashioned torque wrenches that measure torque by deflection for pinion preload, not the 'click' kind. Is that not an acceptable method?

I hate crush sleeves and use solid pinion spacers whenever possible. It requires a bit more work having to shim the pinion instead of just torqueing it down to spec, but I feel it's stronger for what I use my diffs for.

Ary

 

[KLF]

The dial indicator isn't hard to find, although I would avoid the cheapy Harbor Freight stuff for something like that. I'm not too keen on getting something like that used on eBay, ya just never know how it's been treated.

I've had good luck with http://www.thetoolwarehouse.net for odd tools, I bought my OTC bearing splitter there. I have a Harbor Freight 20 ton press, it works very well for this type of work.

Torque wrenches are a gamble when buying used. It's important to have it checked if you don't know it's history. For the bearing preload setting, regardless of using solid spacers or crush sleezes, you need something that will read very low values, down to a few inch-lbs. I have a Park Tools TW-1 wrench, it's actually made for bicycle work, I had a local bike shop order it for me, I think it was no more than $50, well worth it.

Probably the most important tool you need for doing diff setups is patience. Don't know where to buy that one, I think you have to make your own.

 

[Arya Ebrahimi]

KLF, I couldn't agree more about patience. This will not be the first diff I have setup, just the first I've done with my own tools.

I was thinking of getting an in-lbs torque wrench of the deflection kind for measuring pinion preload.

 

[Tools R Us]

For the pinion preload torque wrench I got the Park Tool TW1, nice unit and the best price I found was at Performance Bike.

http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=11387&subcategory_ID=4219

 

[Cube Dweller]

For the pinion preload torque wrench I got the Park Tool TW1, nice unit and the best price I found was at Performance Bike.

http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=11387&subcategory_ID=4219

x2, it's a quality tool.

I order my machinist tools from MSC. www.mscdirect.com I've been very pleased with them.

For indicators Brown and Sharpe, Starrett and Mituatoyo are top notch. Buy it once and take care of it and it will last several lifetimes.

 

[Tools R Us]

x2, it's a quality tool.

I order my machinist tools from MSC. www.mscdirect.com I've been very pleased with them.

For indicators Brown and Sharpe, Starrett and Mituatoyo are top notch. Buy it once and take care of it and it will last several lifetimes.

For precision machine work I agree with you, but diff setup isn't that critical, so less expensive alternatives are perfectly acceptable for this application.