H41/Orion combo...

[peesalot]

Steve, so somewhere between 100 and 150 was the switch to the floating shift rail.

 

[Poser]

Steve, so somewhere between 100 and 150 was the switch to the floating shift rail.

Guess that I do not know for sure John....

 

[Poser]

So back to the write up….


Now we are at the fun part of the build; setting the main shaft bearing pre load. Trying to describe this has been a bit challenging for me, hence the delay in getting the rest of this out here. With just the bearing race driven into the roller bearing on the shaft with a punch, leaving zero endplay on the main shaft, there was five inch-pounds of preload on the oiled bearings. We need to get between 10 and 20 inch pounds. The directions sent with the Orion also explain how to use a spring scale that reads in pounds, similar to what is described in the Factory Service Manual, but I prefer this method, using an inch-pound torque wrench.

 

[Poser]

There are a number of shims sent in the kit of varying thicknesses. The shims provided with the Orion kit range in thickness from .004”, .006”, .008”, and .012”. The more shims used between the seal housing and the bearing race, the more the race is pressed into the bearing on the shaft, resulting in more preload. There is also a gasket that is used with the rear output seal housing between the case and the housing.


When I did the initial setup of the shims and the housing, the combination I used ended up being too much, (.028”) which created about 30 inch-pounds of preload on the bearings, so I had to remove the nose cone and rear seal housing, and press the race rearward just a bit to reset the process. I then decided that I should take some pictures of this whole process.

 

[Poser]

So after installing the nose cone again, seating the rear bearing race once again with a punch and hammer, verifying that there was not any endplay on the main shaft, and that there was again, 5 inch pounds of preload on the new oiled bearings, I measured the distance between the race and the edge of the transfer case where the rear bearing retainer is mounted.




I found the bearing race to case edge to be .01875”.

 

[Poser]

The seal-housing step with the crushed gasket was .01685”. This shows a difference of .019” of and inch. This is not EXACT, just a close approximation of the pieces. There are far more accurate ways to measure these distances, but for the most part, the veneer caliper will get you very close, and works fine for me.

 

[Poser]

So after figuring out that .028” was too much and gave me 30 inch-pounds, I decided to try .022” and as it turned out, that gave me 14 inch pounds, which is within the recommended range of 10-20 inch pounds.

 

[Poser]

Measuring main shaft bearing preload:

 

[mustardfj40]

Steve, would you please post couple pictures inside the case, showing how the high/low output gears lining up with the idle cluster gear after pre-load process? Thanks.

/td

 

[Poser]

So with the main shaft bearing preload set, final assembly is done on the nose cone. Make sure that your front drive shift collar is installed and orientated the correct way(nose of the shift collar towards the case) I use locktite on these fasteners.

 

[Poser]

Steve, would you please post couple pictures inside the case, showing how the high/low output gears lining up with the idle cluster gear after pre-load process? Thanks.

/td

Can ya give me a minute?

 

[Poser]

Rear housing is the same thing; blue locktite on the fasteners.

 

[Poser]

Then you need to install the speedometer drive spacer, drive gear, and rear output seals.

 

[Poser]

Now it is time for the range shift shaft and AA supplied modified shift fork. I placed the AA fork next to a stock unit to show the differences, and then also placed it in the case so that you can see why it is cut out the way it is.

 

[Poser]

There are two o-rings that need to be installed on the shift shaft. I like using this Mystik grease when working with o-rings/seals, but any oil/lube is better than nothing. I put a little grease on the shift rail and slid it into the case, and through the shift fork, so that the o-ring groove is just exposed on the front side of the transfer case. Slip your lubricated o-ring onto the shaft, and seat it in the groove on the shift rail.

 

[Poser]

Then tap your shift rail rearward until the rear o-ring groove is exposed on the backside of the transfer case. Install your lubricated o-ring into the groove on the shift rail. Now if your shift rail has rotated at all during this process, you will want to rotate it so that the lock tab groove is facing down towards the bolthole. Tap your shift rail back into the case and install your lock tab and locktite covered retaining bolt.

 

[Poser]

Now I put a little grease into the shift fork where the shift rail detent ball resides, insert the shift rail detent ball, spring and tighten up the brass locking bolt. No reason to ape on this since the brass is softer than the steel it is threaded into; just snug it up well. These new pieces are supplied by Advance Adapters in the Orion kits, along with the shift rail.

 

[Poser]

Brass shift fork detent nut:

 

[Poser]

Here are pictures of the high-low range shift fork and collar in high range, neutral, and low range. The collar does not touch any of the gears, and you can also see the clearance groove in the new high-speed gear, that keeps the shift collar from touching it.

 

[Poser]

Almost time to bolt this up to the H41, but first we need our transfer case input seal installed. This gets a light coat of grease all over it, and it will push into the machined boss for it. A picture of it from the transmission side and one from the inside of the transfer case showing it seated.