Purchased a Yukon Zip Locker 3rd member from Marlin in Dec 2017 - Installed it and all was great for a while. I don't drive the my cruiser very much... and recently, with less than 5k miles on the 3rd member, a howling started to emit from the rear end and got worse very rapidly.
I jacked it up and the wheels spin smoothly with no resistance... plenty of oil in the dif. I dropped the drive shaft and when I tried to spin the yolk by hand it got hung up pretty bad in a few places, almost unturnable. No significant metal in the oil when I drained it.
Called Marlin and with 5k miles on their 3rd member build... yea, "sorry, out of warranty" was all I got. Ouch.
I have removed the 3rd member now and I need to get it fixed. I'm not sure I have the tools / skills for this fix myself. I'd like to ask for some advice:
1. I'm in Atlanta and Southern Gear wants $500 labor plus parts and a 2 week wait. Is that standard?
2. Should I order the parts and attempt the repair myself? I've read through some threads but I'm unclear if I will have to reset the backlash if I pull it apart and replace the bearing? Or are all the required shims already there?
3. Can I diagnose this definitively before I disassemble? Ido not see any damage to the Dif gears or the Pinion Gear. They look brand new.
4. Where should I order the parts - Pinion Bearing and what else? Not thrilled with Marlin right now.
I'm willing to learn, but I may not have the equipment to do the job.
What cha think?
Don
I jacked it up and the wheels spin smoothly with no resistance... plenty of oil in the dif. I dropped the drive shaft and when I tried to spin the yolk by hand it got hung up pretty bad in a few places, almost unturnable. No significant metal in the oil when I drained it.
Called Marlin and with 5k miles on their 3rd member build... yea, "sorry, out of warranty" was all I got. Ouch.
I have removed the 3rd member now and I need to get it fixed. I'm not sure I have the tools / skills for this fix myself. I'd like to ask for some advice:
1. I'm in Atlanta and Southern Gear wants $500 labor plus parts and a 2 week wait. Is that standard?
2. Should I order the parts and attempt the repair myself? I've read through some threads but I'm unclear if I will have to reset the backlash if I pull it apart and replace the bearing? Or are all the required shims already there?
3. Can I diagnose this definitively before I disassemble? Ido not see any damage to the Dif gears or the Pinion Gear. They look brand new.
4. Where should I order the parts - Pinion Bearing and what else? Not thrilled with Marlin right now.
I'm willing to learn, but I may not have the equipment to do the job.
What cha think?
Don
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