whining and clicking...ring and pinion?

[1scoot]

My 97 5.7L k1500 with 42k miles developed a clicking at low speeds and a loud whining at high speeds. It is definitely coming from the drivetrain either transfer case or most likely rear end. I pulled the rear end cover and found it was a quart low on lube and the ring gear had some noticeable wear on the inner edges of the teeth. The pinion gear does not show any wear that I can see. There was some play between the ring and pinion gear. The fluid that came out was very muddy, but I didn't see any large metal pieces. After putting it back together with fresh fluid there was no improvement.

Is replacing the ring and pinion gear a large, difficult job for this rear end? I have never replaced one before, but have seen it done on other vehicles. I believe I have all the tools inlcuding a magnetic dial caliper. Is this a job worth doing myself? I am on a tight budget. Can a used ring and pinion gear set from a salvage yard be used? What else would I need for this job...bearings, seals, rebuilt kit, etc? Is there a web site with a write-up for this job that will help?

Also, how do I determine which rear-end I have? The pinion is stamped 11-41.

Thanks for the input.

[Whacked]

From my experience I would guess that the problem is the pinion bearing, having only 41K on it I don't think the gears are messed up. Does the "wear" you see smooth and shinny? that's ok, if it's all galled and clumpy looking that's bad. Do you tow anything with it?
You could possibly do a bearing change yourself but your going to need a press to get the bearings off, and possible rear end spreader to remove and install the carrier. As long as the bearings match height you can also reuse the old shims that are match for setting pinion/gear depth and carrier set with the stock gears. It's really quite the job to do if you've never done it before and you need to know what to look for in the gear mesh. You can buy bearing/install kits, your probably looking at around $200 if you do it yourself. Rebuilding a rear end is quite involved and I wouldn't recomend someone doing it for the first time on their daily driver. There is very few people who do it and it will run you about $600 or so to have someone do it if it's just a bearing change.
I don't mean to discourage you from doing it, I just want to make sure you know what your getting into.... Hope this helps....

[1scoot]

Thanks for the tips.

If it is the pinion bearing don't I need to take everything apart anyway? How would I get the bearings out without removing the pinion and having to reset the backlash, etc?

The truck is going into the shop tomorrow to diagnose the problem. If the ring and pinion are junk, I'll just swap out the entire rear end. I called around and found several used ones from $350 and up. Is there anything I should be looking for in a used rear end other than it matches the one I'm replacing?

[Whacked]

Ok if it's just the pinion bearings you still have to take out everything to get to it, but you can keep all the same shims and be fine. It shouldn't be too bad. The pinion bearings could be cut off with a small cut off wheel (dremel) if you don't have access to a press, but putting the new ones on might be hard without one. You could possibly swing into a local machine shop and ask if they would press them on for a few bucks or something. The races are pressed into the rearend housing and you can bang them out and in with a piece of brass, just be careful when you put them in, must start them straight. The pinion nut can be a bear sometimes, very tight.

Honestly I thing your better off fixing yours then getting a bone yard one, just because you know what you have, 41K on a rear end is pretty light. I'm sure the ones at the yard have high miles and you might be in worse shape a little while down the road. Also concider the cost of U-bolts, possible brakes, lines, and definately change the oil in it. I have found that in most cases the cost of buying and installing a used one is about the same as having yours fixed, unless it's the ring and pinion, then it's pricey.

I would check gear ratio and mileage is most important, although you don't really know the history of it. I would ask about warrantee also.

Hope it helps....

[1scoot]

It turned out to be the ring and pinion. So, I bought a used rear end for about $300. I"ll be putting it in this weekend. Thanks for the help.