BWGuy wrote:Nuther dumb question... has anyone every tried putting some gear oil in these instead of the grease? They've got some pretty good seals on both ends. I would think you could drill and tap ahole about the height of the gear centerline and fill it up, and maybe have better lube to the bearings. Or would it leak out past the plunger and into the actuator?
The seal on the passenger side is roughly the same design as the driver side. So I don't think you'd have issues of leaking - provided your bearings are in good condition. I had considered doing this before... I was planning to review the condition of my bearings upon my next service - and make a determination then. I think a few "breather" holes drilled between the main cavity and the external bearing cavity could allow it to get oil to the bearings. The fill level would have to be even with the lower lip on the exterior seal.
BWGuy wrote:Also, to clarify, are you saying you did move the spring and have been running this for two years, or that you put a socket in there, or both?
If I remember correctly, the spring will not work - I do not exactly remember why, but I know there was some issue with the plunger surface properly mating with the spring. I just have a slug of steel in there.
Beware, it will throw an 4x4 error light whenever you engage the front wheels because the plunger cannot actuate fully. But it does not affect the operation of the transfer case.
Now that I think about it again - the seemingly best cheap-ass solution might be to use the spring, but put a washer between the spring and the plunger face, so as to fix the aforementioned mating issue.