T18 endplay issues.. shaft wont turn

Here is the deal. the mainshaft will turn fine. When i put on the rear adapter plate on, the Tranny shaft wouldnt turn very easy at all. I took the palte off and tapped the center race on the shaft a bit farther and it loosened it up, so when i put the adapter palte on it would turn fine. Well i then put on the bearing retainer and it now does the same thing and when i tap down on the center part of the front bearing it gets tight again because the rear adapter is on. I am getting bummed, because i have not enough end play, actually the shaft will not move forward or rear ward at all even with the retainer adn adapter off. How should i get around this issue?? How tight is too tight? I know if i turn the old T90 front shaft it turns just fine, but then again it has a few miles on it and is broken in. So how much effort should i be able to turn the T18 shaft with the bearing retainers on?? What will happen if i do not have any endplay?? And what can i do to fix this issue??

Thanks!!!

 

Just thinking bout this could i put a thick gasket on to push the reatiner out a littl bit to get the adapter grip to loosen up?? As for the front and rear retainer/adapters i did nto use a regular gasket on them, i used RTV for th e front and didnt get around to even thinking bout putting a gasket on the rear yet, not until i figure this out.

 

Thanks Joe!! hat is what i am bummed about is that i will burn up the bearings

 

Are the bearings seated?
I'm thinking along the lines of wheel bearings, where you tighten to 50 ft/lbs to seat the bearings then back off a 1/6 of a turn. Maybe you can tighten up the retainers, then back off a tad.
The extra thick gasket or double gasket may be an alternative if the above isn't feasable, similar to adding shims on a D18 output to get the right end play. Got any shim stock you could cut to fit the retainer?

 

Couple of thoughts: possibly a wrong bearing? Also, could a bearing roller gotten out of place where the main shaft seats in the input shaft?

 

When i installed it i made sure everything was to spec. I had a problem with the rear snap ring being too thick and the adapter plate would not seat properly. I was using the snap ring that came with the bearing and i removed it and used the one with the kit and it was smaller. But unfortuantely i checked the thickness of the front snap ring and one in the kit and it was the same size as what came with the bearing. I should have the correct bearings. I have the early case and i needed a small front bearing and a larger rear bearing. But the bearings are correct. i am thinknig i need to use a thicker gasket, so i will try that. The front bearing is on the input shaft fine because i had to instal lthe very large snap ring in front of it, and it is seated fine. I am thiking maybe the inside race is not even with the outer race so it is causing some issues, so i will have to tap around it to see if i can loosen stuff off. I thought i heard something bout differnt snap rings for the inside shaft, but i could not find anything off the internet. heck i have found no talk of any endplay issues and that was from parts mike, and a few other large rebuild writeups. I am wondering how much force the outer snap ring experiences. Maybe i can grind the ring a little thicker to give a bit more play. Any other suggestions??

 

I will looks for the other snap rings. i was thinknig bout maybe i do not have the bearings seated fully. if i put the front adn rear bearing retainers on, then tap on the shaft ends i would presumably seat the bearings all the way so then i would be able to spin the shafts. I guess i have stuff to figure out later tongiht.

Thanks a bunch!!!!

 

And you're absolutely sure a bearing roller didn't get knocked out of place where the main shaft sets in the end of the input shaft?

 

Yes I am positive that it isnt a roller out of place. because everytying sits in fine, for a bearing to be out of place it would be really messed up. But i am positive that the bearings are seated fine in the input shaft/mainshaft area.

 

Ok, next thought. To me, your description of tapping on the shaft ends would unseat the bearings. To put the front bearing on the T90 I held outward on the input shaft, had a punch also in the same hand and hit it to drive the bearing onto the shaft. In other words the punch was next to the shaft and I was holding them together. Make sense?

 

I know what you are saying. I will have the bearing retainer on the front bolted on, and the bearing retainer on the back bolted on, so if i "gently" tap on the front and rear ends i think it will seat it, since the bearings will not move since they are held by the retainers. Unlike the T90, the rear of the T18 has a way of holding the bearing inplace. I am dreading taking the Dana 18 off my old T90, because i can already see the bearings falling to the bottom of the case when removing it

 

Wire the shafts together so the main shaft can't pull out. Trick I read about.

 

Well i think i got it. i installed a bit thinner lock ring to the input shaft and tightened the bearing etainer and adapter down adn gently tapped on th eends. it loosened up adn i can turn the shafts with a touch of resistance. It is the tight seals on the end that is adding the resistance i believe. So i put the fabric seals on with lots of RTV. So i am letting it all dry and i will tighten it down tomorrow. so it looks like the Tranny is DONE. next i have to pressure wash the Tcase and reseal it, and i am going to make sure i use the double lipped output shaft seals. i have to get the number to order them Looks like i got some work this weekend