Those clamshell pullers are nifty units and a definately a price that matches. Looking at the tool and its functioning, correct me if I am wrong but I believe it does not provide a splitting function, but acts only as a puller. On both the Chrysler 9.25" carrier and the D44 I have found the OD of the inner race of the carrier bearings to be the same if not smaller than the flange they butt up against. Here is a pic of the D44 carrier bearing inner race still on with the cage and rollers removed:



You literally need a knife edge to get in between to first separate, then you would be able to use the clamshell. I'm sure there are many carriers out there where the inner race is exposed and read to grab on to, but unfortunately not these ones. I tried using my splitter to separate on the rear but I ended up scarring up the case slightly and couldn't get in between, so I cut them. I grabbed a cheap table top press as well so the separator worked great in conjunction.

About the solid spacer, I have no problem using either a crush sleeve or a spacer, however I would have expected Ratech to do a little more homework on their product and give me all of the necessary components to swap to a spacer instead of just the shims!

I can't argue that there are good, honest mechanics out there for sure. To be frank, I have expectations / a way of doing things that I don't feel can be met or lived up to by many. I know it all too well that if you want it done right and your way, do it yourself. Plus, this stuff is fun and I keep a lot more money in my pocket!

 

Next up was removing the pinion. 1 1/8" nut. Turns out the bolt spacing for the front and rear yokes are the same so I could use the holding tool I made for the rear (bonus!)




Once the nut and washer were off I needed to use a 2 jaw puller to yank the yoke




I lined the inside of the case with rags and smacked the pinion out with a block of wood and a sledge.

Empty case




Old Pinion with crush sleeve and bearing



The races didn't look too bad, a bit cloudy and some dings and dongs but nothing like the rear end



Used the splitter to get the old pinion bearing off



I did gouge up the factory 0.058" shim a bit doing this. Nothing a file couldn't fix. I bought a cheap 4 ton press at PA for $99 to make this job a lot easier. Plan was to return it but I will keep it, really nice little unit. I set it up like so






I kept the old pinion nut in place and pressed on it as to not mess up the pinion. I then compared the old pinion to the new one (4.56 left, 3.55 right)







There was no depth variance marking on the new pinion gear. The original had "+2" on it, so all I could do was start with the original shim and work from there.




Cut a piece of pipe out of some old fence post which happened to be just the right size to contact the inner race of the pinion bearing



For the first trial I left the carrier bearings and shims as is and put everything back in the case. Procedure is to put pinion in with both bearings and no crush sleeve, tighten pinion nut on yoke till free play is eliminated. Spread case, put carrier in (tap with a plastic dead blow), seat carrier with bearing caps then loosen bearing caps to finger tight and relieve the case by unspreading. You must unspread the case as it applies preload to the bearings and will change your backlash reading.

I quickly found that the gearset wouldn't turn as I had no backlash, so I spread again and took everything out of the case. Wasn't so lucky like I was in the rear. Time to make use of those extra carrier bearings I bought.

The original plan was to use a cylinder hone to open up the inner races of the bearings to make setup ones that just slip on and off of the carrier. Talking with the older, wiser me (dad) we concluded it would take too long to hone out hardened steel even a few thou, so we figured I should grind out the centers of the race and leave a small ridge on the extremities to hone to final size. I got out an appropriate grind stone to chew out the centers







Using a steel plate on the underside I was able to push the nose of the stone up against it as a guide and work around the circumference of the ID.



Now that the centers were no longer working bits, I used the hone to work the two small strips remaining



Took about 10 mins of honing which would have easily tripled if I was honing the whole race. Trial and error fit here until you get a nice snug fit. Finished setup bearing:

 

Oxy,
I have yet to run into a bearing that I couldn't pull off a pinion gear or a diff. I have done D44, D60, 8.8, D30, D35 & a few others. I guess I have just been lucky so far. It is what it is made for.

I use to do axles in the dealerships I worked at and now I just do them for buddies and such. I really enjoy it too so I understand that part.

 

Could of sworn you said you never did this before. You sure sound like a damn professional to me guy.