Another crush sleeve question...

[Greg L.]

In my last desparate attempt to find a 63-79 CORVETTE crush sleeve in this city I thought that I got lucky only to discover something is wrong! The sleeve that I picked up today is from the Corvette place here in town and the owner says that they use this very same one all the time.

The problem is that it is shorter in it's uncrushed state than my original one is. I also had a .050" shim between my sleeve and yoke. See pic(The new sleeve is on the left and my original sleeve and shim is on the right).


His new one is 2.342" but my original is 2.356 plus my shim which is .050 so my total sleeve and shim height is 2.406". That all adds up to my original set up being .064" taller than the one that he uses all the time, so.....something is wrong here! There is no evidence of anything being loose or incorrectly assembled in my diff. It still has the original gears and looks like the original bearings so I can't see why there is such a difference in dimensions between my original set up and this new one that he uses all the time.

What do you guys think about this? Did he give me the wrong sleeve or is my diff WAY out of spec? I could just order one from the States but if his sleeve is right then I will just end up getting another "wrong" sleeve. If he is right then how could my diff be so far out of spec and still have the gears look and sound as good as they did?

Would anyone happen to have a new CORRECT sleeve that they could measure for me to see which dimension is correct? I'm guessing that something around 2.5" would be in the ballpark...basically anything a bit over my sleeve and shim combo of 2.406" should be good.

Any help here would really be appreciated!

Greg Linton
#45455

[Gary R.]

Re: Another crush sleeve question...

Greg,
Sounds like you have 2 used sleeves there. I just measured a new sleeve I have here and it is 2.465" Normally they crush down to around 2.400- 2.410"
I would toss them and use a solid sleeve or stock type. The best way to set them up is with a 0-30 in/lb wrench. The shim you have is just a band aid fix and would look through out the unit to see if there are any more? I would rebuild the whole thing myself but that's your choice.

Good luck if you need any help you can email me, as I don't always visit this site.

Gary

[Phil P.]

Re: Another crush sleeve question...

greg,i agree with gary---i went through about 10 spacers and they all measured close to yours---sounds like the rear was apart before and instead of purchasing a new crush collar they opted for a .050 spacer---i found a new one in rear end parts and it measured 2.435 w/ an id of 1.440 at small end and 1.645 at big end---i'm pretty sure this is vet / 12 bolt gm spacer---i use to do lots of rears years ago to help pay for hot rod hobby---last spacer i bought that i have an invoice for was 96---part # 3954482--also have a box with a different number 3954480---check with your chev dealer for these as i'm not sure which is correct---with new bearings gary is correct--- break free torque load s/b 30 in lbs---used s/b approx 15 to 20 in lbs---this "rolling" torque will come in very quick as you really start crushing the spacer---good luck---phil---p.s---breakaway torque will be higher than a continuous rolling torque

[Bruce B.]

Re: Another crush sleeve question...

Try Randys Ring and Oinion at 425 347-1199. They have most everything for differentials.
Good Luck.

[Greg L.]

Re: Another crush sleeve question...

Thanks guys, that's just the info I needed to know. I was thinking that a correct uncrushed sleeve would be about .060" or so taller than my old used sleeve and shim combo of 2.406" and you guys confirmed it. At least now I know that my pinion and bearing set up is typical and that if I get the correct Corvette crush sleeve everything will be fine.

For what it's worth, the .050" shim may not have been typical but it was acceptable to use if the sleeve was over crushed for what ever reason. The shim is listed in the parts book and is to be used "as required". There were no previous punch marks to line up the pinion and nut as is common during a seal replacement so I'm thinking that either it was over crushed from new and this was GM's quick fix OR the seal was replaced at some time and the standard practice of the dealer was to insert a cheaper shim rather than replace the sleeve.

Anyways, thanks again guys. You have confirmed that I was on the right track in thinking that my original set up was correct so now I know for sure what to look for.