I blew out my ankle last night playing basketball, and couldn't do the 3/4 mile walk into work (yes, its that far - worlds largest building by volume). So after watching as many hunting shows on TV as I could possibly stand, I figured I could manage to sit on my stool in front of the work bench and start fixin' on the Flux. I have the extended TVP's to install, the FLM diff cases, and the new Flux diff gears. I also needed to get it all apart and get the rest of the sand out of it (not familiar enough with the Savage yet to know where the tricky dirt hiding spots are).
First thing I noticed while taking it apart was that I sheared the upper shock tower mounting screws off. That sand must be a heck of a lot harder than one thinks. Hopefully, the FLM cases will take the loads better (knock on wood).
Next thing I noticed is that there is a ton of grease in the output cups, both on the diff's and on the tranny. So they were packed with dirt and grease - definitely something to monitor - anything that is metal to metal and holds dirt in place is a bad thing.
Putting the new TVP's one was quick and easy.
First shot shows the length difference - much more than I was expecting!
[IMG]
[/IMG]
These TVP's actually raise the tranny/motor/esc slightly - stock, the center shafts sit level. You can see the angle they sit at now. Might be about a quarter inch difference.
[IMG]
[/IMG]
After getting those installed, I moved on to the diffs. This pic shows the sheared off screws, and the greasy mess inside the housing. Very easy for dirt to get in, and must not be the best gaskets in the diff.
[IMG]
[/IMG]
While trying to pull the diff apart, I wasn't paying enough attention to what I was doing and stripped one of those damn phillips head screws. I managed to drill out the head, and pull it apart. But...I couldnt get the vise grips on what remained of the screw. So now I gotta order up a new cup (nobody carried any in stock locally).
So thats pretty much where it sits now. Will update as I progress....or digress....