The good news is...

[tommag]

I did'nt have to chain up yesterday.

Just less than two years ago/ 295,00 miles ago, I spent $18,000 on mew custom trans and rear ends from a NASCAR speed shop in the hope of improving fuel mileage. The wheel bearings done by them worked with a measurable improvement.
No improvement from the three gear boxes... Oh well, at least I have new gear boxes. Got ready to leave Sunday morning and thought I'd broke my power divider. Towed to the shop and it looks like the front differential crumbled.
At least theres money in the bank to cover it.
Pass has been closed foralmost 24 hrs because of avelanches.
I guess I could've broke down in the path of one of the avelanches!

[LUBEDUDE]

Glad your positive and you had the cash to cover it.

And most of all, you're safe!

[enfield]

I assume your talking about some kind of tractor (trailer) set up and not a chevette ??

[tommag]

I assume your talking about some kind of tractor (trailer) set up and not a chevette ??
Yes, tractor. Lots of money, but its equipment, and equipment breaks.

[starmac]

Hope you have 40's and not 46's. I am going to have to pull my rear diff before long to see why the locker will not engage.
Are you running rockwells or eatons. I have had great luck with eatons, but they are more expensive if you do have trouble.

[tommag]

Rockwell 40's. No lockers. The input shaft broke. Seems like a shame to only get 300,000 miles, but it happens.

[starmac]

Sometimes metal fatigue gets the input shaft, and it is usually not replaced in a rebuild. Yea 300,00 miles sucks, but on the haul road, people thinks you did good to get 300,000 miles. Six States and most others will not even warranty any rears or trannys if you run the haul road.

[runfiverun]

300-k in the oil field would yield a frame.
we bounce and trounce the trucks out here so bad a truck with 50-k on it looks like it's 30 years old.
quite often the lockers just burn out the brass disk and fiber plates in between the differentials, fairly easy fix once you get to them.

[tommag]

I thought about working up in North Dakota, the gross pay sounded great, but when I put a pencil to it, I figured I was netting about the same hauling my reefer around.

[starmac]

Runfive we run a way heavier truck here usually, they generally last till you crash them, if you take care of them. lol I think you are talking about a detroit locker (brass disc and fiber plates) I run air lockers, a whole different animal. Their great, but a whole lot spendier than a detroit, but then again they last a lot longer too. I really think mine has a bent fork or something, you can't even budge it with the manual bolt. I was going to lock it in manually, and finish this haul, but no go. I will just run with one till this pipe haul is over, we have to be done, and the line finished before the ice road goes out.

[runfiverun]

I understand that.
most of our trucks are in the 85-k range with some up to 115-k not super heavy but I really hate filling out permits every 200 miles.
as much as i hate winter [cold] I hate spring even more.
in the winter the dirt is hard, in the spring it's mud, we chain up and lock in 200 times more for that than the ice or snow.

[starmac]

I hate to have to run north in the summer, even if it doesn't rain the state waters it to where it turns to mush. I never have to chain in it, but it is hard on trucks and it takes a half a day to wash a thousand pounds or so of mud off every trip.

[Houndog]

I don't see how you got Rockwell rears to hold up for 300K in an off road or rough road haul! I tried one series of trucks with them and they were a disapointment, to put it mildly! I ran Eaton 44's in Kenworth T600's for over the road heavy hauls (including pipe and heavy equipment to Alaska) and when the going got REALLY rough, Mack DM600's with all wheel drive! Our average heavy haul load ran between 200K and 300K with the biggest load ever going 700K. I'm just glad I'm not in the business any more!

[starmac]

More rockwell 46's here by far than there is eatons, and there is only a handfull of macks in the state, exactly none running the haul road. The rockwell super 40's seem to hold up well too.

I wish the OP hadn't started this thread though, I crawled under mine to grease it and am now in the middle of changing the input seal on the front diff. lol