AZRick Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 A tail of woe and despair with a happy ending (not that kind of happy ending you pervert). Ever since I returned the Comanche to service, it’s had a vibration that’s been driving me nuts. Assuming it was the front, all kinds of shenanigans ensued, all to no avail. The jeep has 5.5 inch springs up front and a spring-over in the rear. The front drive line is not exactly lined up all that well, but one must keep the caster somewhat controllable on the street. For some reason it freaks people out when a little white pickup darts between lanes with no warning. My thoughts were, the front driveline that was causing all the havoc but nothing I tried really worked. Eventually I got around to pulling the front drive line and went for a spin, the jeep was still doing its best shale shaker impression (look it up). Guess the vibs are coming from the rear. Nothing would appear to be amiss with the usual suspects though. Rugged Ridge SYE, brand spanking new driveline, lined up perfect and connected to a newly rebuilt rear end. Everything looked good, so out came the dial indicator. At the pinion .004 run-out, that’s cool. On the portion of the yoke that disappears into the transfer case, again .004, sweet. At the transfer case end of the driveline, .045 not so sweet. First thought, the new driveline is hosed, but I unbolt it and spin it 180. Check of the run-out, still about .045” but now on the opposite side of the driveline. The off center followed the yoke not the driveline. Take everything apart and take a serious look at the SYE yoke, nice it doesn’t appear to be machined correctly. The little tab at each end of the yoke that restrains the u-joint caps are a bit farther apart than the u-joint is long. There is .018” extra space in there. Measuring the tabs, one is fatter than the other, answer, whip out the Miller and add a bit of material the skinny tab. Then into the mill with it to trim it back to spec. Now the u-joint fits nice and snug. Back into the jeep, everything bolted up, run-out is now .021”. Still to much, but we go for a spin anyway. The vibs are less, below 60 I can use the mirrors. I’m in a quandary, the run-out is now not lined up with the saddle in the yoke. At appears the yoke was machined incorrectly on both axis and there is no way I can fix that. I ordered up a new yoke. When it shows up, yea you guessed it, it’s not machined correctly either. It’s .015” wider between the tabs than the U-joint is long and it appears to be off center also. I put it back in the box, its going back. After much time spent scouring the intranet, I hit on a thread with my exact problem. Way down at the end of the thread was a bit of information that is vital to this story. A front output yoke from a NP242, in every way that matters, is identical to the rugged ridge yoke. Off to the Pick a Part, yea it just rained yesterday but I want this solved. There are about 8 Cherokees in the lot, a couple are 2WD, a couple don’t have a drive train in them anymore, everyone I crawl under to check out has a 272, there was even a 272 laying out in the open. Finally the last one on the lot, the one with the standing water under it, is sporting an unmolested 242, I molested it. :brows: Back home, swap out the yokes, and the one from the 242 fits beautifully. Hook up the drive line, put the dial indicator on it and it reads .004” run-out . We go for a spin, no more vibrations. Moral of the story; don’t buy a Rugged Ridge SYE, just don’t… :no: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ride172 Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 Well crap. . .... I have one in my xj. I got vibes now that I'm pretty sure are just a u joint. Then I had to go and read this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ggcnash Posted March 3, 2014 Share Posted March 3, 2014 Does the front yoke out a 242 work for a 231 that would be cool Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZRick Posted March 3, 2014 Author Share Posted March 3, 2014 Well crap. . .... I have one in my xj. I got vibes now that I'm pretty sure are just a u joint. Then I had to go and read this. Sorry :yes: It doesn't take long with a dial indicator setup to check. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZRick Posted March 3, 2014 Author Share Posted March 3, 2014 Does the front yoke out a 242 work for a 231 that would be cool yes, 242, go to a junk yard, they are spendy when buying new. Reread the question, a front yoke from a 242 will work on a Rugged Ridge SYE output shaft for a 231 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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