Iron Clad, the first time the gears were welded together ... @ 100%!!!! That lasted for almost a year until the welds failed
and then we used a stick welder (took it to a reputable shop and said... do this) and this held for almost 3 yrs before it failed.
What happened was: as you looked at the back of the 3rd member next to the ring gear, the carrier literally separated from the twisting action or stress being put on it, it pulled it apart. Some wheeling buddies said they had never seen anything like it before, myself included. The most funny thing about it was when it finally broke, the whole diff started working again just like a regular open diff, yeah it made some popping sounds but worked just like normal. I/we "never" welded to the carrier itself, only the gears.
Welded it wrong?
. I just chalk it up to: abuse, design flaw, poor casting .... who knows. If I still have it I should post a pic of it so we can all give our .02 cents worth.
