Are high pinions a drop-in fit?

[sege]

I helped my buddy install a high pinion over the weekend, and it wouldn't fit into the housing.  He ground the two notches on the housing a little wider and deeper to clear the ring gear.  I thought it was a drop-in  ...  FWIW, the front housing is from an '82 I believe...

[Willy Mammoth]

Nope that's what you have to do. A little nip and tuck and it goes rite in. Remember the high pinion is the same size as the V6 third.

[Marlin]

Occasionally we will have to trim the corners of the housing to get the diff to fit, but if you carefully turn the pinion by hand, the unit should walk into place.

Remember that as the gear ratio gets higher, 410, 456, 488, 529,  the thicker the ring gear will be, and the harder it should be to fit in the factory housing.

I also seem to recall that the eariler housing has a smaller cutout for the ring gear to fit thur.

The factory 410 diff is a drop in for sure

[sege]

Thank you for the insight!  I was not aware of this issue and just HAD to be sure - helps when the advice comes from the Master himself!      And this one's for Willy!

[guywithuglyyota]

If I remember correctly I had to rotate my HP 4.88 clockwise a bit to get her in there, then rotate back after it slides in.  81 front axle