watajob

iTrader: (29)

Time for that 3.73! Looking for a good shop, preferably southwest 'burbs but will drive a bit for a reputable/quality place. Thanks!

novadk13

Finish line performance in naperville

xpndbl3

iTrader: (5)

finish line would be the most expensive.

check out straightline performance in new lenox.

DuronClocker

iTrader: (1)

Straightline is great with gear installs. Ask Brandon

xpndbl3

iTrader: (5)

yea i seen his junk rear pics, what do you want me to say? they've done tons of others with no issues. Every piece on my car or someone's I personally known has broken or blown up after a shop has touched it from motors/trans/rears/whatever all within the break in period, not being beat on etc. IMO i don't feel any 10 bolt is worth putting a dime into, besides "maybe" a diff cover. Gear swap and setup plus time to drive vehicle there etc etc puts you $500+ easily on something that is the weakest GM rear ever made. moser housing is $1000 with axles, getting a junkyard center section or an ebay $400 center that's been gone through would be stronger. I've popped 4 or 5 ten bolts so I know what it takes to break them.

watajob

iTrader: (29)

All very true, but, a 305 with a few bolt ons, shouldn't pose much of a problem. Also, should I be looking for an aluminum drive shaft? Something about vibration and "critical" speed due to the increased RPM's of the shaft? Thanks for the input!

xpndbl3

iTrader: (5)

ls1 aluminum shaft sure. a thirdgen or lt1 shaft i would pass on. It's hilarious that people still try to charge $150 for a 20+ year old aluminum one out of a thirdgen, when you can buy a under 10 year old one from a ls1 for the same prices. I'd check out www.ls1tech.com and try around there. They are bigger in diameter and have a vibration dampener on the trans side as well as being a direct bolt in.

novadk13

just ask for the pinion depth and back lash when getting gears, kind of to double check their work other than just using the marking paint.

DuronClocker

iTrader: (1)

For the money Brandon ended up having into getting that done, fixed, and done again, he could have had a 12-bolt in his car. Who knows why it really happened. FWIW, if I was staying nitrous next year, I was either going to get the car tuned by Mike@Straightline or Harris Speed Works in Pennsylvania, so I definitely have some trust in him still

My 2.73s in my '88 broke on me one day after getting home from the track. Didn't cut anything better than a 2.2 60' all day, so its not like the rear took a ton of abuse (and it was an auto). Then a few days later, on my way to work it was making a horrid whining/howling noise (I only worked 5min away). Got to work, parked it. When I was leaving work, I put it in reverse, stopped, put it into drive, and every two feet or so CLUNK CLUNK. Had to progressively give it more and more throttle to move. I got to the end of the parking lot before the car wouldn't really move any more from gear bind. About a 1/3 of the pinion gear was sitting on the bottom of the housing along with a couple teeth off the ring gear. All that was done to the car at the time was an SLP cat-back, and a cold air intake.

I ended up replacing it with another 10-bolt, but it had LS1 brakes and I got it for like $200 On the Z, I just went straight to a 9". When I pulled the 10-bolt out, a couple teeth from the posi gears inside the diff were sitting in the bottom of the housing, but the rear still worked (the posi wouldn't work around corners though).