Gummie

I'm in the process of rebuilding my 9 bolt because I can't afford a 12 bolt with all the other stuff I have to do to the car. I'm doing this for two reasons: the posi is on the way out and the pinion bearing is completely toast to the point of the pinion gear hitting the carrier a few times (not that many but there are marks on the carrier from a few impacts).

The car is riding on stock 18 year old WS6 suspension with 109,xxx miles on it so it's probably fairly safe to say that the car is riding a little low.

It’s my understanding that LCA angle plays some role in pinion bearing life. Is it advisable to weld in relocation brackets to try to save my new pinion bearing?

Also, future plans for the car include either sport lines or pro kit springs and the possibility of a 12 bolt down the road a few years. Will welding in the brackets now create problems for doing any of these things in a few months/years?

AlkyIROC

The pinion angle is the relationship between the diff pinion and the driveshaft. Under hard accelleration, the pinion wants to rotate up so you want it set close to zero degrees at this point. A few degrees down angle is required to do this.

LCA angle is a suspension angle not a driveline angle. The LCA act like the lower links on a 4 link system. The angle of the LCA directs where the car's anti squat line is.

Gummie

I understand what you mean but at the same time I'm slightly confused. I have a few mini-trucker friends and they all complain about killing pinion bearings due to constantly changing lca angle or something along those lines. All I really want ti know is whether or not welding in brackets will prolong the life of my differental because I will be able to run a more correct LCA angle (to offset the saging suspension).

If I do weld in brackets now will I encounter problems down the road when I eventually lower the car (with the current rear)? What about when I eventually swap the rear out to a 12 bolt after I blow up my 9 bolt again?

Thanks a bunch for your time and info. It should be pretty obvious that I don't really know what I'm talking about

AlkyIROC

LCA relocation brackets have no affect on pinion angle. They just allow you to change to angle of the LCA which is a suspension tuning aid. To change the pinion angle you need an adjustable torque arm.