pinion angle clunk?

[challydust]

hey guys....just put a ride height lowering kit in....looks great...but i took a pinion angle measurement off the flat side of the pig..and it read over 7 degrees...just a lil over....that was before i changed things...now that its back together i took another measurment and its the same.....so nothing changed.....BUT....my car has always had a clunk when i manuallly shift it...at a low rmp....goes away if ur on it.....always has done it...annoys me....could it be my pinion angle has always been over 7 and this is my problem.....every thing now is new...rear, tranny, converter...and still the clunk...help!???  lol

[MEK-Dangerfield]

A bad universal joint?

[challydust]

all new hd joints.......just seems like its the only thing that hasnt been messed with since i bought the car in95.....its always clunked from 2nd to high gear....always had a 727 reverse valve body in it so ive always had to shift it...thought i would get rid of it replacing every thing, and goin to new....so thinkin the angle being a lil over 7....might be doin it?

[MEK-Dangerfield]

For some reason I remember the angle needing to be 4*, but don't quote me on that. Hopefully someone will chime in here.

[challydust]

yeah one guy told me on here...4 to 7....im just a scosh over 7 now....and always has been im asssuming cause i  checked it before i did the ride height adjustment and after...same o....

[Chryco Psycho]

so I assume you are 7* nose down .... I doubt this would make any noise ,the clunk is somewhere else ,could be the back lash in the gear set , worn trans mount , or possibly a tailshaft bushing

[challydust]

well if i have this right...u take ur pinion reading and then ur driveshaft reading...and subtract.....pinion was at 7.5 and the shaft was at 4  so subtract an u get 3.5...that was before the ride height lowerin kit...now...just like mancini said the pinion wont change and it didnt...7.5 now too....BUT,..now the driveshaft is at 2 instead of 4 like it was prior to the kit....so now im at....5.50.....kinda lost...so many people have told me so many things, my head is spinning ....tranny mount is new...the whole drivetrain has less than 500 miles on it....new pig...new tranny...?? im baffled.....BUT like i said its always has clunked shiftin it manually..(its always had a rerverse valv body).....from 2nd to 3rd  just easy going...now under a load into the throttle say over 2500 rpms....its golden no problems......just puttin it, like say in town...unless u run it around in 2nd at 3200!...which i dont...so i shift it into high gear....clunk!......now its alot worse...clunks even more..doin that....so i magnafied it after installing the lowerin blocks

[Moparal]

The snubber isnt hitting the tunnel is it?

[challydust]

well i thought of that...it had a adjustable one that pretty big...but it would have to be cause tthe arc of the ss springs....a factory one would never hit the floor...but since i changed the ride height...the adjustable one was jamd in ther pretty good...cause i forgot to take it out before adding the lowerin blocks.like a dummy...lol......i took it out...all together..but havent been able to test drive it cause of weather.....but i will could be it....that or my worn out shocks im re[placing or just the pinion angle is too much like i mentioned....what else could it be....the thud got worse as soon as i tested the car with the blocks in ..soooooooo and as  far as backlash...i called the builder and he said of course it couldnt be anything he did...lol.....it is all new....

[The Cuda Guy]

Here is how I determine the angle.  Hope this helps.   

Proper pinion angle is determined by reading the flat on the transmission tailshaft, and the flat on the rear pinion. Car must be resting on the suspension while measuring. Take both readings and deduct the lower from the higher 2 degrees to 3 degrees anti squat is preferred.

Don

[challydust]

Thanks for ur input.....ive had so many opinions on this...im a lil confused to be honest....any one else please chime in...thanks

[heminut]

I have a clunk in my TF on 2 to 3 shift when not under full throttle. It's caused by the 5.0 lever I have in the trans. I've been told it's because of the shift overlap caused by the higher ratio lever.

[challydust]

thanks hemi nut.....well i do not know that much about the guts of my tranny..i had a proff shop build it....would i have that same part in my tranny u speak of then ?..5.0?
thanks for ur input.....im not sure if its my tranny or my rear, or my pinion angle ..thats what im trying to figure out.....thanks

[Changin Gears]

With the parking brake on and trans in neutral, how much free play is there in rotating the drive shaft?  Anything more than ~.25" and you've found your problem.  Could be caused by backlash of ring and pinion or slop in the spider gears.

Pinion angle won't cause this, it would cause a vibration at speed.

[challydust]

thanks changingears....great advice.....i checked that a different way and i thought personally it was way too much play...BUT i did it with the car in neutral, and it on jackstands with the wheels free wheelin...even when i had the driveshaft out...grabbin the rear pinion...i could move it back and forth a good 1/2 inch which i thought was too much...but i will check it ur way for sure...thanks alot....helps me track down this annoyin problem....of course i called the guy that built it..and its all new guts..everyting but the case....he said sounded like a ujoint issue to him....lol....of course it would be anything he did........cars got less than 500 miles on it since i had everything new put in it!