I just picked up a 4.56 ring and pinion for my '92 Flareside w/8.8 rear axle. The gears are from Ford Motorsport. The Ford catalog says "fits all 8.8 axles". No problem, but then I saw the Jegs catalog listing (richmond gear) which has a footnote for the 4.56 and 4.88 ratios that says "Will not fit '87-up trucks and needs special cross pin". I assume this is because of the ABS sensor that was added in '87. Anyone have any ideas? Will they fit?

 

I had 4.56 gears installed in my 8.8 by a local shop. when he was ready to install the cross pin, it would not fit because the 4.56 gears are made thicker and partally cover the pin hole. All you have to do is slightly grind down the pin just enough to pass by the gear. Just make sure you grind it on a side that will not effect the drive axle play. I did this about 6 months ago and have had no problems. Hope this helps.

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97 F-150 Black, 4x4 XLT ext.cab,sb,offroad pack.
4" Susp. lift, 3" body
4.56 gears w/LS,
Flowmaster 50 Series w/ duals out rear
35" Wild Country Tires,
16.5x9.75 Weld Scorpio V wheels,
Pre-Runner Bumper w/KC Lights,
Westin nerf bars,
Rancho 9000's and remote,
Lift Lips,
K&N Filter,
Superchip,
TransGo Shift kit,
Bug shield,Tinted windows
Sony ES head unit,Sony ES changer,MTX Thunderform sub,Boston Acoustic Pro-Series up front, Polk in rear,PPI & Coustic Amps,Alpine Alarm

Check it out at:

http://members.aol.com/squanto804/scottwebpage.html

 

Thanks,
I kinda thought that would be the case with the cross pin, but I wasn't sure if it could be modified or if a different one had to be purchased.

 

Squanto804..

I have the same truck as you and I want to do the 4.56 gears. How much did it cost you and whats your rpms on the highway at 75mph? Did it make a big performance difference?

Thanks Darren
you can email me at DDCOLORADO@aol.com
Really appreciate the info

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97' F150 Lariat S/C long bed 4x4 3:55LS 4.6L auto...SuperChip, Air Raid, 40 series Flowmaster cat back.
Colorado Springs, CO

 

You can find Richmond gears for sale in a lot of catalogs for a lower price. Before I spent a nice chunk of change on my new gears I spent over 3 solid months doing my own reasearch on what is the best gears on the market. The dealers, shops, and people in this business who took the time to explain about the gears and who showed a genuine interest in there work and their customers all said the same thing, stay away from Richmond gears. I started to see a trend here so I took there advice, mainly because they said the gears are not US made, and produce a lot of gear (meshing) noise, hence less quality. There are a lot of good quality gear companies out there and the one I trusted and found to be the an excellent gear was (US/STRANGE GEAR), made right here in the USA. I have had absoultely no problems w/ these gears and NO meshing nosie, I don't even know they are there, Oh wait yes I do, it's when I mash the throttle down and the tires break loose.

F&B's

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98 F-150 XLT, SC, SWB, 2WD, 4.2L auto, 4.10 gears w/ LS, Tow Pkg. BFG AT 265/75/16, K&N air filter, Dynomax muffler, Superchip, Edlelbrock shocks, Hellwig sway bar, 3" body lift, signal mirrors...tons of cosmetic products


[This message has been edited by franks&beans (edited 01-22-2000).]

 

Ah yes, I've heard the same thing about richmond gears. The shop thats doing mine (as we speak!) said to use OEM gears, meaning if it's a Dana axle, buy Dana/Spicer gears. That's what I did, Dana gears in the 44 front, and FMS gears in the 8.8 rear. I can't wait to get my truck back! 3.08 to 4.56, it should kick some A$$ now.
Jon

 

rockcrawl,

WOW with a big "W", you HAVE to post a msg here when you get your truck back!! you are going to be smiling from ear to ear ;-) Just remember to ask about PROPER break in procedure for the new gears ~ this is VERY important~
I was told to drive the truck "EASY' for NO MORE than 10-12 miles, (if going on the HWY then drive at normal speeds, just easy starts) If driving in city traffic, NO jump starts!! the new gears have to SEAT themselves and wear off the coating from the factory) Then let axles cool COMPLETELY then repeat one more time. If you go ape sh*t of the line w/ new gears you will overheat them and weaken the steel this means shorter life(remember new gears generate LOTS of heat and this will quickly heat up that new oil and brake down the properities faster than you can say peter rabbit.) The pinion gear is turning much faster w/ the 4.56's. sorry for rambling on here, but the shop who installed mine was very serious about break in procedures.


Best of luck.

F&B's


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98 F-150 XLT, SC, SWB, 2WD, 4.2L auto, 4.10 gears w/ LS, Tow Pkg. BFG AT 265/75/16, K&N air filter, Dynomax muffler, Superchip, Edlelbrock shocks, Hellwig sway bar, 3" body lift, signal mirrors...tons of cosmetic products

 

Well, I got my truck back today...Wow, what a difference. I haven't driven it much yet because there's a foot of snow here and still falling, but it's a neck-snapper I can tell. It shifts into third gear before it gets to 30mph when just cruising through town. I hope I didn't go too low. I noticed a loud grinding or clicking or racheting noise from the front axle when going from throttle to coast and vice-versa at 30 mph and above. I thought it might be the automatic hubs, so I put a set of manual lockouts on..still does it. I couldn't test it in two wheel cause there was too much snow. I guess I have to give the shop a call and see whats up.

'92 Flareside 4x4 5.8 E4OD 4" lift 33" tires with 35's possibly in the future.