I am getting ready to do a rear disc conversion and was wondering if the posi unit has to come out or can I just take the axles out? Just push in on the axles, remove the c clips, and pull the axles out? That way I can install the caliper mount bracket. Thanks in advance.

I think there is a large dowl you need to let drop but not all the way out remove the C-clips and pull the axles and push the dowl back into place.

So I take out the large pin in the center of the carrier, push the axles in, remove the c clips, and pull out the axles?

Don't let the large pin drop all the way out though...

What will happen if it does?

It's been a while since I did mine but I believe there are shims that can drop out of place...

My posi unit has a set bolt that holds the dowel pin in place. If i loosen that bolt, let the pin slide out enought to get the axles to move, and tighten the bolt back up, that should keep the pin from falling out. Right?

Loosen the set bolt. On my 8.2 10 bolt, I couldn't completely remove that bolt unless I removed the passenger side bearing cap, which I chose not to do. I rotated the carrier until there was enough room between the bearing cap and the bearing cap bolt to slide the bolt far enough out of the way so that it no longer engaged the dowel. I have an Eaton posi - don't know if that makes a difference.

It's OK at this point to completely remove the dowel. Reach your hand around the back side of the carrier and push the dowel out the front, or toward you. What's important is that once the dowel is removed, DON'T ROTATE THE CARRIER. The spider gears and shims will fall out and you'll have a real mess on your hands. So before you pull the dowel, make sure that the carrier is in such a position that you can remove and replace the dowel without rotating the carrier.

Push in on the axles, and the C clips should fall out. A magnet on a stick might be helpful in fishing them out of there. When replacing the c clips, make sure the axles are pushed all of the way into the center. Put the C clip in the grooves, then pull on the axles. Reinstall dowel and tighten the set bolt. Don't reef on it - you'd be in a pickle if it breaks.

Hey Al,
You say to remove and replace without rotating the carrier. Once the dowel is back in the posi unit can it rotated? Doesn't it have to be so I can reinstall the set bolt?

What I did was loosen the set bolt and rotate the carrier to the point where I could slide the set bolt out far enough where I could remove and replace the dowel without having to rotate the carrier again. There was one particular postion where this could be accomplished.

It's hard to describe....the set bolt has just a few threads right under the bolt head, and a longer narrow untreaded "pin" section that acually goes into the dowel. If you have the set bolt lined up with the center of the passenger side bearing cap you can't slide it to the right far enough to disengage the dowel. You have to rotate the carrier so the set bolt is lined up with the narrowest part of the bearing cap just shy of the bearing cap bolt. You still can't completely remove the set bolt, but you can move it to the right far enough to disengage it from the dowel. When it's in this position, you can also remove and replace the dowel without rotating the carrier. What I can't remember for sure is if you need to line it up with the top or the bottom bearing cap bolt. Remember, mine is an 8.2 10 bolt with an Eaton posi. I'm not sure if an 8.5 10 bolt or a 12 bolt annd other combinations of posi, open, locker etc is the same.