If you do a google search you will find tons of people recommending a magnet in the diff housing but you will also read a lot of folks finding their diff in pieces and suspecting it was the magnet that got shook loose an caused the carnage! I even found a lot of talk about the diff cover having a place stamped in it to hold the magnet!

Interesting that I have never seen a magnet in any of the diff housing I have pulled the cover on...

 

I just rely on the fill plug cause it has a magnet.

 

? On a Chevy 10 or 12 bolt?

 

Ford has a magnetic plug, but not GM. I almost always put a magnet on the cover at the bottom edge on the side opposite of the ring gear. I use 2 part epoxy to hold it in place. The 8.5 and 7.5 covers have a place stamped in them for a magnet and all of them with the G80 option have the magnet installed.

 

Freddie-

Have you found many shavings on them upon disassembly?

 

Yes, some were covered so much that it looked like a dead rat got in the rear end.

 

Hey guy's. I work for Eaton in the transmission division , and we've been putting them in the semi truck trans for ever. They use to be round and now we are using a square magnet that is 3 times as powerful as the old one's . Here's my 2 cents. There's a lot more to go wrong in a 13 speed trans than a rearend. I wouldn't put one in there with only 2 gears running.

 

Thanks for the replies,

I've stuck it to some metal, and it isn't exactly the most powerful magnet I've ever felt. So it's understandable that it could come free. Imagine it getting caught! OMG.

As far as using one in a complex gearbox, that makes total sense to me. But only as long as you could remove it with the plug to recover the iron sludge.

So I'll leave it out.

 

GM has been using magnets in rears for years. Every 70's Trans Am came with one, and every posi Z28 came with one on the cover.

 

Did you read post number 5? Use 2 part epoxy (J B Weld) to stick it to the cover. Don't leave it out. Even if it doesn't seem very strong it will recover a lot of metal that is floating in the oil and keep it from running through the bearings and gears.

 

Will do.

 

I'd mount it on the cover off to the side away from the ring.
If the area is cleaned good and maybe roughed up some to help the epoxy grip, should never come loose.