Pearl: The Unicorn XJ
- Thread starter Buddy_Holly
- Start date
Buddy_Holly
Well-known member
G Beasley said:
Yeah but you won?t ever wheel the Brute hard enough to need the big tires or one tons. It just looks cool
Buddy_Holly
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badmonkey said:
I like the rev limiter. It sounds cool 😁
Buddy_Holly
Well-known member
Well to say I?m disappointed is a gross understatement. The brand new Novak ax15 I bought in May is hurt. Long story short I started hearing a weird ticking noise on Tuesday. It?s rpm and load dependent, and goes away in 4th gear which sounds like something on the countershaft came apart. Drained the oil and found what appear to be pieces of gear on the drain plug. There?s 10k on this trans since it was installed during my Moab trip. The guys at Novak said they?ve never had a trans come back that was actually broken, so I might be the first. Just my luck.
Keep in mind this is supposed to be the very best ax15 on the market, and rated for 500hp. I?m skeptical of the claims now considering I?ve been very nice to this unit and still have a bone stock 4.0. I?m strongly regretting not trying to find an nsg370 or nv3550 to swap in.
If there?s any good news in this, it would be that I broke my personal record for pulling a trans solo. 1 hour 40 minutes start to finish!
Anyways, the trans is out and it?s getting sent off to Novak tomorrow for them to disassemble and evaluate if this is a warranty claim. Hopefully I?ll know something by the end of the week. In the meantime I'll be borrowing one of Beasley?s rigs to daily while Pearl is down.
Keep in mind this is supposed to be the very best ax15 on the market, and rated for 500hp. I?m skeptical of the claims now considering I?ve been very nice to this unit and still have a bone stock 4.0. I?m strongly regretting not trying to find an nsg370 or nv3550 to swap in.
If there?s any good news in this, it would be that I broke my personal record for pulling a trans solo. 1 hour 40 minutes start to finish!
Anyways, the trans is out and it?s getting sent off to Novak tomorrow for them to disassemble and evaluate if this is a warranty claim. Hopefully I?ll know something by the end of the week. In the meantime I'll be borrowing one of Beasley?s rigs to daily while Pearl is down.
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Cervesadiablo
Well-known member
Maybe the ax-15 didn't care for your three tires in the air rev limiter assault on rocky mountain loop. Yes three where on the air I didn't get in camera
Buddy_Holly
Well-known member
Cervesadiablo said:
That?s not unusual for me 😀 But this trans is marketed as being strong enough to handle a 500hp ls. I can?t believe a stock 4.0 would be able to break it, even in my hands. I didn?t even do any burnouts with this one!
Buddy_Holly
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badmonkey said:
Maybe I should have abused it?
Buddy_Holly
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G Beasley said:
I?ll make sure to charge you double on the dodge you just bought
Buddy_Holly
Well-known member
Pearl and Blurpie are getting some quality time together this week since they?re gonna be family members 😀
Ok, so updates. Lots of them. I quit my job working for The Beasley Machine about a year ago and went to work for Holley. Did that for a few months and moved into a higher position at one of their sister companies in Mooresville, NC. I?m back to selling drivetrain stuff!
Pearl is back running and driving. I started to do a 6 speed swap but it wouldn?t fit under the floor and tunnel so I got another ax15 and installed that. I?ve actually been daily driving her quite a bit now. Did some intensive cleaning to the interior after she sat with birds living in her for 6+ months at Beasley?s. Just put some TJ seats in with nice Bartact covers to spruce things up.
Biggest issue right now is the front end is darty and hard to keep in a lane. Found out the passenger front inner c is bent along with pretty much everything having some small issue. So it?s time for a D30 build! I forgot I had [member=35]Cervesadiablo[/member] ?s old axle up in PA (thanks [member=680]bipoler.dophin[/member] for reminding me) so I did a turn n burn up there on Saturday to grab it. Drug Pearl out on Sunday to Beasley?s Jeep and Trailer Storage. Currently paying my rent by cooking dinner and wiring headlights on TJs [laugh]
Now that I work at a drivetrain shop again I have access to the fancy tools I need to properly build a housing. First up: check this one to make sure it?s straight, weld the truss and c gussets on, then start on the gear install. Going with 4.10s again but I?m going to get them REM polished (because why not) and will throw a spare lunchbox locker in while I?m there. I have to magnaflux the gears first since they are used and they could have a hairline crack somewhere. It is a Dana 30 after all. Besides that, all new steering, new duroflex uppers and lowers all around, and some fresh paint. Also going to try out an Antirock this go-around. Pics coming as progress happens!
Ok, so updates. Lots of them. I quit my job working for The Beasley Machine about a year ago and went to work for Holley. Did that for a few months and moved into a higher position at one of their sister companies in Mooresville, NC. I?m back to selling drivetrain stuff!
Pearl is back running and driving. I started to do a 6 speed swap but it wouldn?t fit under the floor and tunnel so I got another ax15 and installed that. I?ve actually been daily driving her quite a bit now. Did some intensive cleaning to the interior after she sat with birds living in her for 6+ months at Beasley?s. Just put some TJ seats in with nice Bartact covers to spruce things up.
Biggest issue right now is the front end is darty and hard to keep in a lane. Found out the passenger front inner c is bent along with pretty much everything having some small issue. So it?s time for a D30 build! I forgot I had [member=35]Cervesadiablo[/member] ?s old axle up in PA (thanks [member=680]bipoler.dophin[/member] for reminding me) so I did a turn n burn up there on Saturday to grab it. Drug Pearl out on Sunday to Beasley?s Jeep and Trailer Storage. Currently paying my rent by cooking dinner and wiring headlights on TJs [laugh]
Now that I work at a drivetrain shop again I have access to the fancy tools I need to properly build a housing. First up: check this one to make sure it?s straight, weld the truss and c gussets on, then start on the gear install. Going with 4.10s again but I?m going to get them REM polished (because why not) and will throw a spare lunchbox locker in while I?m there. I have to magnaflux the gears first since they are used and they could have a hairline crack somewhere. It is a Dana 30 after all. Besides that, all new steering, new duroflex uppers and lowers all around, and some fresh paint. Also going to try out an Antirock this go-around. Pics coming as progress happens!
Buddy_Holly
Well-known member
It begins
Buddy_Holly
Well-known member
Dirty 30 build is moving right along. Magnafluxed the ring and pinion, no cracks which is a relief. Started prepping and cleaning parts afterwards but have a long ways to go. Found out GM 12 bolt ring gear bolts are the same dimensions as the originals. I had some ARP fasteners on the shelf so I?ll be using those. Picture for comparison. The head contact area of the originals is exactly the same as the ARPs. Ring and pinion should be be going into REM tomorrow hopefully.
Also swapped out the carrier bearing cap bolts for grade 8 since the originals were only grade 5.
Will any of that help it survive? Probably not [laugh] But I?m here so I may as well do maximum effort where I can 😀
Also washed the housing and stuck the alignment bar through. Looks to be fairly straight. Gonna get a second opinion tomorrow before going further but I?m confident. I?ll be taking the housing over to our powder coater to get blasted tomorrow. Once it?s back I can do final figment on the truss and start welding.
Also swapped out the carrier bearing cap bolts for grade 8 since the originals were only grade 5.
Will any of that help it survive? Probably not [laugh] But I?m here so I may as well do maximum effort where I can 😀
Also washed the housing and stuck the alignment bar through. Looks to be fairly straight. Gonna get a second opinion tomorrow before going further but I?m confident. I?ll be taking the housing over to our powder coater to get blasted tomorrow. Once it?s back I can do final figment on the truss and start welding.
Srfnfly227
Well-known member
Nice seeing you posting again. Always enjoyed your build. And your rebuilds [laugh]
