My first 1/5 build... Jeremy's Vekta

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Ferrebee88

Ferrebee88

Well-Known Member
Messages
433
Hello all,
It's been a long time coming, and I have finally started building my Vekta! Just have bag A mostly finished. This will be a slow build.

Question: I purchased the aluminum diff housing and there is some binding on about an inch of the ring gear/pinion gear mesh. Will this work its way out while driving?

20230129_144734.jpg20230129_171714.jpg
Edit: I took the diff out and put the other one in, and it spins perfectly with no binding. I guess I'll figure out the ring gear binding when I get to the rear axle.
 
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Just want to tell you now since you have binding, you ABSOLUTELY need to pay attention to the instructions, it will tell you which way certain parts need to go. Just go back over the instructions from where you are and make sure nothing is direction specific.

I just looked so there's nothing direction specific, are pinion bearings pressed all the way in? Did you tighten the ring gear on the diff evenly?
 
Rep732 said:
Just want to tell you now since you have binding, you ABSOLUTELY need to pay attention to the instructions, it will tell you which way certain parts need to go. Just go back over the instructions from where you are and make sure nothing is direction specific.

I just looked so there's nothing direction specific, are pinion bearings pressed all the way in? Did you tighten the ring gear on the diff evenly?
Click to expand...
I double checked everything and can't find anything that looks incorrect. I tried the diff in the plastic housing and just slightly snugged the screws and and it spun freely. When I put that same diff in the aluminum housing and tighten it down (not too tight, but snug) it binds hard and can barely move. I'm stumped on this one. There is not enough play to put a shim opposite of the teeth to loosen the mesh. The pinion bearings are pushed all the way in. When I tightened the ring gear I snugged the screws evenly a little at a time and then tightened them. I'm stumped.
 
Ferrebee88 said:
I double checked everything and can't find anything that looks incorrect. I tried the diff in the plastic housing and just slightly snugged the screws and and it spun freely. When I put that same diff in the aluminum housing and tighten it down (not too tight, but snug) it binds hard and can barely move. I'm stumped on this one. There is not enough play to put a shim opposite of the teeth to loosen the mesh. The pinion bearings are pushed all the way in. When I tightened the ring gear I snugged the screws evenly a little at a time and then tightened them. I'm stumped.
Click to expand...
is there a shim on the pinion on the alloy case mate?
if so then remove that shim,
if no shims are there then remove the pinion bearings and double check that there isn't a burr formed when fitting the bearings causing the bearing or bearings to not seat fully,
 
spents said:
is there a shim on the pinion on the alloy case mate?
if so then remove that shim,
if no shims are there then remove the pinion bearings and double check that there isn't a burr formed when fitting the bearings causing the bearing or bearings to not seat fully,
Click to expand...
There are no shims. The pinion bearing seats all the way (one of the first things I checked).
 
Ferrebee88 said:
There are no shims. The pinion bearing seats all the way (one of the first things I checked).
Click to expand...
was worth a shot,
only thing i can suggest is try the rear pinion in the front alloy case to see if theres a variation on the machining ,
just try and mix n match the diff parts to see if you can get it sorted (y),
thats what i had to do when i built mine, had the same issue but i used a taylor rc front alloy case,
took a while and a few trys but it ran smooth in the end,
 
Ah now I remember, make sure you have the diff cups sitting in the right direction inside the case. I made the mistake of not watching the small details in the manual and I ended flipping one of the diffs which caused the front to go in the opposite direction of the rear. This could be the issue....Screenshot_20230130_014750_Drive.jpg
 
It's peculiar this is happening to you as I just went through this myself yesterday with my aluminum diff housing but for the rear. Im the machining process I guess the sides weren't truly level between each side and the ring gear was at a slight angle and I had about 5 teeth that would cause me issues and bind up a bit. My suggestion is to just sit the diff into the case half and lightly apply pressure to each drive cup one at a time, were you able to get one side to rise off the diff case? Do this with the pinion side and then the cover side. I'd bet the diff isn't sitting straight.

1 thing I did not check which I wish I did was to make sure that ring gear was perfectly flat and you may just have a slight high spot on those few teeth. I even went as far as to lapping the aluminum diff cup thinking I had a high spot.
 
I sent Kraken RC an email to ask for their opinion and they are sending me new ring gears. That is pretty awesome.

Here was the response I got from Mike King:

"Ok no problem. The issue maybe the ring gear. I will send you one, I’ll get one tested here first.

Please provide me with mailing address :)"
 
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as what rep said mate, try and identify the issue.
does the ring gear have a wobble in it, or are there burrs on the teeth etc (y)
 
I took both the diffs apart and the ring gears seem fine. I don't see any burrs or raised spots. They seem to sit flat. I even held onto the bearing and spun them with an air compressor and they seem fine. The only issue I could spot was where the bearing goes on. It was a really tight fit so I polished it with some fine grit. Now the bearing slides on more freely.

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Fitment seems pretty good when the ring gear is separated from the diff.
 
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I know with the vekta a bearing retaining compound needs to be used have you used any yet? Also are you 100% sure those pinion bearings are pressed all the way in?

so what the issue is your having is the ring gear is getting too close to the pinion gear and its binding. So what needs to happen is the ring gear needs to move away from the pinion gear just a bit. Can you get the ring gear to move away from the pinion slightly, when it's in the case see if you have any side to side movement.
 
all of the above what rep said mate ☝️,
especially the checking the pinion bearings are fully seated, take the bearings out and make sure that the bearings aint formed a burr on the inside of the case preventing em from fully seating,
also if theres any in and out movement of the pinion shaft towards the crown, shim the outside of the pinion shaft between the outer bearing and the drive coupler to take up any slack (y),

edit; don't take too much off the surfaces to make the bearing a loose fit on the crown, a tightish fit is better than a sloppy fit (y) ,
you may need a little bearing compound on the surface now if its too slack,
 
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spents said:
all of the above what rep said mate ☝️,
especially the checking the pinion bearings are fully seated, take the bearings out and make sure that the bearings aint formed a burr on the inside of the case preventing em from fully seating,
also if theres any in and out movement of the pinion shaft towards the crown, shim the outside of the pinion shaft between the outer bearing and the drive coupler to take up any slack (y),

edit; don't take too much off the surfaces to make the bearing a loose fit on the crown, a tightish fit is better than a sloppy fit (y) ,
you may need a little bearing compound on the surface now if its too slack,
Click to expand...
I took just enough off to take the burrs off the shaft. You still have to use pressure to get the bearing on. When the diff housing is together, there is absolutely no movement in the pinion. When the diff is in the housing, it is in there snug with no side to side movement. I took it all apart and rebuilt it. When I put the screws in the diff housing, I do a small turn on each to keep it even. If I just hand snug it, then there is minimal binding, but there is a slight gap. If I close the gap then there is more binding.

Would it be a dumb idea to tighten it up and spin the pinion with a drill to try and break it in a bit? It is almost there.
 
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