I was underneath my jeep the other day, and just for the hell of it, I was rotating the front driveshaft about a half of an inch, I thought that was kinda strange so I tried the rear, and nothing. I'm trying to figure out if there is a certain amount of play that is allowable or should it be spot on tight. I'm horrible at differentials, so any help would be appreciated, and yes I tried the search button, 10 pages later I gave up.:smokin:

The reason the front driveshaft turned a bit is because there is a certain amount of play in the splines on the side gears and the splines at the hub, no idea what kind of jeep you have but it shouldn't matter. The reason the rear didn't have that play in it is because you probably had your jeep in gear and the rear end was under tension. Put the jeep in neutral and try turning the driveshaft again, it'll move a bit.
That's all.

there will always be a lil play in any d-shaft, atleast all the trucks ive looked at (and some of those were still on the lot). i wouldnt worrie bout it unless you feel like pulling it apart to see why and learn about diffs.

whew, I was hoping that would be the answer. I really didn't feel like paying for a new diff.:barf: Well, thanks for the input.:grinpimp: