We finally got our 73 ScoutII (304/AT) out Saturday and did our best to sink it in the Florida mud with lame tires and a few tie wraps, bungee cords & wire placed in critical places here & there. Got er sunk to well over the hubs with only one buddy tow out so I guess the $1,000 beater with way to much into it to make it functional was...Ahem... worth it.

All went very well and mechanically no problems despite my replacing every brake line, new shocks,complete brakes, wiring work etc.-Usually my projects struggle a few times before they get too far from the garage.

What did show up though was this: When we were pulling into the yard in 4WD high we heard a clicking from area of the left rear wheel. I almost thought one of the new hold back springs on one of the shoes (all new) let go but it really wasnt a rubbing sound but a click.

We did not change the lube in the rear as yet, could it be in the differential? Waaaaaaaaay back in the 70's I had an El Camino with a posi and "ratcheting" noise developed in the rear which was solved by adding a GM Posi additive to the rear. Could it be that simple? I have yet to get a decent shop manual for the Scout-we are using a real lame Motors manual from '75 which has no info on the specific Scout driveline.

I am assuming of course that the Scout II has posi as a standard item, am I correct? If so I will change the gear oil and get some Posi additive.

I am open to suggestions if anyone has input for other possibilities.

I twisted splines on a shaft once and it did the clicky thing - I swore it was everything else till I actually looked.

Its probably a broken trashlok, or really bad axle bearings. Open was the standard, anything else was optional.

Scouts had posi (trac-lock) optional, but not all of them had it.

My K5 has an Auburn posi in it, and if I run it without the additive (friction modifier), it will make a popping noise almost like a locker because the clutches get real grabby.

If you think the noise is coming from the diff, check out this old thread of mine. (scroll down past most of the initial description to where I mention the axle noise, and then I have some pics after that)

http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=300814

That one had a metallic clicking just like the ratcheting of a locker, but when we opened it up, there was no locker. :) It was not a Trac-Lock - was an open diff.