Mark Whatley says that the idler shaft backing out is uncommon in the Split Cases. But, bad luck seems to follow me around. I can deal with it as I’m definitely getting and education at the school of hard knocks.

I returned from Moab on Sunday May 5th, thinking I got of easy on damage this go around. An ARB airline, a temp gauge, and a leak in my RS9000 controller. Not too bad I thought. As I pulled out to go to a NW Cruiser meeting on Wed. May 10th I found out I wasn’t so lucky or was I? I made it six houses from mine and clunk and whine. I realized what happened as I watched gear lube dump out of the back of the split case. My housing tab did not come off, the tab actually cracked the aluminum housing and shifted allowing the idler shaft to come out. I guess I was lucky, it didn’t happen on our trip to Moab. I thought I was even luckier when I realized I had a spare split case that was only missing a main shaft. I could take the gears from My BJ60 case and put them in my FJ and finally mate it to my h55f. WRONG! The gears are different sizes. The BJ has a 1.99:1 low range. That would work but it would be a step in the wrong direction. And as much as I like the smell of gearlube, I don’t want to do this twice or event three times.

So, does anyone out there have a matched set of low mileage US spec’d FJ60 split case 34 mm idler shaft gears sitting on a shelf? Maybe you just replaced them with the Gearmaster gears? Probably not. Maybe I’ll be getting the Gearmasters to replace these gears? New Toyota gears are almost half way to the Gearmaster price and I’d save a little by not going to the NP203 gear reduction box I had hoped for. Anyway, suggestions are welcome.

I better get out to the garage and clean up that sweet smelling gear lube all over the floor.

Later!

Eric V.

Yikes! These things are expensive. Whenever I sell I sell too cheap, whenever I buy I pay too much. Tap wants $750 plus shipping. A semi local junkyard in Idaho wants $550. The Gearmaster gears the best I could do was $1050, MAF said $1195 for the same thing. Neither has them in stock. No matter how I look at it I'm hosed. Any better ideas?

Eric,

bum luck. I have the gearmaster 3.08:1 set in my 60 (tbi/h55f). They are sweet. Very low. Almost as low as sm420/J30.

Have you tried Mudrak? He might have a better price on them.

707-996-5272

Also, the 1.05:1 high range worked out nicely, just barely raising the highway RPM... i actually get better mileage now, then before.

What's the word on how noisy the Gearmaster gears are on the highway? Tolerable? Miserable? Worth it on a daily driver?

Yeah, they make some noise for sure. Worse then a really old splitcase.... but probably no worse then an sm420/j30 set up.

I have the tranny boots nicely tightened down, and two layers of cheapo carpet foam as insulation... still loud. going to try some Brown Bread next (www.b-quiet.com).

Or maybe an amp for the stereo.