Rear diff not spinning freely?

I was cleaning up my rear diff housing this weekend and I noticed that if I spin either axle that they turn almost all the way around with no resistance and then they hit a sticking point. I can overcome the sticking point if I turn the axle with a little more force but it doesnt seem normal. It just hits a wall all of the sudden. It also happens if I attempt to turn the drive shaft flange. I have never driven on this rear diff as it came with my vr4 shell. It is completely out of the car with no drive shaft attached, just the two rear axles are installed.

I'm curious if this is a normal occurrence or if I should open it up to inspect it. I have no experience with the operation of the rear diff.

Once per driveshaft revolution or axle revolution?

No, it is not normal, but if it sat for a long time the section of pinion that was not submerged in fluid may have some corrosion on it. If it were me I'd continue with the install and run it for a while to see if it frees itself up, because there is not much inside that is feasible to replace than just picking up a whole new diff.

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Originally Posted by anyonebutme

Once per driveshaft revolution or axle revolution?

No, it is not normal, but if it sat for a long time the section of pinion that was not submerged in fluid may have some corrosion on it. If it were me I'd continue with the install and run it for a while to see if it frees itself up, because there is not much inside that is feasible to replace than just picking up a whole new diff.

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It gets stuck every 2 driveshaft rotations, and every 1 axle rotation.

Not the pinion then. Might be something stuck to the ring gear or one of the side bearings. Taking one of these apart is quite the chore and putting it together requires a dial indicator, gear mesh paint, and patience.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v5...psa3f902b0.jpg

Thanks for the input. You're right, they're cheap enough to just get another one.

Might be worth a shot pulling the cover and spinning it to see if it's something obvious.

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Originally Posted by anyonebutme

Might be worth a shot pulling the cover and spinning it to see if it's something obvious.

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Will do, I'll post my findings if any. Thanks again.